Swimming , Water Sports,Water Polo

Mike Geary asked:




If you have been a subscriber to my newsletter for some time, you know that I’m always trying to give you ways to make your workouts more interesting and fun, while also stimulating big-time results. Don’t you agree that your training should be fun? This is what separates the people who jump on and off the “fitness bandwagon” a couple times every year without ever making any real progress from the people that actually adopt a true fitness lifestyle and finally achieve the body they have always wanted. Make it interesting, make it fun, and make your fitness a priority, and you’ll have the body that you want.

What I have noticed over the years is that many people will train regularly for a few months and then will either get bored with the same old weight training and cardio routines, or will get discouraged because their progress comes to a grinding halt after a while. In my opinion, I don’t think your workouts ever need to get boring or stale. You just need to have an open mind to the huge world of various training styles and techniques that are out there. Seriously, there are so many different and fun training styles out there, that there is no reason you should ever get bored with your workouts and give up on that lean ripped body that you’ve been looking for. Also, mixing in various training styles builds stronger joints by reducing repetitive movement pattern overload and varying your training stressors.

Now before I start with some of my favorite non-traditional training styles, I will state that I think one of the best ways to achieve a lean, muscular and healthy body is through a consistent weight training routine with free weights. You can choose to integrate some of these alternative training techniques with your weight training routines on the same day, as alternative workouts on separate days of the week, or even as separate training cycles where you try some of these techniques for several weeks at a time before cycling back to a traditional weight training workout. Try some of these training styles out and you’ll be on your way to never being bored again with your workouts…and your body will thank you with muscles popping out that you never knew existed!

Alright, here are some of my favorite non-traditional training techniques:

1. Staircase Workouts – This is great because stairs are everywhere. You can go to a football field and do stadium stairs, any building that has stairs like a hotel (most people take the elevator, so you will not even have many people looking at you while you’re working out), or even the stairs in your own home. For an awesome full body workout, try mixing stairs sprints with an upper body exercise like pushups or pull-ups. If done with a high enough intensity, stairs workouts help to create changes throughout your entire body due to the muscle building and fat burning hormonal response and metabolism increase that you get through working the biggest muscle groups in your entire body. If you thought that going up and down the stairs was the only way to get a good stairs workout…think again. My fellow trainer and friend, Virgil Aponte, has developed a website that focuses on creative stairs workouts using all kinds of exercises you never would have thought of before. You can find out more info on stairs exercises workouts at my ‘fitness products’ page at truthaboutabs.com at the link below.

2. Wind Sprints and Hill Sprints – Find any open field in a park or athletic field and try 50, 75, and 100-yard all-out wind sprints. After each sprint, rest long enough to catch your breath before the next one (generally 1-2 minutes). Try workouts of anywhere from 6 to 20 wind sprints for a great “cutting” workout. Also, if you have a hill nearby, hill sprints are also great workouts. Sprint up the hill as fast as you can and walk down for your rest interval. Repeat until you’re whooped (a 20-30 minute hill workout is plenty). These sprint workouts are so amazingly effective at changing your entire body for the same reason as stairs exercises…by powerfully working the biggest muscle groups in your entire body, you greatly stimulate your metabolism while simultaneously increasing your fat burning and muscle building hormones.

Just look at any world class 100-meter sprinters and notice how ripped-to-shreds those guys are. Now compare that to the emaciated weakling physiques of many marathoners, and you’ll see that sprinting is where the action is at for a healthy, ripped, powerful body! Now I don’t want to upset all of you distance runners out there. Hey, if distance running is something you enjoy, then go right ahead. But don’t say you’re doing it for the health benefits, because I might just have to disagree. You can read my full story on why I believe variable intensity training is far superior to steady-state endurance training in one of my other ezinearticles.com articles at Cardio-Enthusiasts: Discover a More Effective Training Method for Fat Loss and Heart Health!

