Swimming benefits to health
Swimming is a popular sport worldwide. Most people view it as a sport for fun or recreational activity to make them relax. However, swimming is more than a sport or a recreational activity since it extends multiple health benefits to the body. This article discusses swimming benefits to health.
Health benefits of swimming
It is an excellent workout for your body. Swimming helps you work your entire body, including your back, legs, arms, and toes. This is because you have to move all your body parts against water resistance. Working your entire body is vital since it helps you build endurance, cardiovascular fitness, and muscle strength. Additionally, swimming is a great workout because it increases your heart rate without putting much stress on your body.
Helps you maintain a healthy weight
Swimming is a great exercise to reduce extra pounds and eliminate obesity. Research reveals that just an hour of swimming can help you lose approximately 900 calories. Compared to other low-impact activities like yoga and walking, swimming burns more calories since it engages nearly every body part.
Enhances muscular strength
Swimming engages a variety of muscle groups and is thus a great way to improve the functionality, flexibility, and strength of your muscles. Additionally, swimming works for different muscle groups differently hence reduce muscle injury — the best way to improve muscle strength when swimming is by repeating strokes constantly.
Alleviates stress
Swimming is a relaxing, fun, and peaceful exercise that helps to reduce stress. Getting in the pool for about an hour after a crazy workday relaxes and energizes your body.
What needs to be avoided while swimming?
Avoid taking drugs
Never swim after taking recreational drugs or alcohol. Drugs and alcohol usually impair judgment, balance, and coordination, which might cause accidents while swimming. Also, while taking medical drugs, inquire about any side effects that might affect swimming activity. Don’t swim if the drugs can impair motor skills or cause drowsiness.
Avoid harsh weather
Bad weather, in this case, entails rains, storms, and strong winds. Irrespective of whether the pool is indoor or outdoor, you should avoid swimming during a storm, especially one accompanied by lightning and thunder. A lightning strike is fatal to swimmers. Strong winds affect currents and might disorient you in the ocean. Heavy rain makes the shoreline invisible and may even wash bacteria and harmful mater into the pool or ocean.
Avoid swimming without a lifeguard in the vicinity
Ensure you swim when there is a lifeguard nearby or on duty. Even experienced swimmers can have accidents/ emergencies that they cannot handle. This is where the services of a lifeguard come into play. A lifeguard has appropriate skills to carry out first aids and rescues in case of any emergencies.
Do not swim without protective goggles
Swimming without protective goggles not only irritates your eyes, but it can also harm them. Pool chemicals like chlorine usually cause eye irritation, which is quite uncomfortable. Additionally, swimming in lakes and oceans without goggles might result in eye infections due to tiny organisms that live in these water bodies. Such organisms include algae and bacteria. The effects of these organisms might be as worse as necessitating a corneal transplant.
What is the best time to go swimming?
The health benefits you acquire from swimming are not defined by the time of the day you choose to swim. You can swim in the morning, afternoon, or evening. However, you can choose the swimming time depending on your schedule or what you want to achieve. For example, if your goal is to shed some pounds, swimming in the morning is the ideal time. Studies reveal that swimming in the morning promotes maximum weight loss since the body has already depleted carbohydrates overnight; therefore, it has to use fat stores for swimming activity.
Swimming in the morning can help you’re clear your mind and energize you the day ahead. Swimming in the afternoon is also great since it enables you to lose the sore muscles after working all morning. Most people view swimming in the evening as better than swimming in the morning or afternoon. It enables you to relax and also gives you a good sleep.
Swimming is a fun and peaceful exercise that provides numerous health benefits to the entire body. Swimming aids weight loss strengthens muscles and also alleviates stress. The time of the day you opt to swim does not have an effect on the health benefits you get from swimming. Swim your way to a healthier body and a good shape.