No matter how old you are and what is your fitness level, swimming offers a lot of health benefits. Research has reported benefits to physical and mental health, with longer-term wellbeing benefits, including supporting healthy aging and potentially reducing the risk of early death.
Remarkable Health Benefits of Swimming for Seniors
Swimming is an important surviving skill for any one at any age. This skill is learned, not a natural human activity. It is never too late to learn.
Swimming provides Low-Impact Cardio, also makes the heart to become stronger and the lungs to become more efficient in utilizing oxygen. Swimming trains the muscles involved with respiration, meaning it can enhance lung volume, improve circulation and help reduce the risk of heart and lung disease. Swimming is an efficient way to burn calories and maintain weight.
Provides a full body workout and gentle on the joints, also offers an alternative for individuals with difficulties to exercise on dryland. Swimming increases heart rate without stressing your body, tones muscles, builds strength, maintain muscle mass, builds endurance, and also increases flexibility. Swimming is a great form of resistance training and can help improve muscle and core strength. With training, your endurance and stamina will increase with swimming. It is one of the best full-body workouts.
Improves stability, reducing risk of falls. Swimming works all major muscle groups, resulting in stronger muscles overall, especially the upper body, core muscles, and leg muscles – all important for posture and stability, which reduces the risk of falls.
Provide healing benefit for musculoskeletal pains, as water provides support for your spine and joint movements. The aqua range of motions exercise helps to heal stiffness and pain from sedentary life.
Boosts brain power, mood and Reduces Stress. Swimming is a popular way to relax and de-stress. Exercise in general has been associated with improving cognition, increasing alertness, clarity, and energy levels, according to science. Swimming Meditation practice is a plus. Swimming is a form of mindfulness that release body tension. Swimming has a host of benefits for your mind, body, and soul; enhances quality of life.
Contributes to Better Sleep. While almost all aerobic exercise is linked to better sleep, swimming is especially therapeutic because it encourages free-floating movements and meditation-like breathing.
Improving body connection and coordination. While swimming, almost all the senses of human body are engaged: sight, sound, touch, smell/breath, and full body physical coordination. The rhythmic repetition of strokes and breath creates an anchor that makes mind/body connection. Feeling the water waves creates a unique sensation.
It is fun and challenging – You can learn to swim at any age and the learning continues, as there is always room for improvement; and you may always go faster, as the world record has no upper limit. Learning is fun and practice is challenging. Making progress is a great sense of accomplishment.
Practice Swimming Meditation
Swimming is an individual sport and you are in total control of your mind and body. While your body is moving through the calm water, focusing your mind on breathing and body positions will promote meditation effects naturally. When you are immersed in water, you can completely tune out the outside world. Swim your strokes, lap by lap, and tune into the rhythm of the repeated movements and your breathing. You'll soon find your mind relaxing as you achieve a calmness.
Meditation is something your mind can do while swimming. When you meditate, the mind is no longer bound by the anxieties and stresses that usually take up so much mental space. Instead, the mind is spacious and refreshed, and you feel rejuvenated. This naturally inspires you to work on bettering yourself and improving the lives of others. Most importantly, experience that swimming and meditating are enjoyable!
Find a quiet pool and set your mind into calm meditation mood before start, take 3 deep breaths.
Set a time limit, start with 10 laps and may add on.
Immersing into the water and feeling you are into a different world. As you begin swimming, start slow to feel yourself floating and moving through water. Notice and aware of your body position when swim in the water – head, trunk, arms, hands, legs, feet. Concentrate on each stroke and rhythm.
Follow your breath rhythmic: As you take breaths, shift your focus from a stroke rhythm to a breathing rhythm, noticing the unbroken alternation of in-breaths and out-breaths. Feel the sensation of your breath as it goes in and as it goes out. In this practice, you focus your attention on your body.
Engage your senses of sight, sound, touch, smell/breath, and full body physical coordination. Notice the feeling of the wetness on your skin and water motion.
Focus your mind on the rhythmic repetition of strokes, breathe, kicks and lap counts. Your mind is unlikely wanders away.
Close with kindness: When you stop, notice how your body feels right now; notice your thoughts and emotions.
By Wikipedia definition, meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state. Meditation can give you a sense of calm, peace and balance that can benefit both your emotional well-being and your overall health. You can also use it to relax and cope with stress by refocusing your attention on something calming. Meditation can help you learn to stay centered and keep inner peace. Meditation lets you become more aware and more purposeful about your actions. It teaches you how to respond, rather than react, to situations in your life. Meditation sounds simple. But it takes discipline to remain still in body and mind.
Swim Risks and Self-Care Tips
As with any workout, there are certain risks associated with swimming. Know your health condition and check with your Doctor for exercise safety and limitations.
Water safety: Shallow swimming pool is safe for most people. For beginners, basic swimming lesson is recommended to get started and adult swimming lessons are available. Know the risk of open waters. You may not be aware of hidden rocks, sudden drop-offs or even creatures lurking beneath the surface, the tide rise, and possible shark attacks, especially in the ocean. Life jacket is highly recommended when swim in open water, regardless of swimming skill levels.
Easy startup: If you have the basics, you may learn more from online swimming coaching and practice regularly. Try swimming laps for 20 to 40 minutes at a pace that keeps your heart rate elevated. Drink plenty of water and take breaks as necessary. Increase intensity and distance with a training plan.
Shoulder injury prevention – limited shoulder flexibility and improper swimming techniques may result in shoulder injuries. Basic training is essential, including upper body strength and dryland exercises. Keep shoulder movements within a personal comfortable range but don’t push beyond your limit.
Sun safety: it may be more dangerous than either chlorine or pool germs when swim outdoor during peak sun hours. You're not shaded when submerged; instead, water can magnify rays, making swimming outdoors at midday a skin cancer risk. Take your dip before 10 A.M. or after 4 P.M. Use sun block and consider wearing long swimwear with ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 50 are recommended.
Skin care: Use a light to mild hydrating cleanser or body wash to rinse off the pool's chemicals and help restore your skin's pH balance. After rinsing off, the next step to your skin care routine after swimming is to reapply a moisturizer to restore hydration to your skin.
Hair care: frequent swimmers are more prone to chlorine damage. Recommended hair routine for each swim:
Rinse your hair with clean water before and after swimming.
Use natural oils or leave-in conditioner to add a protective layer.
Keep your hair dry and safe with a quality swimming cap to protect hair when swimming.
Disclaimer: This information is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice. Consult your healthcare professional for personal conditions.
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