8 Best Water Aerobics & Activities for Weight Loss [2024]
Swimming pools are more than just relaxing places in which to unwind; they're actually one of the safest, most comfortable, and effective settings for some of the best - and even the most fun - fat-busting and fitness-improving workouts. Why? Because water is up to 800 times denser than air, every single movement in the pool requires more effort. Hence why, being one of the aquatic center in Monroe, our aqua cycle classes, water aerobics for seniors, Aquatic resistance training, prenatal water aerobics, and any other water workouts are a really effective water activities to lose weight.
Not only do you get excellent resistance and cardio training, but all that extra effort also burns through more calories faster and more effectively than on land, boosting metabolism and leading to weight loss, stronger muscles, leaner physique, and higher stamina and fitness, as well as the mental health benefits that working out and enjoying a healthier body entail.
Naturally, you might think that all that fat-burning in the pool is too intense, especially for the disabled, injured, or people with other limitations. However, you couldn't be more wrong; gravity's pressure is much weaker in the pool, making in-water exercise gentle, low-impact, and easy on the joints. This means that you can work out more easily and comfortably, with injuries being far less likely.
What's more, most of the best water aerobics for weight loss are simple, making them easy for most people to take part in and enjoy - even those with physical limitations such as injuries, disabilities, and mobility issues linked to high body weight. So, with all this in mind, grab your pool noodle and check out these top pool aerobics that burn fat:
Pool Aerobics That Burn Fat - Beginners
- The bicycle: rest your elbows on the poolside and "pedal" your imaginary bicycle with your legs. Whilst burning fat, this exercise also strengthens your shoulders, legs, and core.
- The dolphin: another easy fat burning swim workouts for beginners, this one targets your core, legs, and back. Start by grasping the pool's edge with your left hand and pointing your right hand and fingers down just beneath the water's surface. When you're ready, hold your legs together and allow them to float upwards, after which you start kicking like a dolphin.
- The ball: to work your core, you start this activity by standing with your right leg bent and your left leg tucked back. Whilst maintaining this pose, hold an inflated ball with both hands positioned in front of your belly. Hold this stance for 30 seconds and switch legs, doing this process five times on each side
Water Activities to Lose Weight - Intermediates
- Sprint: lean on the pool's edge with your elbows whilst holding your legs straight and together. Lift your legs until they reach the water's surface and lower them back down again. Repeat as many times as desired, and in doing so you'll strengthen your core whilst burning calories.
- Tuck jump: stand up in the water and jump upwards as high as you can, bringing your knees up to your chest. Repeating this in multiple sets not only strengthens your core, but also trims your legs.
Water Aerobics to Shed Extra Pounds - Advanced
- The noodle plank: simply do the classic planking exercise in the pool using a pool noddle to hold onto whilst pushing your legs out straight into the plank position. This water resistance will give your abs an epic fat burning pool aerobics workout and help to strengthen your core.
- Plie jump: a little like the jumping squat that targets your legs and buttocks, start this exercise by standing with your heels together and knees bent outwards, followed by jumping as high as you can. To ramp up the intensity, allow minimal rest between jumps, and go down further before and after each.
- Add weights: all aquafitness exercises can be intensified by adding special weights designed for the pool. You can add them to your arms and/or legs, which applies extra weight and resistance and thus burns more calories, fat, and helps to build lean muscle mass.
How Aqua Fitness Exercise Can Change Your Fitness?
If you're looking to shed some weight, then water aerobics is one of the best choices. It works the whole body so it's time effective and fun which is a great bonus. It sounds confusing, but the water makes your workout both harder and easier. The buoyancy will support your body so there's less impact on your joints. This fact makes it a perfect choice of exercise for anyone, even those struggling with age or health conditions. However, as water is denser than air, each movement requires more force than it would on land. This means just moving around in water builds more strength than walking on land. This means each movement burns more calories too. Studies have shown you burn two more calories each minute in water than on land, so it's an ideal choice for weight loss.
Certain water aerobics for obese people movements such as standing push-ups will help you get the most from your workout. Stand facing the wall of the pool, place your hands on the wall shoulder-width apart then lean towards the wall, and push away as you would a push-up on land. This will help work your arms as well as boost weight loss. You could also try high knee lifts to work your lower body. Standing in waist-high water, raise one knee up to the water level while keeping your core engaged. Hold for a few seconds, lower down, and repeat on the other side. This is a great one to get those thighs burning.
How to Take Your Fat Burning Swim Workouts to the Next Level?
