Swimming is one of the most effective sports for bringing a person's body into good physical shape, for developing muscles, strengthening the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, as well as for burning excess fatty tissue. Consider in the article the question of how you can train in the pool in order to get the maximum benefit for your health.
What is swimming?
By this word we understand the process of human movement in water using the own efforts of the arms and legs. Thanks to the movements of the upper and lower extremities, a person is able not only to stay on the surface of the water, but also to move in it. Unlike walking or running, the position of the body in the water is "abnormal" in terms of its anatomy, so it has to learn to swim.
As mentioned above, holding the body on the surface of the water and moving it is carried out using the movements of the arms and legs, however, not all movements allow this activity to be carried out. First of all, they must be consistent among themselves. You can often see that people who are just starting to swim, move their limbs arbitrarily and not in concert, which does not allow them to not only move, but just stay on the water.
From all that has been said, it should be concluded that before you make a training plan in the pool, you need to learn how to swim. To do this, it is recommended to use the services of appropriate instructors who teach a beginner this art in a short time.
Health Benefits of Swimming
Due to the characteristics of swimming is considered one of the most useful sports. The main advantages of training on the water:
- During swimming, both the lower and upper body are involved in the work, which allows you to train up to 95% of all the muscles of a person.
- Compared to other types of physical training, water exercises develop and strengthen the cardiovascular and respiratory systems in a more effective way. This fact can be explained by the fact that the heart trains “softly”, since it is much easier to carry out its work when the body is in a horizontal position. Scientific studies have confirmed this fact by estimating that when performing exercises of the same intensity on land and in water, in the latter case, the heart rate is lower by 12 beats per minute.
- Swimming is also good for joints. The fact is that the buoyancy force in water is much greater than in air, so the load on all parts of the body is negligible. Training in the pool is often recommended by doctors to patients with joint problems.
- Coordination abilities are developing, as many muscle groups work as a result of the practice of this sport.
- Psychological benefits. Most scientific studies have shown that swimming helps to combat stress, and can also increase a person’s self-esteem.
Does swimming help lose weight?
Of course. The reasons for this undeniable fact are the following:
- Firstly, the water temperature is lower than the human body, at the same time, its thermal conductivity is higher than that of air. Therefore, just being in the water, a person will already spend a certain amount of calories.
- Secondly, in order to stay on the water and even more so to move in it, the swimmer’s hands and feet are constantly working. And during swimming, the respiratory and cardiovascular systems also show their activity.
These reasons lead to the fact that training in the pool for weight loss is quite effective. Here are the numbers for the average intensity of the exercise: while running, a person spends about 9 kcal / min, while riding a bicycle this figure is 7 kcal / min, while swimming sets the calorie consumption at 10-11 kcal / min.
A sport for every age
Unlike training with "iron" or running, the uniqueness of swimming lies in the fact that it can be practiced by both children up to one year old and older people. Given the smoothness of movements in the water, reduced risks of injuries to the joints, as well as a softer heart load, this sport can also be practiced by people who have some health problems.
Of course, training programs in the pool for children will differ from those for women and especially for men. To plan classes in water for different age groups, it is necessary to take into account their physical and psychological characteristics. Further in the article we will consider this question in more detail.
Pool workout for men
The body of the stronger sex has a lot of muscles, therefore, water exercises for them should consist of complexes, the implementation of which will maximize work out each muscle group in aerobic and anaerobic modes.
Training is recommended 3 times a week, for example, on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Each lesson should include pre-heating of the muscles by performing stretch marks and a set of floor exercises. After this, you should swim with a slow crawl or brass for about 300 meters to finally prepare the body for physical exertion.
The main part of the training should include different styles (crawl, brass, butterfly stroke, backstroke and others). Each of them can be practiced both independently and in combination mode. For example, you can swim 200 meters with a crawl, and then 200 meters with brass. The same 400 meters can be overcome by alternating both styles every 25 meters.
In addition to a variety of styles, one should not forget about the intensity. So, you can perform exercises, both slowly (used as a breath restoration), and in a high rhythm (maximum load on the muscles and body systems).
After completing each exercise, the body should be allowed to rest for 2-3 minutes.
Any swimmer training in the pool should be completed as smoothly as it began. To do this, you can swim a slow crawl 300 meters.
Swimming for women
Since the fair sex does not have a lot of muscle in comparison with men, then classes for them should be carried out in a less intensive mode. It is recommended to perform the exercises for a shorter time, but the rest between them should be less than in the case of men. For example, a woman can swim with a medium intensity 100 m brass, rest for 1 minute, then swim 100 meters on her back.
Training in the pool for women should not only consist of the practice of different swimming styles, but also include sets of exercises in the water, which can strengthen the muscles of the arms, legs, back, abdominals and improve posture. Here are some of these exercises:
- A woman, waist-deep in water, leaning on board the pool, performs jumping up.
- Entering the chest into the water, the athlete stands on one leg, while raising the second leg straight until it forms an angle of 90 o with the body. Holding the foot in this position for 5 seconds, she lowers it, and repeats the exercise with the other leg. Balance should be maintained by performing the appropriate circular movements of the hands in the water on both sides of the body.
- Being in the chest in the water, you should perform jumping in the water, helping with your hands, while it is necessary to throw one foot forward and the other back.
- The athlete lies down on her water and picks up a beach ball. Then, she flips with the ball on her stomach, holds this position for 5 seconds and returns to its original state.
Swimming for children
In activities with children in the pool, great attention should be paid to the technique of performing different swimming styles. There are a lot of exercises for this. It is important to use various additional means in training in the pool for children: swimming boards, balls, flippers. In this case, in addition to the development of coordination abilities and the perfecting of the technique of moving in water, the interest in classes will be constantly maintained in children.
To captivate the younger generation, it is also recommended from time to time to conduct classes in a competitive spirit, dividing young swimmers into teams and setting different tasks for them.
Right breathing
In order for water training to be as effective as possible in terms of weight loss and muscle development, you must be able to breathe correctly while swimming. For example, in the practice of a rabbit, inhalation is performed by the mouth when the right hand is in the air. Exhalation should be done with the nose when the head is in the water.
Diet
No matter how effective the exercises in the water, without a proper diet, all efforts will come to naught. The idea of a healthy diet for weight loss is to consume fewer calories that are spent during the day. The preferred foods for men and women should be fruits, vegetables, nuts, as well as protein foods (meat, fish, dairy products).