3. Kettlebell Training – If you’ve been reading my articles for some time, you’ve probably heard me praise kettlebell training many times before, but I will have to reiterate that it has been one of the best training methods that I’ve ever tried and has taken my physical capabilities to a whole new level. Kettlebells are an alternative type of free-weight training instead of barbells and dumbbells. Their unique construction and weight distribution (basically a cannonball with a handle) allows for a whole different realm of exercises that’s available compared to dumbbells and barbells. Kettlebells have been typically used for training hard-core athletes, military units, martial arts competitors, and other tough individuals, but there is no reason that anybody looking to get stronger, bigger, or more cut can’t learn the exercises and benefit from them.

It’s been a little over a year now since I’ve incorporated kettlebell training into my routines, and I’ll admit that I’m hooked for life! At between $100-$150 per kettlebell, they are definitely not cheap, but they are well worth the money. Just one or two kettlebells and you’ve literally got yourself an entire home gym that you can use for the rest of your life…worth every penny in my book! If you want to give these body-hardening kettlebells a try, you can find more info at my ‘fitness products’ page at truthaboutabs.com at the link below.

4. Bodyweight Workouts – For a change of pace, try adding to your routine one or two workouts a week at home with just bodyweight based exercises. These can be great because you can get a high intensity workout done in only 15-30 minutes without having to go to the gym on days that you might not have time for a trip to the gym. Try alternating bodyweight squats, pushups variations, lunges, and floor abs exercises continuously for 15-30 minutes. Try to take very short rest periods or none at all to really amp up the intensity since this will be a brief workout. If you’re more advanced, you can even incorporate more challenging exercises like handstand pushups, one-arm pushups, and one-legged squats into your bodyweight training routines.

5. Ring Training – This type of training basically uses portable gymnastic rings that you can take anywhere with you. You throw the straps up over any high bar like a pullup bar, the top of a power rack, or even over a football field goal crossbar. Then you can quickly adjust the rings to do exercises like ring dips, ring pushups, ring pull-ups, hanging leg raises, horizontal body rows, L-sits, and more. Dips and pushups on the rings are my favorites and the rings really make them a hell of a lot more difficult, while also incorporating your stabilizer muscles to a much greater degree. The rings allow your joints to move in a more natural pattern and can help you prevent or even recover from shoulder injuries. Personally, when I try dips on a normal dip stand, it hurts my shoulders. However, dips on the training rings feel perfect, and also give me a much better muscle pump. The training rings are one of the best training devices I’ve ever bought. Give them a try…I think you’ll like them if you’re up for a challenge. I found my rings, which you can hang up easily on a power rack, pullup bars, or at a park, at ringtraining.com.

6. Swimming – A great full body workout that stresses the muscles and joints in a much different way than most resistance training. Incorporating swimming workouts once or twice a week into your normal training routines can really enhance your physique. I recommend trying a “sprint” style swimming workout, which will help more for building muscle compared with endurance long distance swimming. For sprint style, swim as hard as you can to the other side of a 25-meter or 50-meter pool (or sprint swim similar distances in a lake or the ocean if you like to swim outdoors). Rest enough to catch your breath between sprint swims (about 20-40 seconds). Try to keep the rest intervals fairly short with swim sprints. You can also mix different strokes (crawl, breaststroke, sidestroke, backstroke, butterfly) on each swim sprint. I’ve found that sprint swimming gives me a great muscle pump (especially in the upper body), without any soreness the next day as is typical with weight training. This is because swimming has no eccentric movement (the negative portion of a lift), which is what causes muscle soreness. Keep in mind that even though swimming works your muscles well and is a nice alternative workout to mix in once or twice a week, it does not strengthen your bones. You still need to do regular weight training to do that.

7. Sandbag Training – This form of training is a nice variation to mix in with your strength training. It works your body with an unstable object, which makes muscles that might normally be neglected get in on the action to perform the movements. I’ve been mixing some sandbag training into my routines for over a year now, and I’ve found it is a very intense method of training that works your muscles in a different way and gets you huffing and puffing like crazy. You can make your own sandbags to train with by filling various sized duffle bags with sand, or you can use those construction type sandbags that come in several shapes. Sandbag exercises can be done as squats, cleans, presses, lunges, shouldering, throws or heaves, carrying up hills, etc. Make no mistake, training intensely with sandbags will get you ripped in no time flat! I’ve actually found an entire book devoted to sandbag training, which gave me some great ideas for doing sandbag based workouts. If you’re interested in this type of training, you can find more info at my ‘fitness products’ page at truthaboutabs.com at the link below.

