Is Swimming Good for Weight Loss?

Category: Swimming |

Swimming is a fabulous all-round exercise. It has a gentle impact which is soothing for sore muscles and it tones your body, but is swimming good for weight loss? Well, absolutely, it’s great! You can set your own goals from completing five, ten or twenty lengths, mastering a new stroke or entering galas and competitions. Even better, you need very little in the way of equipment so swimming is a fairly cheap activity to undertake. Read on for our tips on swimming to lose weight.

Classes

Swimming classes are ideal for beginners or just to make sure your technique is on top form. This will allow you to swim for longer, thus increasing the number of calories you burn. Does swimming lose weight? Yes, the all-over workout that swimming provides uses all of your major muscles, which makes your heart and lungs work harder. This is what causes those calories to burn away. If your local pool offers aqua-aerobics then that is even better, giving you an additional cardio workout.

Strokes

You’re already getting a workout, but by choosing your strokes carefully you can also tone specific muscles. For instance, breast stroke is ideal for pecs. You will notice an improvement in your upper body strength in general as your swimming improves, due to the constant resistance of the water. Building muscle results in further calories being burned, so this is an added bonus. Is swimming good for weight loss? Without a doubt. The amount of calories you can expect to burn depends on weight, gender and how intensive your session is, but swimming burns between 95 and 545 calories in half an hour.

Other Reasons to Swim

Swimming is very gentle on the body, so it is soothing for people with all sorts of injuries or physical ailments. Many athletes take to the pool to help recuperate whilst still maintaining their fitness levels. Another fabulous benefit of swimming is simply that it is great fun! You can vary sessions by changing the stroke, or even doing other activities such as treading water. Why not go with the kids and encourage them to keep fit too?

So, is swimming good for weight loss? It certainly is, but there are many other benefits to this sport too. Suitable for all ages and abilities, check out your local pool and see what’s on offer.