FILEX PRESENTERS
WATER FITNESS
AQUA ATHLETIC
THE TRANSFERABLE BENEFITS
OF WATER-BASED TRAINING
With comparable performance improvements to land-based training, but far less risk of
injury, water-based workouts should be part of every diversified training program, write
aqua fitness specialists Lianne Tiemens and Dominic Gili.
hen Cristiano Ronaldo and Novak
Jokavic, two of the world’s most
successful sports stars, include
water workouts in their training
program the fitness world takes notice. Both
these high-performance endurance athletes
have dominated their sports for many years.
Their ability to perform at a consistently high
level may be attributed, in part, to their
decision to include aquatic training as part
of their diverse strength and conditioning
workout regime.
Men’s
Health
magazine’s
Scott
Henderson has written: ‘Given Ronaldo’s
skills and fitness on land, it’s surprising that
his engine is built in the water, however the
benefits of water workouts are extremely
transferable across sports, and go a long
way to explaining Ronaldo’s excellent bill
of injury free good health. The low impact,
cardiovascular full body workout builds lean
muscle and increases aerobic capacity’.
W
32 | NETWORK AUTUMN 2020
The benefits of water workouts
Maria Hutsick, Director of Sports Medicine
at Boston University and Athletic Trainer for
the US Women’s Olympic Ice Hockey Team,
experienced this first hand: ‘One athlete in
particular who benefited from water therapy
was a US Olympic ice hockey player whose
chronic patellar tendonitis side-tracked her
workouts, hindering her overall fitness level.
I switched all of her workouts to the pool and
within a month she gained not only cardio
fitness, but also power and strength. She
was able to return to the ice and become
an integral part of the team that won a silver
medal at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.’
The water has a number of unique
properties that impact on movement in water.
When recruited correctly, these can enhance
performance and overcome and prevent
injuries. A well-crafted water fitness regime may
be just the thing to refresh a training program.
Their ability
to perform at
a consistently
high level may
be attributed,
in part, to their
decision to include
aquatic training