Catch the wave
Calling all landlubbers! Aquacise is a no-sweat, all-over workout that gets you twice as fit in half the time

Kristin Jenkins

Marion Raycheba will readily admit she’s afraid of water. That’s why she had to get into running to keep fit.

Eventually, the volunteer fitness leader at Metro Central YMCA in Toronto started competing in marathons. She ran 13 in all, plus one ultra marathon with a distance of 50 kilometres.

Then, one winter day, everything changed in the blink of an eye. “The streets were clear, everything was fine and suddenly I slipped on a patch of ice and sprained my ankle,” Marion recalls. The doctor told her there would be no running for at least two weeks, and more likely six. “I was terrified at the thought of losing my fitness gains and forgetting how to run.”

That’s when she took her running to deep water. Wearing a lifebelt to keep her body vertical in three metres (10 feet) of water (“with this device, I’m fearless”), she did entire pool lengths of jumping jacks and simulated cross-country ski movements every day. The water’s buoyancy protected her ankle by reducing her on-land body weight by 90%.

After two weeks, Marion couldn’t stand it any longer: she just had to see if she could still run on land. So she headed outside and, to her astonishment, discovered that she was just as fit as before the injury, “thanks to the resistance and massaging effects of the water.”

An instant convert, she started doing deep-water running workouts in the pool once a week. And she immediately signed up for the YMCA training program to teach deep-water fitness classes as well.

“You get an excellent workout, and every minute you spend deep-water running is the equivalent of about two minutes of running on land,” Marion says.

Whether you’re recovering from an injury or looking for a safer way to tone your body and improve your fitness level, water exercise could be for you. And as the formerly water-fearing Marion demonstrates, you don’t have to have swimming skills. According to the Aquatic Exercise Association (AEA), a not-for-profit educational organization, aquatic exercise is safe and fun for people of all ages and abilities, including those who are overweight or pregnant or have back problems, arthritis or diabetes. It is also a more comfortable way to get exercise if you’re experiencing the hot flashes of menopause. And it’s good for frail individuals, such as those with osteoporosis, because the buoyancy minimizes the risk of fractures.

Photo by Masterfile

The unique properties of water — buoyancy, reduced impact plus increased resistance — can provide anyone with a well-balanced workout that delivers aerobic training, builds muscular strength and endurance, increases flexibility and helps maintain a healthy body composition (muscle-to-fat ratio).

Aquatic workouts are typically performed in a vertical position in either shallow water (up to mid-chest with you standing on the bottom) or deep water (at neck level with you suspended). And even the most vigorous routines are buffered by a reduced gravitational force. This decreases impact on the joints and significantly reduces your normal body weight. Immersed up to the neck, for instance, your body bears about 10% of its on-land weight; up to the chest, it bears 25% to 35% and up to the waist, 50% .

This can be good news for bad backs since the compressive load on the spine is reduced and the core muscles needed for proper spinal alignment, good posture and a healthy back are strengthened.

One caveat: working out in water won’t increase bone density since it is not a weight-bearing exercise. For that, you need to do load-bearing exercise such as walking, say fitness experts. But since water provides a lot more resistance than air, your muscles get a bigger workout in less time. It also prevents exercisers from overheating, so it’s ideal for staying fit in hot weather.

And here’s another plus: the resistance of moving in water provides a balanced workout for muscle groups that work in pairs, such as the biceps at the front of the upper arm and the triceps at the back. On land, you need separate exercises to stimulate opposing muscle groups.

A word about dry skin

Let’s face it; anyone who works out in chlorinated water on a regular basis knows only too well the perils of dry, itchy skin. If that’s keeping you out of the pool, veteran deep-water runner Marion Raycheba has this easy solution: baking soda.

“As someone with very dry, sensitive skin,” she says, “I found this technique made the difference between enjoying deep-water running and dreading it.”

1. When showering after your workout, soap up, then make a paste of baking soda and water (enough to fill your cupped palm) and smear it all over your body.
2. Rinse well. The baking-soda paste will magically get rid of both the itching and the chlorine smell.
3. Apply a liberal amount of gentle body lotion to your still-damp skin.

Dive into diversity

“Aquafit is no longer just for older women with shower caps on their heads,” notes Melanie Byrne, group fitness director of Las Vegas Athletic Clubs in Nevada, where water-based fitness classes are spreading like desert wildfire. Here are just a few the many varieties.

Aquachi is a moving meditation class in water that improves balance.

Aquasculpt uses buoyant aquatic equipment to tone the upper and lower body as well as improve core muscles.

H2O Back Care provides postural training to increase mobility, flexibility, strength and muscular endurance in the abdominal and back muscles of the body’s core.

Rusty Hinges are workouts for those with arthritis and other chronic orthopedic and joint conditions.

Hydroabs delivers 30 minutes of water-based tummy toning.

“Aqua classes should never be mistaken for easy, ” warns Byrne. “You get a lot of bang for your buck with a water-based workout.”

That’s putting it mildly. Since the birth of aquafitness classes more than two decades ago, aquatic exercise programs have continued to evolve. Now you can take a lot of classes in water that used to be land-only events. Take a water kick-boxing class, for instance, or build power and endurance with pool-based interval and circuit training. Interested in a one-on-one session? Today there are aquatic personal trainers to help you reach your goals.

And let’s not forget another important component: camaraderie. Aquafitness gets

top marks in this department, too. “The social aspects of aquafitness motivate people to keep coming back,” says Byrne.

Marion, now 61, is still coming back. As land-based injuries continue to catch up

with her, water running has become more important than ever. “It takes all the weight and pressure off my joints, but at the same time I get a really good workout,” she says.

For more aquafit info, go to www.aeawave.com.

Take it to the lake To do your aquafitness program at the cottage this summer, invest in a pair of aquafit shoes, advises Renée LaRochelle, director of group exercise at the Toronto Athletic Club. “They’re specially designed to be worn in the water and will give you a good grip on the lake or river bottom,” she says.

Photo by Masterfile

You might also want to spring for some lightweight equipment for an awesome water workout. LaRochelle recommends sitting on a foam noodle and using your arms to move you forwards in the water, then backwards. This provides a good workout to core muscles. “Just keeping your balance while you sit on the noodle targets abdominal and back muscles,” she says.

Foam weights can be used to do bicep curls under water. A good old flutter board gives an amazing lower body workout that includes abdominals and allows you to kick your toning and cardiovascular training into high gear — literally. Water gloves, which are webbed between the fingers, will increase water resistance and provide a fantastic upper body workout. LaRochelle suggests using them for the following exercise.

Standing in water up to your shoulders, stretch your arms out straight to the sides at shoulder height, your palms facing forwards, your fingers spread wide.

Keeping your arms straight, move them toward each other until your palms are touching in front of you.

Turn your palms over and sweep your arms back around to the sides, keeping your arms straight. You should now be back in the starting position.

Repeat five to 10 times, or until your arms feel pleasantly fatigued.