Just Keep Swimming May 18 2015

Swimming is not just a favorite summer activity; it is also a calorie-torching, muscle toning, total body exercise.  With great trepidation, I re-learned how to swim at age 39 and, if someone had told me I’d enjoy it as much as I do now, I would not have believed them.

As Dory sings in Finding Nemo, and my friend Karen chants in each triathlon, “Just keep swimmin’… Just keep swimmin’…”   Here’s why:

* Resistance – Exercising in water offers 12 to 14% more resistance than working out on land, and that resistance builds muscle tone and strength.

* Buoyancy – The added resistance, which sounds like it could take its toll on your body, is off-set by water’s natural buoyant tendencies. Water lifts you up and keeps your joints from pounding as hard as you would if you were running or walking on-land.

* Calming and Cooling Effects – Water calms the mind and cools the body, both needed in hot summer sun!