Swimming activates the muscles of the whole body while promoting a feeling of relaxation.
Swimming is an amazing form of cardio, but unlike running and walking, it can be a bit less accessible. After all, you have to find a pool supervised by a Lifeguard Pretest and learn a few different stroke styles for a dynamic (and safe) workout.
Although it may require a bit more preparation than other forms of exercise, swimming offers unique benefits that other activities, such as walking and cycling, cannot.
Five Potential Health Benefits of Swimming
A swim workout doesn't provide the same sensory experience that you can get from hiking, biking, or running, but that doesn't mean swimming isn't exhilarating. In fact, swimming offers many mental and physical advantages over other forms of exercise.
1 . It's a full body workout
Unlike other endurance activities, swimming is a cardiovascular exercise that activates the entire body. You'll use the muscles in your arms (biceps and triceps) to propel your body through the water, while the muscles in your shoulders (deltoids) and back (latissimus dorsi) will give your stroke more power and speed. Your trunk powers the aerodynamics and hydrodynamics of your body, while the muscles of the glutes and legs are activated when you kick, propelling you forward.
Although swimming doesn't provide the same strength training benefits as lifting weights, there are ways to increase endurance and strengthen muscles while swimming. For example, many swimmers use hand paddles to increase resistance in the water and develop a stronger, more efficient stroke.
2 . Swimming can help you meditate
Doing a repetitive, rhythmic activity while submerged in water can be meditative for many people. In fact, some people call it mindful swimming.
In an interview with the New York Times , Terry Laughlin, founder of Total Immersion Swimming, explains that "by mindfully swimming, we can transform routine swimming sessions into an immersive form of meditation in motion."
He also suggests that swimmers should set the intention to be fully present in the water and then focus on breathing and stroke mechanics. He notes that listening to the sounds of swimming and practicing gratitude can provide additional mental health benefits.
According to an article published in the News in Health journal of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH), this type of mindfulness practice can help people control stress, cope with serious illnesses, as well as reduce anxiety and depression. People who practice mindfulness also report a greater ability to relax, a greater zest for life, and better self-esteem.
3 . May help reduce body fat
Frequent swimming (combined with a healthy diet) can help improve body composition (ratio of muscle to fat). However, it is important to keep in mind that vigorous swimming, compared to occasional aquatic training, is the mechanism that usually brings the greatest benefits.
For example, a 2015 study published in the Journal of Exercise Rehabilitation found that middle-aged women who swam vigorously for 60 minutes three times a week for 12 weeks reduced their body fat by about 3 percent. The swimmers also showed improvement in flexibility, cardiovascular endurance, and blood lipids.
4 . In general, it is a safe and low-impact exercise
Many of the most popular contact sports and individual athletic activities carry some risk of musculoskeletal injury due to impact. This can include contact with the pavement, with other players, or with the equipment being used, which can lead to bruises, broken bones, and even more serious injuries. In this sense, swimming provides a safer training environment.
The likelihood of these types of injuries during swimming is minimized because moving in the water is considered a low-impact exercise, reducing the effect of body weight through buoyancy, according to a 2015 review in the Journal of Exercise Rehabilitation .
That is not to say that swimming is a risk-free sport. Depending on how hard you swim, you could get biceps tendinitis or a rotator cuff tear. But besides injuries, there is one more risk when you swim in a pool.
For example, a 2014 report published in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization (WHO) explains that swimming in pools, and other recreational water facilities, carries a risk of drowning or exposure to communicable diseases, that is, diseases infectious diseases that can be transmitted from one person to another through blood, body fluids, or airborne pathogens.
The good news? The authors also noted that careful regulation of pool and spa safety can substantially reduce these risks.
5 . It can improve your blood pressure levels
Swimming can help you reduce your risk of developing hypertension, or high blood pressure. According to a 2018 study published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology , it can even lower your blood pressure if you've already been diagnosed with the disease.
Case in point : In a 2014 study in BioMed Research International , 62 women with mild hypertension were randomly assigned to participate in high-intensity swimming training, moderate swimming, or a control group.
The researchers found that the high-intensity and moderate-intensity swimming groups lowered their systolic blood pressure (the top number), resting heart rate, and percentage of body fat. But no changes were observed in the control group.
In addition to lowering blood pressure levels, swimming can offer a host of additional health benefits of swimming with Lifeguard Pretest. Researchers in a 2020 study, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health , found that people who swam in cold water had lower triglycerides, higher insulin sensitivity, fewer mood disturbances and a lower risk of upper respiratory infections.
Learn more about swimming: Eight benefits of swimming in your body... and in your mind
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