Since we live in a country famous for its beaches, let’s be smart and make the most of them! For most of us, however, swimming is more fun than exercise with lifeguard certification, but no one says they can be combined and instead of 2 hours of racquets, this year launch a new program where you play racquets for one hour and racquets for the other an hour you will be tearing up the waters of the Aegean and the Ionian, with your skillful front and backstroke.
If you’re still bored of getting into the process, of actually swimming, when you go to the beach, read the reasons below and you’ll see how you’ll gain a lot if you start applying what you learned as kids at the neighborhood swimming pool they were forced to send you.
Exercise seems easier
Swimming offers something that no other aerobic exercise does and that is the ability to exercise your body without affecting your skeletal system. The body in the water is lighter than outside and more specifically, if you sink to the waist, you “weigh” 50% of your actual weight, while if the water reaches up to your neck, then you “carry” 10% of it your weight. The remaining 90% is managed by water.
For this reason, the pool is the ideal place for people suffering from arthritis or obesity to exercise. Finally, underwater exercises, in a heated pool, help to deal with joints stiff from arthritis.
Again compared to other methods of aerobic exercise, swimming is an ideal way to build muscle mass. Since when we run on a field, the only resistance we face is that of the air, when we swim, we are required to move our bodies through the water, which requires many times the resistance and strength. Therefore, in addition to aerobics, swimming is also included in muscle mass strengthening exercises.
Enhances flexibility
Gym equipment works out specific muscle groups, while swimming achieves a total body workout, helping joints and ligaments to remain loose and flexible, as each hand movement in coordination with the legs and head, stretches the body throughout. of the extent.
In addition to the stretching offered by swimming itself, before you finish your workout, stretch in the water as it is easier to do specific exercises for a longer time there, which outside of the water require a balance that is difficult to achieve.
It keeps the heart healthy
In addition to the obvious muscles that swimming exercises, internal muscles are also exercised, such as that of the heart. Since swimming is essentially an aerobic exercise, it helps to strengthen the heart, make it work better and circulate blood throughout the body. In particular, American scientists claim that 30 minutes of exercise a day, such as swimming, reduces the chances of coronary heart disease in women by 30-40%.
It helps in weight control
Swimming, too, is one of the most ideal ways to lose calories and keep your weight under control. The number of calories burned each time is a function of your physical condition and the intensity of the exercise, but as a general rule keep in mind that for every 10 minutes of swimming you burn: 60 calories with front stroke, 80 with backstroke, 100 with freestyle and 150 calories in the butterfly style. One way to increase the burning of calories even more is to apply short breaks between exercises whose intensity and duration will gradually increase.
It helps fight asthma
The humid atmosphere of the swimming pool helps reduce allergy and asthma symptoms. Research has even shown that swimming as an exercise improves the condition as a whole, reducing the intensity of symptoms, snoring and the frequency of seizures requiring hospitalization. Finally, swimming also helps people who do not suffer from respiratory problems, as it expands the capabilities of the lungs and teaches correct ways of breathing.
Balances cholesterol levels
The aerobic side of swimming helps to balance the good and bad cholesterol in the blood, especially raising the levels of the former. In addition, relevant research has shown that aerobic exercise, such as swimming, enhances the maintenance of the elasticity of the arteries, which is one of the properties that the body loses as we grow older. In fact, aerobic exercise forces the arteries to contract and dilate, thus keeping them in ideal physical condition.
It lowers the risk of diabetes
Few methods protect against diabetes as much as aerobic exercise does. Research in a sample of men showed that the risk of developing diabetes drops by 6% for every 500 calories burned per week through aerobic exercise. If you practice the front swimming style, for 30 minutes, 3 times a week, you burn around 900 calories, reducing by 10% the chances of developing type 2 diabetes. The same beneficial effects apply to the female sex, of course, while if someone suffers even with type 1 diabetes, swimming contributes positively there as well, as it increases the body’s sensitivity to insulin.
It relieves stress and lifts the mood
One of the best effects of swimming is the release of feel-good chemicals, such as endorphins. In addition, the constant stretching and relaxing of the muscles, combined with steady breathing, evokes the relaxing effects of yoga.
Swimming is still a meditative exercise, as the swimmer focuses on his breathing, while the continuous and steady splashing of the water creates the mantra conditions that lead to distancing from everything that distracts him.
Increases life expectancy
If you are not afraid of diabetes and feel confident that you will never get arthritis, then a good reason to start swimming that you will hardly ignore is related to your longevity. Research from the University of South Carolina, which studied a sample of 40,457 men, aged 20-90 over a period of 32 years, discovered that those who swam lived much longer than those who used to run or did not practice any type of exercise. Swimming includes both cardio and strength training. “Swimming is a great total body workout that tones muscles while building strength and endurance.
