I’ve always enjoyed swimming.
It’s a great activity on a hot and sticky summer time day.
I used to workout separately from my swim time. To maintain my fitness levels and keep a healthy weight, I spend about an hour every day to some form of exercise. I am careful to include a variety of workout styles into my regiment. I lift weights, run, bike, jump rope, do lunges and whatever I can to work up a sweat. I always thought of swimming as a treat and strictly for enjoyment. It’s so pleasant that I never considered swimming as beneficial for burning calories. One of the many benefits of swimming is that it eliminates impact on the joints. I can swim for long periods of time and never suffer from injury, stiffness or soreness. Swimming also provides a great deal of versatility and targets all different muscles. I like to swim laps and switch between a variety of strokes to work my shoulders, arms, back and abdominal muscles. It’s always great for the legs. I sometimes tread water for long periods of time. Probably the most strenuous workout in the water is aerobics. In the shallow end of the pool, I run, jump, squat, kick and mimic the maneuvers I would normally do on land. The water slows everything down and requires more effort. It burns extra calories. Since I’ve added swimming, treading water and water aerobics to my regular workouts, I’ve seen an improvement in my level of endurance and strength. I’ve lost some weight. I really look forward to the workouts in the pool. I tend to spend more time doing it. Because I don’t want to quit swimming when the weather cools down, I’ve signed up at a nearby gym that includes an indoor pool.