YMCA Healthy Living Magazine, powered by n4 food and health (Spring 2014) | Page 17

YOU TOLD US:

“I would like to read
about the
benefits of
water/aqua
exercise.”

Footwear
Many people often do aqua exercise
without wearing anything on their feet
and this is fine. One of the issues that
you may find is that the pool bottom is
often slippery. This can be frustrating,
as it will be hard to get enough grip on
the bottom to propel or stabilise the
body. Also, if you require arch and foot
support in everyday life, you will feel
the necessity to have the same when
exercising in the pool.
Many people wear socks, or non slip
socks – they have little rubberised
sections on the bottom of them to
avoid slipping. The alternative is to
purchase shoes that surfers use to
protect their feet at the beach.
Regardless of what you end up getting,
make sure that they fit snugly on your
feet, so that they do not slip off or
move around once you start exercising.
Depth of water
If you are new to exercising in water,
then move to a depth that is in between
chest and waist depth.

This is the optimal depth to increase
heart rate and perform the movements
at the right speed.
If you go any deeper than chest depth,
the exercises need to be adapted to
cater for this, and often a buoyancy belt
is required. If you go shallower than
waist depth, it is difficult to keep your
arms under the water, and also the
impact with the bottom of the pool
increases considerably. It can also place
stress on your joints and lower back.
How often?
Water workouts can be performed
every day! Most sessions last
approximately 45 minutes. The
beautiful thing about water is that the
muscle contractions that are performed
in water are very different than what
happens when you exercise on land.
When moving through water, every
action exercises the body. For example,
when performing a scooping action
with an arm across the body, the arm
will have to work in both directions to
move against the resistance in the
water. This constant effort against the
resistance of the water does not make
you sore, but it does burn a lot of
calories. It is quite unusual for people
to get sore the next day, so it is fine to
exercise on a daily basis.

turbulence, which will make the
exercise little harder. Also the amount
of surface area exposed to the water
will determine the level of intensity. The
greater the surface area, the more
resistance through the water. Slicing
movements and punching hands are
great for faster type activities, as the
reduced surface area allow the arm to
move faster through the water.
Finally, if you want to work hard, avoid
relaxed, soft fingers and wrists. This will
decrease the caloric expenditure and
also the ability to move effectively
through the water.

Technique
Hand and arm movements play
a very important role with both
coordination and intensity in the
water. To maintain an upright and
stable stance, arms and legs
often move in opposite directions,
very much like walking on land.
When arms and legs move in the
same direction, your body will
destabilise and it will feel awkward to
perform the movements.
Finger placement will often dictate the
intensity of the exercise. Splayed open
fingers, and cupped hands will create

SPRING 2014 YMCA HEALTHY LIVING MAGAZINE

17