Overview
You may have heard that experts recommend adults get 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week. Swimming is an excellent way to work your entire body and cardiovascular system. An hour of swimming burns almost as many calories as running, without all the impact on your bones and joints.
Swimming is the fourth mostTrusted Source popular activity in the United States. But why, exactly? There are a host of benefits you may gain from swimming laps regularly. Read on to learn about the benefits of swimming and how to incorporate swimming into your routine.
1. Swimming for recreation
Swimming is a great recreational activity for people of all ages. Recreational swimming can provide you with a low-impact workout and it’s a good way to relax and feel good.
Common swimming styles in recreational swimming are:
- breaststroke
- backstroke
- sidestroke
- freestyle.
2. Swimming Can Help You Live Longer
Studies show that regular exercise, swimming included, may increase your longevity. According to a 2017 report commissioned by Swim England, swimmers had a 28 percent lower risk of early death and a 41 percent lower risk of death due to heart disease and stroke compared with those who don’t swim.
3. Swimming Is A Safe Form Of Exercise
Patients suffering from arthritis, physical injuries or any forms of disabilities can safely practice this beautiful exercise called swimming. The benefits of Swimming for back pain as a cure is also very effective. However, it is best to consult your physician before you step into the water to be sure of what would work best for you and what wouldn’t.
4. Swimming Teaches Team-Building Skills
Swimmers on teams or in swim classes have better team-building skills. Swimmers learn to work together, to encourage each other, to communicate, and to become leaders. All of these skills translate into effective leaders in adulthood. Team-building skills encourage collaboration, goal orientation, inspiration, strategy development, and coordination, which all result in successful careers and professional relationships.
5. Mental Health
Swimming can improve mood in both men and women.10 For people with fibromyalgia, swimming can decrease anxiety, and exercise therapy in warm water can decrease depression and improve mood.11,12 Water-based exercise can improve the health of pregnant people and has a positive effect on the pregnant person’s mental health.13 Parents of children with developmental disabilities find that recreational activities, such as swimming, improve family connections.14
6. Swimming delays the effects of ageing
When done regularly, it can put the ageing process on hold. This is because swimming engages several muscles at a time, which increases flexibility and improves muscle mass. Further, it enhances blood circulation to the brain and other body parts. As a result, it improves the overall health of the body. A healthy body is what everyone needs, especially as they age. Swimming can offer you improved physical and mental health.
7. Cardiovascular fitness
Swimming is a cardiovascular activity that raises your heart rate and helps your body to consume more oxygen. Walking often holds the golden standard for cardiovascular fitness, as it does not require any special equipment or place.
8. Rehab Injuries
If you have an injury or a chronic condition like arthritis, swimming is a great way to rehabilitate your body and manage symptoms. The water gently supports your muscles, so it’s like being in zero gravity with the added benefit of the water’s resistance for fitness.
Swimming regularly will help you build muscle and improve your endurance, which will help you prevent future injuries, too!
9. Brain benefits
The study that followed the eight-week swimming program of young, overweight men found that the blood supply to the brain via the carotid arteries was improved. The carotid arteries, found in the neck, carry blood to the brain (Yuan, 2016).
10. Swimming for Weight loss
Swimming can be a great exercise that can help in weight loss by burning calories.
It has been found that an hour of vigorous swimming can burn around 715 calories.
In fact, according to the researchers at Indiana University, when they compared recreational fitness swimmers with non-swimmers, they found that swimmers of all ages had more lean muscle and trimmer waists and hips.
