4 water exercises anyone can do

Pools tend to be thought of as fun spots to play with your kids or relaxing areas to pull up a chair and read a book in the sun, but they are also great places to get in a good workout.

“Swimming for exercise has a lot of health benefits, but it also hits a lot of other important buckets,” says Justin Kompf, Ph.D., fitness director at WeightWatchers. “It’s versatile — there are many different strokes and you can do them continuously or do intervals, which helps keep things fresh.” Plus, it’s naturally social. “Taking a water exercise class is a great way to connect with new friends, making it more likely that you stick with it,” says Kompf. And then, of course, there’s the fact that swimming is great for your physical health.

Health benefits of water workouts

Moving through water provides resistance — water is 800 times denser than air — so you work your muscles no matter what direction you’re moving. The result: You are putting in more of an intense effort, but you feel like you’re putting in less. This may help explain why water workouts are shown to help you lose weight and reduce your waist circumference.

The extra resistance from moving through water also puts more of a load on your cardiovascular system, improving your endurance. And interestingly, exercising in water helps improve balance, likely because the water is constantly pushing against you in different directions, forcing you to work to keep your body where you want it to be.

Perhaps most importantly, the water’s buoyancy helps reduce the impact on your joints, bones, and muscles — removing a barrier to exercise for some people. “Joint pain can make physical activity challenging,” says Kompf. “Aches and pains in your hips and knees can make exercise feel like an impossible task.” Move that workout to the water and all of a sudden it feels a lot more do-able.

Ready to give it a go? Start with these four ideas.

Join a class

If you’re new to the pool, try a water aerobics or aqua fitness class. Instructors lead you through movements like jogging, jumping jacks, kicks, and resistance exercises — all without the joint strain of land workouts. The class takes the guesswork out of your workout and gives you a chance to connect with others — and signing up in advance helps you stay motivated to actually go!

Swim laps

Choose your favorite stroke (freestyle, breaststroke, or backstroke) and work your way up to swimming for 20 to 30 minutes. You can also alternate between swimming and water walking in the shallow end. Because you are going continuously, keep your effort at a moderate pace the entire time.

Try intervals

Ready to pick up the pace? Try interval training in the water — alternating short bursts of high effort with equal periods of recovery. For example:

• Swim one lap hard, then one lap easy.
• Jog in the water at high intensity for 30 seconds, followed by 30 seconds of slower walking.
• Swim one lap hard then rest for as long as it took you to swim that lap (for example: 40 seconds on 40 seconds off).

Whatever you decide, work your way up until you can repeat the intervals for 20 minutes.

A 30-minute water workout

Here is a complete plan for you to follow in the pool:

1. Swim 2-3 laps (one lap equals two lengths of a standard pool) in your stroke of choice, resting 10-15 seconds in between each lap.
2. Kick at the wall or while holding onto a kickboard for 2 minutes, alternating 15 seconds of hard kicking with 15 seconds recovery. Tip: Splashing is fun, but you’ll get a better workout if you keep your kick underwater. Focus on the speed rather than the height of your kick.
3. Swim 2-3 laps in your stroke of choice, resting 10-15 seconds in between each lap.
4. Tread water for 2 minutes, alternating 15 seconds of treading with 15 seconds recovery. Try taking your hands out of the water, holding a ball or other object as you develop strength.
5. Swim 2-3 laps in your stroke of choice, resting 10-15 seconds in between each lap.
6. Squat jumps: In shallow water, perform 2 minutes of explosive squat jumps, alternating 15 seconds of jumps with 15 seconds of recovery. Squat back and down with your feet a little more than hip width apart and your weight over your heels. Tip: The deeper you squat, the more challenging the jump will be.
7. Swim 2-3 laps in your stroke of choice, resting 10-15 seconds in between each lap.
8. Scull for 2 minutes, alternating 15 seconds of work with 15 seconds of recovery. Tip: Sculling is treading water with your arms instead of your legs. Keep your fingers together and move your arms horizontally just below the surface of the water. Scoop the water in a downward direction, using your legs as little as possible.
9. Swim your final 2-3 laps in your stroke of choice, resting 10-15 seconds in between each lap.
10. Finish up with some double leg lifts. Lean your back against the edge of the pool and extend your arms out to the side to hold on to the wall. Extend your legs down to the bottom of the pool then raise them as high as possible, keeping them straight and together the whole time (think how a mermaid would move). Perform two sets of 15 leg lifts.