8. Mountain Biking – As you may have figured by now, I’m not a proponent of steady pace endurance exercise, but rather, highly variable intensity exercise that works with bursts of exertion followed by recovery intervals. Well, mountain biking fits this bill perfectly. You get the leg pumping exertion during the uphill climbs, while also getting the adrenaline rush of the downhill acting as your recovery intervals. Mix it all together and you get a super-fun, high-intensity, leg burning workout that will melt fat off of your entire body and build awesome legs at the same time. The climbs can be tough and will challenge you both physically and mentally as you pump away trying to make it up steep hills without having to resort to getting off of the bike. Then after you make it up the challenging climbs, you get rewarded with the adrenaline rush of flying down steep hills while jumping off of boulders and logs and trying not to stumble or fall off the bike. It’s such an addicting thrill…I love it! See, who says that working out has to be boring!

9. Indoor (or outdoor) Rock Climbing – This is yet another fun way to get in a great workout that will also challenge you both physically and mentally. Indoor rock climbing gyms have starting popping up all over the place in recent years and will be more accessible than outdoor rock climbing to most people. Rock climbing is a great workout for your legs, arms, shoulders, and your entire back. It also really works your grip strength and forearms like crazy. Whenever I go indoor rock climbing (which is only on occasion), my forearms are sore for about 2-3 days afterwards. Give it a try if you’ve never done it…it may be just what you’re looking for to spice up your fitness routine.

10. Stick Wrestling – This is a killer full body workout and can also be a great competition between you and your friends. This is probably more of a guy thing for most people. You could even come up with your own “fight club” and have stick wrestling competitions with your buddies to see who is toughest. There are actually sticks designed specifically for stick wresting, but you can even just use a strong broomstick cut down to about 30-36 inches long and taped up with some athletic tape to prevent splinters. For your stick wrestling workout, stand on a soft mat or carpeted area (or grass if outdoors), match up with a friend or foe. You’ll both grab the same stick toward the ends with your hands on the outsides of your partner’s hands, on the inside, or staggered. Then you simply push, pull, jerk, and thrash your opponent around trying to knock them off balance until they either fall or lose their grip of the stick…and you win that round! Be careful not to get the stick up high and knock each other in the face. Use common sense. You can do this in 1-2 minute rounds or just keep going until someone gives up. Be creative and keep going until you’ve gotten a killer workout. Your forearms and legs will be screaming!

11. Strongman Training – This type of training is a little more hard-core, but it’s a blast for those who are into trying something different. The premise is based on the types of exercises competitors perform in the “worlds strongest man” competitions. If you have a yard, you can even set up some of these exercises in your yard and do some outdoor workouts to have a little fun. Your neighbors will probably give you some funny looks, but it’s fun, so who cares! You can get one of those giant tractor tires and do tire flips (which is basically a deadlift followed by a push-press). You can also try your hand at log lifts, boulder lifts and carries, keg lifts and tosses, weighted sled dragging…anything that involves pulling, pushing, lifting, or heaving any types of odd objects. You don’t need to be a monster to enjoy this type of training…just handle whatever size objects are challenging for your individual strength. Strongman training works your entire body in a very intense fashion and could easily spark some new results. If you’re interested in finding out more ideas for strongman training, check out my ‘fitness products’ page at truthaboutabs.com at the link below.

12. Rope Climbing – This goes back to the old high school days of climbing the rope in gym class. Seriously, if you have access to a rope, either at a gym or somewhere outdoors, rope climbing builds a powerful and ripped upper body like no other exercise. A great way to incorporate rope climbing into intense workouts is to do a climb up, then lower yourself back down. Then while your upper body is recovering for the next climb, you can do a lower body exercise like squats or lunges, or go up and down stairs. Keep alternating the upper body rope climbs with the lower body exercises in between and you’ll get one hell of a full body workout.

