Did you know that experts usually recommend an adult to spend two and a half hours of moderate activity, or one hour and fifteen minutes of strenuous activity every week? And did you also know that swimming is an excellent option to exercise your cardiovascular system and entire body? The calories that an hour of swimming can burn are comparable to that in running, without having that impact on your joints and bones.
Swimming is an awesome form of physical activity for people of all ages. Once you know how to swim, this can be a simple and economical endeavour that you can do at your own pace. While it helps you stay healthy and in shape, swimming also benefits mental health.
In the United States, swimming is the fourth most popular activity. The benefits that you may gain from it could be among the reasons why people choose swimming. Here are seven health benefits of swimming that you should know:
1. Entire body is worked out
Swimming is a total body workout. From head to toe, your entire body is truly exercised when you swim. You are required to use your legs, arms, core, and balance when swimming. And when you swim regularly, your strength will be improved, your muscles toned, fitness enhanced, and metabolism increased. Your heart rate is also increased when you swim without your body being stressed. It also builds endurance.
Compared to the air, water is 800x denser. No matter what stroke you use in swimming, most of your muscle groups are used to move in through the water that provides a gentle resistance. Each type of stroke focuses on a different muscle group and these strokes include freestyle, sidestroke, breaststroke, backstroke, and butterfly.
2. Improves cardiovascular fitness
Swimming is a perfect kind of low-impact cardiovascular exercise involving the heart, lungs, and circulatory system. While you are working out your muscles when swimming, your cardiovascular system is put to work, too. It strengthens your heart and lungs. There are even studies showing that swimming may decrease the risk of death, where swimmers only have about a 50 percent risk of death compared to inactive people. Other studies link swimming to the lowering and management of blood pressure and blood sugar.
Cardiovascular fitness can also be improved by any type of aerobic activity, aside from swimming, such as biking and running. Cardiovascular fitness will help you stay in shape and build on your wellbeing for a lifetime.
3. Burns a lot of calories
If you want it to be, swimming can be one of the most challenging workouts that may efficiently burn a lot of calories in the water. At a low to moderate pace, a 160-pound individual can burn around 423 calories an hour while swimming laps. At a more strenuous pace, that same person could burn up to 715 calories in an hour of swimming. But for an elite swimmer, an hour of swimming can burn up to 1,000 calories. Depending on your gender, body weight, and intensity, you are probably burning anywhere from 300 up to 500 calories per hour of swimming.
In comparison to other low-impact exercises, that same 160-pound person would only burn about 314 calories by walking for one hour at a speed of 3.5 miles per hour. An elliptical trainer may only burn 365 calories in one hour. And yoga may only burn 183 calories for the same duration.
4. Boosts your mood
Researchers believe that swimming makes a person happy. This is linked to endorphins which are proven to be released when one exercises. Endorphins boost our overall mood and It’s proven that exercise releases endorphins, which improve your overall mood and makes us happy. Socially, swimming is likewise a wonderful way to build a community. It also develops your goal-setting skills and improves your confidence.
Studies also show that swimming and other aquatic exercises physically and psychologically benefit people with dementia.
5. Eases your stress
There was a study that surveyed a hundred people immediately before and after swimming. Out of the 44 people who are feeling stress and are mildly depressed before swimming, only eight remained so after swimming. The study concluded the powerful potential of swimming in relieving stress quickly. Thus, when you feel like having a tough day, consider going for a swim!
6. Suitable for people with injuries
Since swimming is considered a low-impact activity, it is a great exercise even for people who have an injury or a condition like arthritis. When you swim, the water gently supports your muscles as if it is zero gravity. While swimming helps you build muscles and endurance, the water will also help you in preventing injury.
7. Helps improve your sleep
A study on older adults suffering from insomnia shows that these participants developed both the quality of life and sleep after regularly doing aerobic exercise. As such, swimming may help you sleep better at night and is a great option for those looking to improve their sleep but who are physically challenged that makes other forms of exercise, like running, less alluring.
For most people, swimming is a safe activity. But it still has certain associated risks especially if you have certain medical conditions. In this case, consider asking the professional advice of your doctor. You may visit an online walk-in clinic in Edmonton for this purpose. Generally, checking in with your doctor right before starting a new exercise program is always a good idea.
