Swimming is a healthy activity that can be continued for a lifetime -
and the health benefits swimming offers for a lifetime are worth the
effort it takes to get to the pool.
Why do you swim? For the health benefits to your heart and lungs? For
the chance to be with some of your friends at the pool? Because, in
your case, running everyday hurts? Because you like the feeling of
floating and sliding through the water? Or is it something else? If
you are looking for a break from the heat of the summer, then a dip
in the water is exactly what you need; swimming is a way for you to
cool off.
Regular swimming builds endurance, muscle strength and cardio-vascular
fitness. It can serve as a cross-training element to your regular
workouts. Before a land workout, you can use the pool for a warm-up
session. Swimming with increasing effort to gradually increase your
heart rate and stimulate your muscle activity is easily accomplished
in the water. After a land workout, swimming a few laps can help you
cool-down, move blood through your muscles to help them recover, and
help you relax as you glide through the water.
There are other psychological benefit to swimming, if you allow it to
occur. Relax and swim with a very low effort. Let your mind wander,
focusing on nothing but the rhythm of your stroke. This form of meditation
can help you gain a feeling of well-being, leaving your water session
refreshed and ready to go on with the rest of your day. Many swimmers
find an in-direct benefit form swimming. They develop life skills such
as sportsmanship, time-management, self-discipline, goal-setting, and
an increased sense of self-worth through their participation in the
sport. Swimmers seem to do better in school, in general terms, than
non-swimmers as a group.
