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eLearning Series:
I'm an Active Senior
Who Wants To Stay Healthy
( 50 aticles in this series )
Swimming & Water
Exercises Best For Seniors?
There area a vast array of reasons why swimming
and water based exercises may be the best choices for seniors.
Next to walking, water based exercises have the lowest
impact rate for injuries. Water also provides more options for those
who are extremely lacking in general fitness or have a previous
injury that makes land based activity difficult. Finally, water
based activities work the entire body, serving as a form of
both strength training even as aerobic training takes place.
Swimming,
of course, uses almost all the major muscle groups at the
same time, giving a total body work out. Swimming as
an activity also places a vigorous demand on your heart and
lungs. Because of the resistance of the water, swimming develops
both muscle strength and endurance, as well as helps increase
flexibility. Because of its multitude of effects, swimming
provides almost all of the aerobic benefits of running even
as it yields many of the benefits of resistance training thrown
in. Because swimming does not put the strain on connective
tissues that running, aerobics and some weight-training regimens
do, swimming is the kind of low-impact work out that is perfect
for seniors seeking to regain or maintain their fitness.
Swimming as a method for increasing fitness is rapidly gaining
popularity. In particular the sport is exceedingly gentle to
those who are physically challenged. The buoyancy factor of
water makes swimming the most injury-free exercise available.
Therefore it is particularly appealing to seniors, especially
those with any type of joint issues. In water, a person’s body
weight is reduced by 90% as compared to its weight on land.
A 220 pound man will normally weigh about 22 pounds if he is
standing in chin deep water. Exercises in water can also be
done more often because of the low incidence of injuries and
it is more effective for exercising the entire body as any
movement in water 12 times greater resistance than movement
in air. For the elderly, water fitness is safe, fills the need
for exercise, increases a body's range of motion and is a low-impact
exercise.
A critical factor in the positive effects of swimming is the
resting heart rate in water decreases 10 beats per minute while
the maximum heart rate decreases by 10 to 30 beats. Though
the heart pumps just as much blood as in other exercise, it
pumps it more slowly when swimming. The generally lower water
temperature and reduced pull of gravity in water may be the
cause for this reduction, but experts are quite sure. In any
case, swimming strengthens the cardiovascular system, improves
the bodies' use of oxygen, all as the heart is able to work
less strenuously.
Other forms of water exercise are also excellent
for overweight people as the buoyancy of the water takes strain off the joints
making exercise easier and more effective. With one such form,
Aquatics, both the water and the exercise routine serve to
help increase a participant’s fitness level. A one-hour class
generally includes 50 minutes of water-based exercise as well
as warm-up and cool-down exercises. Among the noted benefits
is that warm water helps limber up joints and ease the pain
of arthritic joints. For Aquatics, the water must be kept at
83 degrees or warmer, with 87 degrees considered ideal. Because
the water supports a person’s weight and takes the pressure
off joints, those who exercise through Aquatics suffer from
fewer aches and pains after exercising. The buoyant effect
of the water also allows for easier movement as participants
move through their routine. Finally, the water offers resistance,
allowing exercisers a form of strength training that does not
put any weight or additional stress on the participant’s joints.
Exercising in a pool essentially removes the effects
of gravity on an exercise participant. A person can move and not experience
the same discomfort that he/she might feel while on land. Perhaps
most significantly, in the water participants attempting to
balance on one foot will not face potential injuries should
they fall over. Someone who manages to fall over in the water
is simply not likely to face the possible breakage of any bones
that the same fall would produce on land.
Unfortunately, cold
water generally increases joint stiffness and therefore creates additional movement difficulty for people
with arthritis. Typically, indoor pools are kept at 78 degrees,
much too cold for Aquatics, water temperatures more appropriate
for lap and competitive swimmers. In addition, the air outside
the pool should also be warm. Moving form a warm pool into
significant cooler air increases stiffness for people with
arthritis.
Therefore, the need to heat both the pool and the air outside
the water can make it difficult to find a facility willing
to host Aquatics. These higher water temperatures also make
the pool less attractive to lap swimmers, possibly reducing
the pool use too much. # # # # #
SolveYourProblem.com
: 2006
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