WATER EXERCISE KEEPS YOU HEALTHY
I owe a good part of my longevity and excellent health to water exercise.
At 80, I still swim twice a week in a pool. (I gave up ocean body-surfing years ago due to pollution at nearby San Diego beaches!)
To me, there’s no better way to work the kinks out my aging body than in a swimming pool. I’ve been using water religiously for part of my exercise routine since I was about seven.
I literally “swam” my way to health after a several operations for osteomyelitis, which left me in braces and cast at the age of five. This chronic bone infection proved to be fatal to nearly 75 percent of patients in the ’30s - before “wonder drugs.”
I wound up healthy enough to play football and basketball by age 16 and took up tennis, which I still play weekly (weakly?). Perhaps I could say the culmination of my recovery occurred In 1984, when I proudly ran a leg of the Olympic torch as a representative of my employer, SeaWorld.
What an honor and thrill it was!
Weights and jogging weren’t in vogue before the ’60s and ’70s. Of course, as a kid. bicycling daily was the other factor in helping me grow strong (that plus healthy eating and lots of sunshine).
Most health experts today tout aqua exercise as perfect for stress relief, general fitness, weight loss and easing of aches and pains.
A lady with fibromyalgia recently stated publicly: “Water workouts have changed my life.”
An instructor at my gym pool, who is certified by the Aquatic Exercise Association and the Arthritis Foundation, proclaims: “Everyone who gets in the pool feels free and liberated. It helps you to function better. You sleep better.”
Water trumps land, experts point out, because of the extra resistance. It improves strength and flexibility.
If you’re not a swimmer, the popular aqua aerobics is something to consider. Water allows you to work within your own range, instead of the range of a piece of equipment.
The pool usually involves social interaction, a key ingredient for getting you to stick with the program.
It is important not to compare your ability with others. Don’t worry if you can’t keep up. Do what feels good to you.
Still, I must admit I time my weekly sessions to avoid Tuesday afternoons at Gold’s Gym. A one-legged lady in her 30s usually swims at that time and beats me consistently in the lap pool!
After consulting with your doctor to make sure you’re safe to start, check out the pools and classes in your area. If you can’t find a class, pick up a copy of “Fantastic Water Workouts.”
The Arthritis Association offers dozens of classes around the country. For the one nearest you, check your phone book.
Not everyone, of course, has their own pool. Or a public pool near them. I have used the indoor pool at Gold’s Gym in San Diego for years (both a therapeutic and lap pool). I started, of course, in community pools. But I have used YMCA pools or even hotel pools at various times in my life.
During the winter in Washington, D.C., I swam in a downtown hotel basement pool (for a fee). I heard a noted swimming coach tell a new class enrolled there, “Just try being mad at someone after an hour’s swim.”
Try it - it’s true. Water workouts can help rehabilitate or prevent injury to your muscles. And best of all, for some, can help you lose weight, if that’s a goal. You’ll always be refreshed and pleasantly tired. I guarantee it!