Swim: Benefits for Health, how to Start, and How to Improve at It

Swimming is a great hobby and an excellent workout for all fitness levels and ages. Swimming is low-impact and builds fitness and strength. It’s also fun. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Swimming is the fourth most popular sport in the United States.

You can learn everything you need to start and improve your game.

What is Swimming?

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, swimming is an activity in which arm and leg movements are coordinated to propel you through the water. Swimming is a great way to strengthen your muscles because it requires a lot of energy. Swimming is mostly a cardiovascular workout, according to Kristopher Gaagne. He’s the regional head swim instructor at Life Time Swim in Houston.

Swimming is not just splashing in the pool, ocean, or lake. You don’t need to be a competitive swimmer to benefit from swimming. What separates a swimming session from a leisurely one is the goal and structure of the swim, says Todd Buckingham, Ph.D., a triathlete, chief exercise physiologist, and competitive triathlete at the Bucking Fit Life in East Lansing, Michigan, which offers holistic fitness, nutrition, and mental health coaching.

Swimming is a great way to improve your muscle strength. It’s a total body workout that involves all of your muscles. According to Dr. Buckingham, the primary muscles used in swimming are those of the back (latissimus and trapezius), the chest (pectoralis), the shoulders (deltoids), the hips (glutes), the legs (quadriceps, hamstrings), the midsection (abdominals), and the abdomen. You can also move through the water using your arms.

Swimming uses four strokes: the backstroke, the butterfly, the breaststroke, and the freestyle. Each stroke requires a different set of muscles to be used to varying degrees. Buckingham says the backstroke will use more back muscles than other stroke styles. However, for the most part, all stroke styles work the same muscle groups.

Swimming is good for your health.

Recreational swimming has many benefits. Here are some of the health benefits that you could experience.

Less Joint pain

Swimming is an excellent low-impact exercise for those with joint pain, mainly if they can’t walk or jog or use an elliptical without experiencing discomfort. The weight of the water gives resistance to the joints and is a way for the muscles to get the stimulation they cannot tolerate when doing typical exercises, says Mark Slabaugh, MD, a board-certified sports medicine physician at Mercy Medical Center, Baltimore.

The research on older adults with Osteoarthritis confirms that swimming for 45 minutes three times a week for 12 weeks led to significant improvement in joint pain, stiffness, and physical limitations.

Improved Heart Health

Buckingham says that swimming, like other aerobic exercises, improves cardiovascular fitness and may reduce your heart disease and hypertension risk.

Past research, for example, found that a swimming program lasting eight weeks lowered heart disease indicators such as systolic pressure (the pressure inside your arteries during your heartbeat), body fat percentage, and carotid wall stiffness in a group of overweight men.

The length of your swimming sessions and the frequency with which you swim will determine how quickly you start to see benefits for heart health. Buckingham says that even 10 minutes of swimming can be beneficial. Swimming increases endurance because it requires an increase in heart rate and breathing.

Does swimming help you lose weight?

Buckingham says that weight loss is dependent on many factors, including exercise. However, swimming, a full-body workout, can help support weight loss. The more muscles you use during an activity, the harder it is for your body to work, and the more calories are burned.

A study comparing the effects of walking versus swimming on the body weight of 116 older women discovered that after three sessions per week of walking or swimming (measured by heart monitors) for one year, women in the walking group lost more weight and gained inches than women in the swimming group. The walkers lost about 2.4 pounds, while the swimmers gained nearly an inch.

Buckingham notes that other weight-bearing activities, such as running, are more efficient at burning calories.

According to Harvard Medical School, if you weigh 150 pounds, you can burn 216 calories in 30 minutes by swimming at a moderate pace (not vigorous). You can also burn 360 calories by running six miles per hour. You can burn 360 calories if you swim vigorously.

The best exercise for weight loss, or any other goal, is the one you will do. If it’s enjoyable, it has a greater chance of becoming a part of your life, says Mike Koleber. He is the head coach of Nitro Swimming in Cedar Park, Texas, and president of the American Swimming Coaches Association.

What to do when you start swimming?

Before you begin, there are some things that you can do to ensure a pleasant, safe experience. Talk to your doctor first before starting a new swimming routine. Suppose you suffer from a chronic lung or heart condition (such as asthma or heart disease) or any other problem that could affect your ability to exercise safely. In that case, it is essential to consult with your doctor. Gagne says that your doctor may tell you to exercise but may limit the intensity of the cardio. Ask your doctor if you should take any restrictions or precautions while swimming.

Get the Gear

You’ll need the following equipment once you’ve been cleared to do a water exercise:

• Choose a swimsuit that you are comfortable in. Koleber advises avoiding styles with baggy sleeves, as they will make you feel weighed down when swimming.
• Buy swimming goggles. You will be able to see more clearly in the water, and they will prevent saltwater or irritating pool chemicals from entering your eyes. It would help if you tried on several models to find one that fits comfortably and snugly. Koleber advises: “You do not want to feel as if your eyes are popping.”
• A swim cap can be a great addition to your pool gear.
• Other swim accessories are helpful. According to the U.S., fins can help strengthen your legs and give you more propulsion in your strokes. Masters Swimming. Waterproof headphones are a good option if you like to listen to music when you work out. Koleber explains that a safety buoy, an inflatable, fluorescent device, can improve visibility when swimming in a river, lake, or ocean. If needed, it can be used as flotation. The safety buoy is attached to your waist by a belt and trails behind your feet without interfering with your strokes.