With summer in full swing, finding a workout that’ll allow you to keep moving while beating the heat can seem like a struggle. Taking up swimming to maintain a healthy lifestyle is actually pretty simple and is incredibly beneficial for meeting weight loss goals. This blog explores the ease of swimming for weight loss and what to expect when you start.
Benefits
While mostly a cardio exercise, swimming also provides you with a full body workout. With the added resistance the water gives, you’ll be able to burn major body fat and calories with even as little as 30 minutes of swimming a day.
Woman swimming laps in a pool.
Pick a Simple Stroke
You want to start simple. Choosing to start with either breaststroke or freestyle will allow you to build towards the more advanced strokes such as butterfly or backstroke. These different strokes will help you build your endurance and get you accustomed to moving through the water.
Use a Kickboard
The act of swimming, no matter the stroke, is amazing for building flexibility and endurance. If you’re beginning a new swimming regiment, using a kickboard to swim your laps will open up the range of motion in your hips and reduce the discomfort you might experience.
Vary Your Speed
Once you raise your endurance and can swim comfortably, it’s important to introduce varying speeds to make the most of your laps. When you want to see the best results in your weight loss mission, be sure to vary your speed from easy strokes to faster sprints.
Underwater look at a lap pool.
Manage Your Breathing
To improve your lap time, make sure you’re breathing properly. If you’re not careful about finding the right breathing pattern, you’ll run the risk of tiring out quicker than expected. Furthermore, it’s more difficult to break into a rhythm in your laps if you are not breathing properly.
Thoughts
When you’re on a mission to meet a weight loss goal, enjoying a swim can be a fun and great form of exercise. If you want to learn more ways of getting to your weight loss goals and want to work with a team that’ll help you reach it, call on the team at BeLite Medical Center.
