Benefits of swimming for weight loss, mental health and more
The benefits of swimming extend far beyond the commonly perceived ones i.e. weight loss. Swimming is one of the best activities you can do to be active, build muscle tone, and improve metabolism and mental health.
An exceptional cardiovascular and total body workout, swimming is the fourth most common form of exercise in the USA. Did you know that freestyle swimming burns as many calories in an hour as running does, and it does so without putting any stress on the joints and bones? Swimming is an excellent low-impact form of exercise that burns a lot of calories and can give results pretty quickly.
Moreover, it's one of the best ways to relax and have fun. Its mental health benefits are greater than we can even begin to imagine. Here, we discuss the many and varied health benefits of swimming so that you can dispel your doubts and start doing it right away.
Health benefits of swimming
There are many benefits of swimming. Read to learn more:
1) Full body workout
Swimming is one of the few activities that provides a full body workout. It's great for getting blood pumping, shaping up the muscles and boosting stamina and strength.
Use different swimming strokes like the breaststroke, backstroke, sidestroke, butterfly and freestyle to spice up your routine. Using the gentle resistance of water, you can strengthen various muscle groups with these exercises. One of the best benefits of swimming is that you employ a vast majority of your muscle groups while doing the activity.
2) Help lose weight
Swimming for weight loss is a real thing. As a calorie-burner, swimming is an excellent activity. As it works the upper body, lower body and core at once, swimming is the best cardio activity for overall muscle definition and toning.
Swim strokes like the backstroke and butterfly strengthen the back, abdominals and thighs, while strokes like the breaststroke and butterfly strengthen the shoulders, arms and chest.
A person of 160 pounds who swims laps at a moderate or slow pace burns about 423 calories per hour. If you combine that with a calorie-deficit diet and do swimming 4-5 times a week, you're sure to lose weight.
You can also try weight loss swimming workouts.
3) Great for mental health
Swimming is a great physical and mental health booster. It has been proven to be an excellent meditative activity, and the weightlessness of water serves to calm the mind.
A meditative state of mind can be attained rapidly in swimming due to the hypnotic repetition of the stroke, soothing sensation of the water and intense focus required to perfect the technique. The practice can serve as a welcome distraction from daily stress and an effective tool for cultivating awareness.
Studies looking at the benefits of swimming on mental health have found that swimming is an effective and quick way to de-stress.
4) Works great for people with arthritis or injuries
One of the greatest benefits of swimming is that people with injuries, arthritis, disabilities or other conditions that make high-intensity exercises difficult can benefit from swimming, as it's a low-impact activity that poses no risk of injury.
Swimming has been shown to have pain-relieving and injury-healing benefits. The pain, stiffness and physical limitations associated with osteoarthritis have been shown to decrease with participation in low-impact activities like swimming.
5) Improves sleep
Sleep quality can be enhanced by regular swimming. Aerobic exercise was found to improve both quality of life and sleep in a study of older adults with insomnia.
Considering that nearly half of all elderly people experience insomnia at least occasionally, that's fablous news. That's one of the best benefits of swimming that many people can use to their advantage.
6) Improves flexibility and endurance
One of the benefits of swimming is that the use of water as a medium greatly improves one's flexibility. Water's properties — such as buoyancy, resistance and temperature — have long been recognized to increase mobility.
The fluidity of the movements aids in lengthening and stretching the muscles, giving the illusion of greater tone, health and vigor. Swimming, as a form of repetitive exercise, also aids in the development of muscle endurance. Swimming endurance can be improved by increasing your time spent swimming and the intensity with which you swim once you've mastered the proper technique.
In conclusion, swimming is a great low-impact exercise that can help you achieve your fitness goals. Anyone of any age can benefit from this activity, as it requires very little preparation and has a negligible impact on the body.
Either as your primary form of exercise or complementary form of cross-training, it can help you achieve your fitness goals. The greatest benefits of swimming are that it improves cardio endurance, flexibility and muscular strength while burning a lot of calories.
After you've mastered the fundamentals, you can try swimming laps for 30 minutes at a pace that's easy for you but challenging enough to raise your heart rate. Relax, and take it easy if you need to.
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