13. Bag Boxing – You can use a heavy bag, a speed bag, or even one of those rebound bags to get a great workout. Among the three, the heavy bag is the best all around full body workout, while the speed bag will test your rhythm and timing and give you a great upper body workout. If available at your gym or if you have a bag at home, try mixing these in as a good warm-up or as an intense finish to your strength routine.

14. Rope Skipping – You can’t beat rope jumping as a great full body exercise. I like to use it as a warm-up for my weight training workouts. I prefer to use the really cheap “speed” ropes with a plastic rope instead of a fabric rope. Once you get good, you can jump rope much faster with the plastic ropes than the fabric ones, which will allow you to get a more intense workout. And don’t mess with the weighted handle ropes…they’ll just slow you down. Your goal is speed when rope skipping. Try mixing together two legged jumps, one-legged jumps, arm crossovers, double jumps (rope passes under feet twice for each jump) to keep things interesting and increase the intensity. Also, try alternating 15-20 second high intensity bursts where you jump as fast as you possibly can, followed by 15-20 second recovery intervals where you jump slowly to get ready for your next burst. Keep repeating until you’re whooped, which might happen pretty quick!

15. Jumping exercises – squat jumps, box jumps, lunge jumps, and broad jumps are some of the best ways to incorporate explosive jumping exercises into your routines. The explosive and powerful nature of jumping exercises works your leg muscles in an entirely different way than most normal slow grinding strength training moves. I’ve even seen a university study cited once that found squat jumps to elicit the greatest testosterone response of all exercises studied. That means more muscle and less fat on your entire body, not just your legs. Try super-setting jumping exercises with upper body exercises for some really intense workouts.

Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed all of these ideas for ways to really shake up your workouts and make them fun again. I know some of them may seem a little “out there”, but open your mind to the possibilities and you’ll never be bored again…and your body will respond with new found results!

John Davenport asked:




One of the main decisions that you need to make in order to get flat abs is to choose the cardio workout (or workouts) that you will focus your time and energy on in order to burn off belly fat and flatten your stomach. In this article, I want to focus on swimming and answer the important question: is swimming good for abs or should you spend your time on other workouts?

I believe that swimming is one of the best cardio workouts you can do to get lean, regardless of which body part you’re most desperate to tone. This is true for abs as well since whatever body fat you burn, so will the amount of fat on your abs decrease.

There are a number of reasons why swimming is a good workout to get flat abs and to tone your entire body:

1. Swimming is a low impact sport – You don’t suffer from impact from the ground as you do with running, playing ball, or taking aerobic classes. This can help to prevent various nasty injuries that are all too common with many other cardio workouts.

2. Swimming is not only a cardio workout, it’s also a strength workouts. You’re pushing yourself through the water, fighting against the resistance that the water creates.This means that you’re getting a double benefit from your workout, you burn calories and build muscle at the same time.

3. Swimming is a workout that involves practically every muscle group in your body, from your feet, through your abs, to your arms, chest, and shoulders. You’re working out your entire body when you swim. This makes it a much more effective fat burning workout than most people would assume.

Swimming is very good for abs as long as you take it seriously and reall workout. A lot of people just spend their time splashing around in the water, treating it as a social event and opportunity to meet other people than a real workout.

To make sure that your workouts count you have to treat swimming as a sport, not anything else. Set yourself goals for your workouts, challenge yourself to more and more intensive swims, increase the amount of laps that you do, anything that gets you to make more of an effort in your pool time.

Swim hard and you will see fat burning results all over your body including your abs.

Stan G asked:




At first, doing swimming workouts for abs may seem strange. You may ask, don’t we need to do sit-up and crunches to tighten the ab muscles?

In reality, swimming is a great way to burn fat around your stomach and eventually see the ab muscles beneath. What’s actually stopping you from getting a well defined, toned abs is excess belly fat. Simply burn this excess fat and you will get great abs.

If you understand this scientific fact thoroughly, we can say that the swimming workout can indeed help achieve well shaped ab muscles. However, swimming workouts are all not the same ones. To get the best results in a very short period of time, you need to be certain that you actually swim in a perfect way to lose belly fat.

What are the perfect workouts for abs as far as swimming is concerned?