Once you've mastered the basic moves, it's not time to rest on your laurels. Generally, the body will get used to an exercise if you do it over and over and you won't see the same weight loss benefits. It's best to keep trying new moves to keep your weight heading the way you want it. More advanced moves include the noodle plank, where you hold a pool noodle and extend your legs in a plank position. The resistance of the water and the pool noodle combined will work your core, leading to improved stability and balance as well as weight loss. Another way to make your routine work harder is to cut down your rest times between sets.
You could also add weights to your routine. The water already provides resistance when you move through it, which is why it's such a great full body workout. By strapping water-friendly weights to your ankles and/or wrists you can make your aquafitness exercises a little harder which will burn more calories. This will also help you build and keep lean muscle which is essential to lose weight in a healthy way that you can maintain.
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Aquatic Workouts in Monroe, NJ from Aquatic Performance Training
Water workouts offer you many physical benefits. As well as this, having a healthy physical lifestyle can help your overall well-being, so there is much to be gained from joining Aquatic Performance Training.
We offer aquatic workouts classes throughout the week, apart from Sundays, and with sessions occurring both mornings and evenings, finding a time to suit your schedule is easy, and it means that you can commit to adopting a healthier and fitter lifestyle. Read More
Exercising underwater makes perfect sense if you think about it. On dry land, we have two enemies that are always present: gravity and the weight of our own body. Think about it some more and it’s obvious we can’t do anything about these. Short of taking out membership of the gym on a space station, gravity is always going to be with us, keeping our feet on the ground. As regards weight, we can always shed a few pounds, but we’re still made out of flesh, blood and bone, so that’s natural downward pressure. Do it underwater, though, and the picture changes dramatically. It’s called low-impact pool exercise. With our natural ability to float, when we are in the water, we have to make a conscious effort to touch the floor. The water makes everything gentler, cushioning and protecting us. Perhaps the main question about all this is: it is clearly a good idea, so why haven’t we been doing it all along?
What Do Our Water Aerobics Workouts Consist of?
At APT, our water aerobics workout involves the use of your whole body so that you get the maximum benefit from attending the program. It will help to improve your cardiovascular health, as well as your core and balance. You can look forward to having dramatic results from your time with us, as long as you commit to your program 100%. You can read through some of our testimonials to hear more about what our clients think about training with us and the results they have achieved.
Your pool workouts are designed to keep your interest peaked and to keep challenging you throughout. Programs are regularly adapted and changed so that classes are always exciting.
If you are looking for a water workouts class, then the APT aqua physical classes are perfect for you. Our programs typically run for 45 minutes, and this gives you enough time to get a great workout.
Many of our water aerobic classes contain exercises with weights to help you get the most from your session. Unlike other centers who may use pool noodles and foam dumbbells, which only have little effect on your body, here at APT, we use unique strength training equipment. These are designed to improve strength, flexibility, and cardiovascular endurance. We also have water aerobics for seniors at the center to cater the elderly.
This is very important because if we stop exercising because we’re not as fit as we used to be, it’s a double whammy. An ageing body needs support to enable it to exercise the parts that not suffering and need to be maintained, so water aerobics for seniors is the obvious answer.
As well as our unique strength training equipment, we also use aquatic bikes and treadmills within our programs and personal training sessions. By using this equipment in the water, you are protecting your body from common injuries that can occur when completing land-based exercises.
We know this looks funny and your friends are going to raise an eyebrow when you tell them about it, but you’ll be talking as one who knows something they don’t. You’ll be the new fitness guru of your group.
You can choose to complete your aquatic workouts in a large group training program or through a one-to-one personal training session. Our personal training is suitable for anyone, but it is particularly good for those who have suffered from injuries, are recovering from surgery, or want to lose a lot of weight. During our personal training sessions, you will have the maximum attention, and we can make sure all exercises are completed correctly so that you get the maximum benefits, as well as being fully accountable.
If these technical terms sound a bit remote and scientific, it’s probably because you don’t see your body as the many-splendored machine that it is. Once you start looking at it that way, you’ll be better able to look after it as you should. A whole-body workout makes a lot of sense too. Go for a run and you’re using only cardio to get healthy and missing out on strength and flexibility. Get the rest of your body involved, as you do when swimming, and you’re getting 2x or maybe 3x benefit.
No matter which type of program you choose to partake in, you can look forward to our highly educated and qualified instructors. Our instructors are trained to take you through low impact pool exercises in the water, so your health is in the best hands. Read Less