Swimming is a great workout. It's an activity that benefits the entire body But what is it that makes swimming such good exercise?
The benefits swimming has to offer are well worth the effort it takes to get to the pool or the beach. If you don't know how to swim, try taking swimming lessons or teaching yourself how to swim before getting in the water on your own. Although it's a great way to stay in shape it's also a dangerous activity if you don't know how to swim.
Swimming works almost every muscle in the body. It develops strength, cardio fitness and stamina. It does not however help with bone density. You'll need to add some weight lifting to your work-out routine for that. Other than bone density, swimming is a complete workout. Using different strokes when swimming also enhances the benefits.
It's a great way to cool off from the scorching summer heat.
Another huge benefit of swimming is the fact that you do not put any stress on your joints. If you've got a knee injury for example, swimming is a great way to keep your heart rate up without adding impact stress and injuring it further.
Swimming builds endurance, muscle strength and cardio-vascular fitness. It can serve as a cross-training element to your regular training. You can swim before your work out as a warm up or you can swim after your regular workout. Swimming a few laps after a workout helps you cool down, it moves blood through the muscles to help them recover and also can be very relaxing.
There are also psychological benefits to swimming. To to swim with very little effort. Let your mind wander, focusing on nothing but the rhythm of your stroke. This is a form of meditation that can help you gain a feeling of well-being that can help you get through the rest of the day in a good state of mind. It helps develop life skills such as sportsmanship, time-management, self-discipline, goal-setting, and an increased sense of self-worth. Swimmers seem to do better in school, in general terms, than non-swimmers as a group.
Swimming does exercise almost the entire body with very little joint strain. It is great for general fitness, just not a great way to shed excess weight.