There are a couple of swimming techniques you require to understand:

1. Intensity is essential – If you want to get decent results, you have to push yourself real hard while swimming. Swimming is certainly a fun, you could pass your time away and enjoy yourself swimming, but your body will not attract any attention to lose fat. Convert this fun into an intensity workout and you will get your results soon.

2. Interval training – Interval swimming is a highly effective form of cardiovascular exercise with cycling, running and other workouts. And swimming is not an exception. If you have no idea what interval training is, it actually means that you alter the tempo of your exercise in every couple of minutes. For example, you swim with a high intensity for first 2 minutes, then you slow the swimming intensity for next 4 minutes, and again push your pace to high intensity for next 2 minutes. This way you burn the highest amount of calories in a shortest period of time.

With interval training you actually allow your body to explore different workout tempos in which it is stretching against its limits. You should always train yourself in different intensities in order to burn more fat faster.

3. The swimming style is a key factor. Free style is the perfect option if you wish to push yourself hard for a fast swimming. Since you are doing workouts for abs, the breast stroke is very effective for your upper body workout. These two swimming styles are my favorite workout styles. I strongly believe these two styles will give you best results in losing fat.

4. In the end it is very important that you take swimming seriously. Like I said earlier, swimming could be fun, but you are not there to have fun. You are there to workout to lose excess fat around your stomach. Just workout and follow the other tips I have mentioned here and I am sure, you will get your flat abs soon with the swimming workouts.

Chad P Taylor asked:




If you are trying to lose weight, you should choose any one of the cardiovascular exercises, which will give you joy and fun, and you can become healthy and fit during all the enjoyment.

For a lot of people, swimming can prove to be the best cardiovascular workout. It is suitable for people of every age, since it reduces the body stress.

Anyone who is suffering from pains in the joints, they can go for swimming, and within no time, all their problems will be gone and they will be losing those calories too.

On the other hand, you may opt for walking, if in case you have troubles with mobility. Walking may not burn as much calories as swimming, yet it is very good to keep you healthy, if you do it consistently over a period of time. It may just be an hour every day.

However, for those who can move around, jogging may be the best choice. It raises the heart rate and brings down the calorie count pretty fast. One thing that goes against jogging though is the fact that it is not suited for everyone, since it tends to put a lot of tension on the body.

Biking can be a very healthy alternative to both walking and jogging. It will take you places, saving on transportation expenses, and you will be losing the unwanted calories, without any additional stress.

If you are trying to add some fun to your exercise routine, you can go ahead and start playing basketball. Being a team sport, it will help you mingle with friends, and you will be getting a perfect workout, since it requires a lot of moving around to be done.

You may also go for tennis. It is another social activity, allowing constant motion and the loss of calories as a result.

Pick any of the above exercises and you will be fit and healthy in no time.

Maria L. Ronie asked:




Summer is usually related with hot and dry weather. It is sometimes a much awaited season by most people as they can have reasons to indulge on outdoor activities like beach or picnic outing. It is time to enjoy and frolic on water sports such as waterskiing, swimming, water polo, beach volleyball or field sports like baseball, softball, soccer or jogging.

The most thought about destination for someone who wants to relax and revive their worn out energy is a secluded beach and bask on the warmth of the sun. Before going into the beach, be sure to bring with you the necessary paraphernalia for sun protection. Never forget that the UV rays of the sun are a major cause of skin damages; from skin blemishes to wrinkles and fine lines.

Here are a few summer beauty tips to follow in order to avoid skin problems you may encounter during summer holiday.

· Use sunscreen with an SPF rating of 15 or the highest protection of suntan lotion you can get. A follow up application every other hour is necessary to avoid a chance of having a sunburned skin. In case sunburned skin occurs, a mixture of cooked oatmeal and whole milk will soothe the aching skin. Apply the cooled mixture to the sunburned area and let it stay for thirty minutes to one hour. Cleanse with cold water. This will soothe and diminish the pain and tightness of the skin.

· Do not use heavy makeup when you want to stay on the beach for awhile. Avoid foundation even if its water based. It will not look good if it starts to melt and smear. A light waterproof makeup is recommended to avoid looking like a clown.

· Wear fashionable accessories that can protect you from the sun. A sun hat that is wide enough to block sunrays from your face and with

matched sunglasses designer will do the accents you want to project.

