What are the Benefits of Aqua Exercise
Exercising, in general, is good for your body, and mental state. One form of exercise that is becoming more and more popular is aqua exercise, in particular, aqua-jogging. This is when you perform movements whilst located in a pool, it doesn’t matter if this is indoor or outdoor, I guess this will depend on which country you live and the time of year. Keep on reading to find out more about aqua exercise!
Aquatic Jogging – What Is It?
Aquatic jogging is the exercise of running in a shallow pool of water. The exercise is especially good for pre and post-surgical patients. Aquatic jogging is a low impact form of exercise with water resistance.
How Does It Benefit Seniors?
Aquatic jogging is excellent for seniors. Seniors generally have more brittle bones. As they age, their skeletal features become compact. Overweight individuals often report positive results as well, saying that it helps them lose weight fast and efficiently.
The buoyancy helps reduce stress to the joints because of heavier weights. It also helps develop stronger cardiovascular conditioning.
What You Need To Get Started
You need special equipment to be able to do aquatic jogging. A belt is used to keep the body in an upright position, which supports you in the water. It is also used as a flotation device for the body. Shoes are also used. They are lightweight with good gripping soles for the feet. The shoes look a little bit like sandals.
You will also need gloves. Both gloves and shoes are indispensable for this exercise, and you should get your hands – and feet – on each before getting started.
Is It Hard?
Contrary to popular belief, aqua-jogging is really not hard to do. However, it is important that you keep upright with your balance. This is why the flotation belt is so important to the exercise. Some countries, like Finland, have championships that go from 50 meters to the marathon. They have a set of relays that use three runners instead of four.
Health Benefits
Some of the other benefits are a reduction in stress, a better range of motion in all joints, a change in attitude about exercise, lower heart rates, reduced hypertension and an increase in overall strength. For older individuals, it develops and helps maintain body flexibility. All of this is possible because of the fluency of water.
Aqua-Jogging in Professional Environments
Aquatic running is also used for training. Triathlon athletes use it as a form of conditioning. They can work their body hard and decrease the possibility of injuries. Injured athletes can use it to keep their fitness level high without the risk of adding to their already injured body parts.
Some athletes like to go aqua-jogging off-season. Then when their regular sports season is ready, they are ready to go. Triathletes don’t have to do the three main sports of swimming, biking and running. They can incorporate the overall fitness of the three into one activity. The heart rate, for the triathlete, should be 96 percent of your heart rate tempo for a 5K race.
Other Forms of Aqua-Jogging
There is an advanced form of aquatic jogging that is done without touching the bottom of the pool. It is similar to treading water for long periods of time. The belt, gloves, and shoes are used like paddles. They have a wider base to help with moving the body across.
The person still stays upright because of the flotation belt.
Although aquatic jogging has been around for some time, it is just now being exploited for the advantages it offers to all walks of life. We recommend it to seniors because it’s easy to do and the health benefits are tremendous, but that doesn’t mean youths or adults can’t partake in this sport, even if it’s just for fun.
Good luck!
