Injury PreventionAerobic Water Exercise & Aquatic Therapy - Part 1Brad Walker explains why water aerobics, or aquatic exercises, are a superb form of exercise for injury rehabilitation and maintaining fitness So what is actually meant when someone talks of aerobic water exercise or aquatic therapy? In its broadest sense, aquatic therapy can be any activity that is performed in water. However, I like to break these activities into two major areas that relate specifically to sport, exercise, fitness and health. Firstly, aquatic therapy is any exercises done in water to complement and enhance your regular training and exercise. Secondly, aquatic therapy is any activity performed in water to assist in rehabilitation and recovery from hard training or serious injury.
Less impactOne of the main features of aquatic therapy is that it allows you to exercise without the jarring and jolting experienced when training on land. It is estimated that body weight is compounded up to five times during the heel strike when running or jogging. This does not occur during deep water or aquatic exercise. The buoyant properties of water mean that you are able to perform exercise without any significant impact at all. This feature alone makes aquatic therapy stand out from a number of other recovery and rehabilitation exercises. When injured it is extremely difficult to find exercises and activities that allow you to maintain your current level of fitness and do not jeopardise or risk further injury. However, the use of aquatic therapy or deep water exercises puts the body in a near zero gravity environment. Meaning there is virtually no impact or jarring on any of the body's joints, muscles, ligament, tendons or bones. This is especially important when you have spent time organising your goals and putting them into a plan of action. The last thing you want to do is have to take time off because of an injury. Even during your normal exercise routine there is always the possibility that small, minute injuries occurred during the session. It is these small, minute injuries which, if left unattended, can build up over time and lead to major, debilitating injuries which can cost you weeks, if not months, in recovery time. This is where aquatic therapy can assist by helping recovery without any loss to your training schedule.
ResistanceAnother important feature of aquatic therapy is that water increases the resistance experienced while training. The great thing about this increased resistance is that it is variable. Meaning, the faster and harder you work against the water, the greater the resistance you encounter and the harder the work out. So, if you are injured or just looking for an easy work out, you can take it slow and gently move your limbs against the water. However, if you want a tough work out, go as hard and as fast as you can, the water will always return an equal resistance. From the two features mentioned previously, you can see that aquatic therapy is a very safe and beneficial form of exercise. As well as a number of cardiovascular and respiratory benefits, aquatic therapy also helps to:
Other benefits include:
That takes care of most of the theoretical aspects of deep water running. In part 2 of this article I will address the practical side of water aerobics. About the AuthorBrad Walker is a prominent Australian sports trainer with more than 15 years experience in the health and fitness industry. Brad is a Health Science graduate of the University of New England and has postgraduate accreditations in athletics, swimming and triathlon coaching. He also works with elite level and world champion athletes and lectures for Sports Medicine Australia on injury prevention. Brad can be contacted via his website at www.thestretchinghandbook.com Associated PagesThe following Sports Coach pages should be read in conjunction with this page: |
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