· Scrub and exfoliate your face and the rest of the exposed skin daily. This will make you feel fresh and transformed once again.

· The humidity and warmth of the temperature will make your hair oily and greasy. If you are fond of swimming this will tend to get dry and brittle. Washing your hair often might add more dryness resulting to a flaky scalp and dullness of the hair. To avoid incidence like this apply deep conditioner to your hair once a week.

· Drink lots and lots of water. This will minimize the chance of dehydration.

Summer is fun. This is the time to sit back and relax and leave the worries behind you. This is the time to unwind and savor the feeling that living is easy.

Johnny Palmer asked:




Swimming is a great workout, often we teach our children to swim or just be in water long before they can even walk. It can be done by anybody, even people with disabilities, the aged, sick, extremely overweight and even the average citizen. What makes it so good is that you can go as hard as you like, let me show you some great routines for maximum fat loss at the pool.

Swimming Workout for Weight Loss

Warm up by doing a few dives, some casual backstroke, freestyle and breaststroke.

Once you are limbered up and feeling ready to get into it, then start.

Do one lap at about 50% of your maximum speed and then do a lap just cruising. Repeat but this time do the faster lap at about 75% of max speed. For the next 30 minutes alternate between doing a lap at 90-100% of your speed, then a lap just cruising at about 50%.

The whole idea is to get your body used to working at different heart rates and getting the message through that you are a hard working person and it is too hard to carry around extra fat and do all this work.

Most people can not keep up doing this type of workout for more than 30 minutes, but if you can, anything up to an hour of swimming will keep you burning fat at an elevated rate.

Just remember that the exercise is one side of a two sided equation, nutrition being the other side. If your exercise tells your body one thing and your nutrition says another, the nutrition will always win out.

We all know someone who does a lot of exercise but is still out of shape.

Mandy Minglin asked:




The following workout is designed for a person in general good health who knows how to swim. Never undertake an exercise program without consulting a physician first, and it goes without saying that persons who don’t know how to swim should never enter a pool unsupervised.

Facts First

Water provides natural resistance to movement and buoyancy, meaning whether you keep to the shallow end or explore the deep, you’ll be burning energy as you move. Your weight will almost be completely supported by the water itself–perfect for those with joint pain or previous injuries, and ideal for those looking for a calorie burn.

Warm up: (5 minutes, minimum)

Whether you are a beginner or fitness veteran, properly stretching your muscle groups is vital to a safe pool workout. You can execute almost all land-based stretching exercises in your swimming pool. Take care to stretch the large muscle groups of the legs, arms, back and chest, and don’t forget to simply walk around in the water to slowly elevate your heart rate.

Strength and Endurance: (10-20 minutes)

Begin by walking in a straight line from one side of the pool to the other, submerging yourself as deeply as possible into the water. Push your arms forward, fan them out and pull them behind you as you work your way across the pool.

Gradually increase your pace and slowly lengthen both your stride and your reach, using your arms to help pull yourself through the water. As you move faster, resistance will increase and your balance will be challenged. Work up to your fastest, in-control pace and execute two fast walks back and forth across the pool.

Now choose a swimming stroke (breaststroke, backstroke, crawl, etc.) and swim one complete lap (across and back) at a pace that allows you to complete one trip.

Repeat one lap of fast walking, followed by a controlled swimming lap using a different stroke. Work your way through all of the swimming strokes you know, only one lap each, followed by a fast walk lap. In no time, you will have worked every major muscle group in your body while elevating your heart rate over a fixed period of time.

Cool down. (5 minutes, minimum)

At the end of your multiple passes across the pool, repeat the stretching exercises you executed during warm up to allow the muscles time to relax, and to minimize soreness.

There’s flexibility here, of course. You may, as your fitness level allows, choose to execute one stroke per day for a number of laps (using different strokes on different days), or increase the number of laps you swim using all the strokes you know. In truth, you need not swim at all–bobbing, jumping, dipping, lunging, all work against the natural resistance of the water to exercise your muscles.

