Why Water Aerobics Works
Water aerobics is a form of exercise that involves performing movements in the pool, such as jogging, twisting, lunging and performing jumping jacks. The warm water provides a supportive, cushioning medium, but may feel quite different than pounding the pavement in your favorite running shoes. Water aerobics proves you do not have to be on dry land to work up a sweat, tone your body or burn calories that help you lose weight. Always speak with your physician before beginning any exercise program to ensure you are in good enough health.
Characteristics of Exercise
Aerobic exercise refers to that which challenges your cardiovascular and respiratory systems to work above their normal capacity. At its most basic level, water aerobics works because the movements in the water increase your body’s need for oxygen. Your heart starts beating faster, pumping blood to needed organs. Because your heart is a muscle, challenging it through water aerobics helps your heart grow stronger and makes it better prepared to beat faster during your next water aerobics session.
Water aerobics may be your exercise of choice because it burns calories, which can help you lose weight. A 160-pound person will burn an average of 402 calories during a one-hour water aerobics session, according to MayoClinic.com. A person the same weight engaging in low-impact exercise burns about 365 calories for the same session length. A 200-pound person will burn even more calories during water aerobics -- an estimated 501 calories per one-hour session. Over time, these calorie-burning sessions can add up to weight loss. MayoClinic.com recommends engaging in at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week or 75 minutes of vigorous, heart-pounding physical activity. If you choose water aerobics as your exercise of choice, meeting these recommendations may help you to lose weight.
Impact on Body
If you have injuries or conditions that affect your joints, such as osteoarthritis, or you are a beginning exerciser, water aerobics may provide a gentle workout that takes pressure off your joints. Water aerobics is especially beneficial to those with chronic diseases, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. If you have tried other workouts in the past, such as high-impact jogging or step aerobics, and found them to be too hard on your body, water aerobics may work for you as an exercise option. You can increase the intensity of water aerobics by using special equipment, such as water-floating devices or tools that create extra drag for added resistance, according to a December 2011 study published in the "International Journal of Sports Medicine."
Bone Health Considerations
Because water aerobics does not have the impact a sprinting session does, a common misconception is that water aerobics is easy, according to Bonnie Sanders Polin, Ph.D., writing on “Diabetic Lifestyle.” But the exercise is truly what you make of it. If you push yourself to a high level in the pool, you may achieve a similar intensity and fat loss rate as land-based exercises, according to a study published in the December 2006 issue of the "Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness." You may wish to incorporate some strength-training sessions into your weekly workouts. This is because water aerobics is a low-impact exercise and does not help to strengthen bones as its higher-impact counterparts can. Twice weekly strength-training sessions can help to strengthen your body and your bones, according to MayoClinic.com.
- Fitness: Slim Down in a Splash: Pool Workout
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Health Benefits of Water-Based Exercise
- Diabetic Lifestyle: Exercise Option: Water Aerobics
- MayoClinic.com: Exercise for Weight Loss: Calories Burned in 1 Hour
- International Journal of Sports Medicine: Cardiorespiratory and Neuromuscular Responses During Water Aerobics Exercise Performed With and Without Equipment
- Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness: Aerobic Exercise in Water Versus Walking on Land
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