When it comes to staying fit, we’re all looking for that magic formula. However, everyone is different meaning there’s no single method on how to get fit and stay fit, but what most people focus on is hitting the gym along with their diet. While these are things that you should be concentrating on, people often overlook swimming as a key method to reaching their fitness goals. While swimming has a huge number of benefits, we’re here to shed light on three reasons you should definitely consider adding swimming into your fitness routine.
Great for All Fitness Goals
When you’re in the gym there are different exercises suggested for hitting certain targets, such as running or other cardio for weight loss, weightlifting for building muscle, and so on. However, swimming incorporates all this into one by providing a full body exercise which can help you lose weight, gain muscle, build your cardio and much more. You can use different strokes or swim at various tempos to work specific areas of your body or to focus on a particular goal. Even better still swimming is something you can do no matter your age or ability, which allows you to simply hit the pool whenever you like or add it into your fitness routine which already includes gym work and dieting.
Ideal for Mental Health
First and foremost, all fitness has a positive effect on your mental health as it helps release hormones that help you feel good and happy. That being said, many people working out in gyms are doing so in a loud environment, with a phone at hand, and lots of activity going on, so while you’re having a positive impact on your physical as well as mental health, it can be hindered. Meanwhile, while you’re in the pool you don’t have the distraction of loud music or your phone, it’s just you and the water which allows your mind to relax, relieving even more stress than a workout on land. Swimming also ensures you focus on your breathing which is a major component when working on your mental health.
Low Impact
Last but certainly not least, swimming is a low impact exercise, which as mentioned above makes it more inclusive than most forms of fitness. Low impact exercises mean that you are putting less stress on your joints and muscles, but swimming is the ultimate low impact exercise as the buoyancy of the water puts less pressure on your body than when you participate in similar land-based exercise. That’s not to say that swimming is easy, far from it, but it does mean that swimming is an exercise for people of all ages and abilities, as well as a fantastic form of fitness for people recovering from injury due to its low impact nature. Introducing swimming into your fitness routine can allow you to gain all the goods you usually get in your gym-based workouts, but with less wear and tear, which can ultimately lead to better workout performance.
The Key Takeaways to Swim With
There you have it, three of our top reasons to introduce swimming into your fitness routine. Not only is swimming a full body workout which can help you achieve almost any fitness goal, but it is also low impact meaning less stress on the body and it’s fantastic for your mental health. Whether you’ve already got a fitness routine or are someone just starting off we’d highly recommend adding a swimming element into your fitness timetable as the benefits are unquestionable. With that in mind, we wish you all the best as you make a splash in your fitness journey.
How Aura Leisure Can Help
At Aura Leisure, we our state-of-the-art swimming pools are the perfect place to get started on your swimming journey or to add a little swimming to your routine. While for those of you less comfortable in the water we have adult lessons that cater for people of all swimming abilities to help you get going. Our incredible gyms and range of fitness classes are also an ideal way to mix up your fitness routine as you push toward your targets. Even better still, our members receive access to our pool, gym, fitness classes, personalised fitness programmes, and much more at no extra cost to ensure you reach your fitness goals.