The Benefits of Swimming: Why You Should Get in the Pool
Dive in and enjoy the water
Why you should swim
The benefits start as soon as you get in the water, be that a dive, a jump, a gentle slide, or easing in from the pool ladders. The feel of water initially brings calm, easing your mind and slowly dispelling any anxious feelings. When you start to move, the water calms you even further. Like all forms of cardio, swimming is also great for supporting cardiovascular health and weight management. No matter the stroke, swimming gives you a full-body workout, engaging nearly every muscle as you push through water that’s at least 800 times denser than air. If you do a mix of strokes, you’re hitting most major muscle groups, no matter how fast or slow you swim. Let’s dive deeper.
Mental Health Benefits of Swimming
Like all forms of exercise, swimming can improve mental health, helping to boost mood and reduce stress. But water itself can also have a calming effect, helping to reduce anxious feelings. A YouGov poll commissioned by Swim England found that swimming had significantly reduced symptoms of anxiety or depression for 1.4 million adults in Britain. The same research found that around 3.3 million British adults with mental health problems swim regularly, at least once every two to three weeks. Of those regular swimmers, 43% said swimming made them feel happier, 26% felt more motivated to complete everyday tasks, and 15% said life felt more manageable. That’s powerful, very powerful, and shows that the benefits of getting into the water can go well beyond physical fitness.
Physical Health Benefits of Swimming
As we move through the water, we increase our heart rate. But unless you are pushing, really pushing, heart rate remains lower than many other popular forms of cardio such as running, rowing or cycling. The exact reasons are still a bit of a mystery, but the fact that our body is supported by the water and is in a horizontal position could be the reason. Like other forms of cardio, swimming can make the heart more efficient, which can help lower blood pressure alongside resting heart rate. When looking at blood pressure, a study published in the American Journal of Cardiology evaluated the effects of swimming on older adults with hypertension. The researchers found that regular swimming produced a significant decrease in systolic blood pressure, dropping it by an average of 9 points. Water also provides resistance in every direction, resisting every push, pull, kick and twist, meaning your muscles are continually working as you swim. A systematic review of non-elite swimmers published in Sports Medicine found that a consistent swimming routine resulted in an average increase of 1.96 kg (about 4.3 lbs) of lean muscle mass alongside a drop in body fat. If you mix up your strokes, you will target more muscle groups. Freestyle and backstroke place plenty of demand on the upper body and core, while breaststroke brings the legs much more into play. Finally, the coolest stroke: butterfly, which will let you know just how much of a full-body workout swimming can be… Be warned, it may be the most impressive-looking stroke, but good technique matters, especially if your shoulders aren’t ready to fly. If you’re on a weight management programme, swimming is a great option for exercise as it’s non-weight-bearing. This allows you to enjoy the water with less impact on your joints than weight-bearing exercises such as running, while still burning calories; the amount depends on individual factors, how long you swim and the effort you are putting in