Since even 30 minutes of moderate pool exercise can burn up to 300 calories, it’s easy to see how a quick half hour, just three times a week, can have long-lasting health benefits. The point is, have fun with your routine, be creative in your effort, and make it easy to repeat again and again.

Jefferey Morgan asked:




If you are looking to find an excellent exercise program that will give your entire body an amazing workout, yet still be gentle on your joints, you should try the swimming workout.

A lot of people don’t realize that swimming is an “aerobic” or “cardio” type exercise. Cardio has a reputation for helping your body to burn fat without bulking up in muscle and is excellent for improving heart health.

You will utilize many different strokes and swimming styles in the swimming workout. This will help you to work different muscle groups in different ways, providing you with a well-rounded and beneficial workout. The particular swimming workout that we are going to highlight today features three specific strokes, however you can choose one or two you prefer if you don’t want to do all three. Just make sure you change up your routine every now and again to improve your results.

As with other workouts, before you begin be sure to warm up your muscles as a means of preventing injury while you exercise. The following styles or strokes below should be done at a “jogging-like” speed for a total of 6 minutes, that’s 2 minutes for each stroke, before you begin your workout.

Begin by doing the “butterfly” swimming stroke. Begin by doing 20 fast strokes as quickly as possible before doing 10 additional strokes at a relaxed pace. The next stroke is known as the “freestyle” stroke.

This will be the second style that you do. Freestyle for 30 quick strokes at your fastest speed before doing 10 more relaxed freestyle strokes. The next stroke is known as the “breaststroke” style.

Of all the strokes in this swimming workout, this one will demand the most of you physically. Breaststroke for 20 quick strokes at your quickest speed before doing 10 more at a relaxed pace.

These three basic strokes make up the cycle of your workout and you should do 8 of these cycles to complete your workout. However, it is important to start slowly and begin at a 4 cycle workout and work up to doing an 8 cycle workout as you progress in your routine. If you can, increase the workout by 1 cycle each time you workout until are able to easily do 8 full cycles.

Once 8 cycles becomes easy for you to complete, you can continue to progress in the workout by increasing the number of quick strokes completed in every cycle. Your ideal goal should be to swim at a fast pace for a period of 20 seconds, slow down again for 10 seconds and keep repeating the cycle. Once you are able to achieve this, your 8 cycle workout should only be about 4 minutes long.

This workout is based upon the 20 seconds on and 10 seconds off method which is known as the Tabata Protocol. This method is much less time consuming, yet much more effective, than a more conventional approach at doing cardio or aerobic type exercise such as swimming, biking and running.

Once you have increased your quick strokes and these 8 cycles get too easy, you can add more cycles onto your 8 cycle workout. You shouldn’t do more than 5 additional cycles total to avoid over-training. You should shoot for a goal of 20 minutes of exercise maximum with this type of workout.

If you are only using this particular workout routine, it can be successfully done about 3 times each week. However, if you are also working to build muscle or are workout out at the gym, you should only do this workout 1-2 times a week.

One tip is to always pay attention to where you are in the pool and what is in front of you so you won’t hit the wall. If you are swimming hard and are not paying attention you could easily bump your head into the pool’s edge.

Susan Jane asked:




Swimming is a great workout for losing weight. It is s definitely different from running or riding a bicycle. A swimming workout challenges you in many different ways, and results in a lot of benefits if you do it enough. Swimming is considered a full body aerobic workout that helps tone muscle, improves strength and flexibility.

When you swim in the water, you are using your arms and legs to propel yourself through the water. Water isn’t easy to go through and provides resistance, which can be equivalent to using weights in the gym. You constantly have to breathe as you push yourself through the water, which is something many people don’t concentrate on as much when working out outside the water.

If you want to start a swimming workout routine for weight loss, the best way to start is to get in the water! Start at one end of the pool and try to get to the other side. See how you feel after you get to that other side. If you feel out of breath, you might want to start in the middle of the pool and swim to one end. Always start slowly and don’t push yourself to hard. Most likely you’re a beginner to working out in the water, and you don’t want to discourage yourself.

