Swimming is one of the most popular sports in the world and it does provide some benefits of physical health and mental health to those in the pool. Swimming is a low-impact sport as the water you are moving in buffers your movements. Here are the top 14 benefits of swimming.
Table of Contents
- 1. Swimming Builds Endurance and Muscle Strength
- 2. Swimming Provides a Full Body Workout
- 3. Swimming is Easy on Joints
- 4. Swimming Reduce Stress and Make You Happier
- 5. Swimming Maintain a Healthy Weight
- 6. Swimming Keeps Heart Healthy
- 7. Swimming Regulates Blood Sugar
- 8. Swimming is Good for Asthma
- 9. Swimming Improves Body Coordination, Balance and Posture
- 10. Swimming Improves Flexibility
- 11. Swimming Improves Sleep Quality
- 12. Swimming is a Pregnancy Safe Exercise
- 13. Swimming Burns Calories
- 14. Swimmers are More Confident
1. Swimming Builds Endurance and Muscle Strength
Swimming is an excellent exercise to strengthen your muscles. It provides a total body workout because it engages all the major muscle groups. The water resistance provides a challenging workout, and the repetitive motions of swimming help to tone and sculpt your muscles. Swimming helps to build cardiovascular endurance and increases metabolism.
2. Swimming Provides a Full Body Workout
Swimming is a full body workout that engages almost all of your muscles. It works your arms, abs, back, glutes and legs. You can even add weights to increase the workout’s intensity.
3. Swimming is Easy on Joints
Swimming is one of the best ways to exercise because it is so easy on your joints, which can be a good choice for people with multiple sclerosis (MS), arthritis other injuries. When you swim, your weight is supported by water, which allows for low-impact workouts that are gentle on the knees and other joints.
4. Swimming Reduce Stress and Make You Happier
Swimming also has a positive effect on the mind by promoting feelings of well-being and relaxation. It can help to improve moods, decrease anxiety and stress levels, and promote feelings of happiness.
Swimming has been widely used by medical practitioners to help patients suffering from depression and anxiety, mostly because it reduces stress hormones while increasing endorphins.
Endorphins are neurotransmitters that bind to opiate receptors found in the brain and central nervous system. The binding of the endorphin to these receptors produces a number of effects such as pain relief, reduction in stress and euphoric sensations.
5. Swimming Maintain a Healthy Weight
Swimming is one of the best exercises to lose weight because it burns a high number of calories in a short amount of time. In fact, swimming can burn up to 500 calories per hour. This is due to the combination of aerobic and resistance exercises that you get from swimming.
Swimming is something you could do a few times a week as part of your fitness routine to help get rid of any extra weight you may be carrying around. In addition, swimming makes your body slimmer overall which can boost your confidence and improve your self-image.
6. Swimming Keeps Heart Healthy
Swimming regularly can help lower your blood pressure and reduce your risk of heart disease. Swimming also helps improve your cholesterol levels, which can help protect you from heart attack and stroke.
7. Swimming Regulates Blood Sugar
Swimming helps the cells of people with diabetes take up glucose from the blood more effectively. This, in turn, can help keep blood sugar levels stable and prevent spikes.
8. Swimming is Good for Asthma
Swimming helps to keep the lungs healthy and functioning properly. Swimming also strengthens the respiratory muscles and improves breathing.
9. Swimming Improves Body Coordination, Balance and Posture
Swimming helps keep your body in shape and can improve your overall fitness level. Swimming also requires good core strength, which can help improve overall balance and stability.
10. Swimming Improves Flexibility
When you’re swimming, the water supports your body weight, you can move your joints and muscles through a greater range of motion than you can when you’re on land. This can help improve your overall flexibility.
11. Swimming Improves Sleep Quality
Swimming is one of the best sports you can do to improve your sleep quality. This is not because swimmers appear to be less stressed than other athletes but because the rhythmic breathing involved automatically induces relaxation, which helps calm the mind and body.
12. Swimming is a Pregnancy Safe Exercise
Swimming is one of the safest exercises you can do while pregnant. It provides a low-impact cardiovascular workout without putting any stress on your joints. Swimming also helps keep you cool and comfortable, which is important during those hot summer months. In addition to being safe, swimming is a great way to improve your overall fitness level during pregnancy.
13. Swimming Burns Calories
Swimming uses all of the major muscle groups in your body so it’s very effective at helping you burn calories and lose weight. A 150lb person can expect to burn more than 500 calories per hour swimming laps, so it’s an excellent form of exercise for people who are trying to lose weight.
14. Swimmers are More Confident
Whether in or out of the pool, swimmers tend to be more confident in life. This is much higher than the confidence reported by runners, cyclists and weightlifters.