Another workout you can do is a low jump rope in the water. Pretend your arms are a jump rope and start from one end of the pool and jump over your arms like a jump rope. This workout requires you to push yourself forward and use your arms, resulting in a nice cardio workout. Make sure you do this exercise in the shallow end of the pool. If you’re not a strong swimmer, that shouldn’t discourage you from swimming workouts. You can buy a swimming board, hold on and kick yourself around the pool using your legs. Another option is to hold onto the end of the pool and use your legs to kick. A simple workout that doesn’t require you to know how to swim is to try running from one end to the pool to the other. You’ll see how hard it is, and realize you’re going in slow motion. That’s a good cardio workout right there!

Swimming for weight loss is a great workout routine in the summertime, and not only will you get a great workout that doesn’t make you sweat, but it’s a workout that you’ll feel as you’re doing it!

Pradeep Mahajan asked:




Swimming is a lifetime sport that benefits the body and the whole person. Swimming is an excellent exercise that helps maintain your body in shape without the strain of an aerobic workout and with the same results. Swimming is a good form of exercise.

It is an aerobic exercise due to the relatively long exercise times, requiring a constant oxygen supply to the muscles, except for short sprints where the muscles work anaerobically. Its practice helps improve your breathing.

Swimming is a popular recreational activity, particularly in hot countries and in areas with natural watercourses. It is also a crucial part of other sports, such as water polo, synchronized swimming and triathlon.

Lap-swimming is the total workout. Swimming is also great for those recuperating from injuries or living with arthritis. It is Swimming is one of the few activities that are suitable for almost any person, no matter what their age, athletic ability, or goal. Swimming strengthens the abdomen, back and shoulders.

It is a great form of all round exercise as it improves strength, stamina & flexibility, all in one. Swimming is healthy, swimming is social, swimming is for life and perhaps more importantly, it is fun.

Swimming is a skill that’s not only enjoyable and good for your health. It is a great recreational activity for people of all ages.

It is a great workout because you need to move your whole body against the resistance of the water. It builds endurance, muscle strength and cardiovascular fitness. It provides an all-over body workout, as nearly all of your muscles are used during swimming.

Swimming is a healthy, low-cost activity that you can continue throughout your life. It is a great way to lose weight, build muscles and it burns fat like no other activity with a whole lot of fun.

Swimming is one such sport where you can maintain elevated heart rate for 20 or more minutes. It is especially useful for people who are overweight, pregnant, or with leg or lower back problems.

Exercise

Athletes from other sports often use swimming or exercise in water as an aid to recovery. Because when you are in the pool you don’t heat up as much as you do on land and your body does not have to work to cool you down as much once the exercise session concludes.

Swimming is an excellent exercise that helps maintain your body in shape without the strain of an aerobic workout and with the same results.

While other aerobic exercises can burn fat and help lose weight, this effect works better in swimming. If you are tired of the track, treadmill, weights, or other land based exercises, then swimming workouts is a great way to vary your exercise routine.

Once your doctor gives you the “OK” to swim as an exercise, you will need a swimsuit that fits you comfortably and that won’t need adjusting during exercise.

Caution: Check with a doctor before beginning your exercise program, especially if you are pregnant or have chronic back, joint, heart, or inner-ear problems.

Also, fitness exercise in water can be done more often because of the low incidence of high-impact injuries and is more effective because movement in water has 12 times greater resistance than movement in air.

For the elderly, water fitness is safe, fills the need for exercise, increases a body’s range of motion and is a low-impact exercise. The heart puts out just as much blood as in other exercises because it pumps more volume with each stroke, but more slowly.

Fitness

Swimming improves your level of Fitness. It increases your stamina. By training on a regular basis, and increasing the effort over a period of time, a person increases their own fitness level.

Regular swimming builds endurance, muscle strength and cardio-vascular fitness. It is great for general fitness, just not a great way to drop excess pounds.

It is a sport for all age groups, skill and fitness levels. Great for overall fitness, heart health and when done in a sustained manner can be your Ideal Weight Loss Exercise.

Health

When you feel fit and healthy, you have a more positive approach to life. Keep in mind that the more times you do this Cardio Exercise in a week, the higher your health benefits will be.

There are many health benefits of swimming, yet basic swimming skills and safety precautions are needed to participate in water activities.

By: Pradeep Mahajan