Benefits of Aquatic Exercise for Seniors

Aquatic exercise is a versatile activity that’s particularly beneficial for seniors as it provides a low-impact workout that’s gentle on aging joints. While aquatic exercise is a fun way to stay active, the water’s buoyancy reduces stress and strain on the body. Engaging in water-based activities can improve balance, flexibility, strength and cardiovascular health without the risk of falling or other injuries that may occur when engaging in land-based exercises. Learn more about the many health and wellness benefits that make aquatic exercise an excellent choice for seniors.

Promotes Balance and Reduces Fall Risk

Unintentional falls among seniors aged 65 or older remain the leading cause of injury and death from injury, with over 38,000 deaths and nearly 3 million emergency room visits reported in 2021 within this group. However, falls can be prevented. One way to reduce your fall risk is by improving your balance through aquatic exercise.

Water’s natural resistance provides a safe, supportive environment to perform movements that enhance stability. As your body moves through the water, the resistance works against your muscles, helping to strengthen those critical for maintaining balance. At the same time, the buoyancy of the water allows you to do exercises you might find too difficult to do on land without the fear of falling.

Many aquatic exercises focus on stability and coordination. Some more commonly used exercises include: 

• Leg lifts: Slowly raise one leg to the side or front while maintaining balance on the other leg. 
• Water walking: Walk forward, backward or sideways to engage core muscles needed for stability. 
• One-legged exercises: Stand on one leg while doing arm movements to work on balance. 

These exercises enhance physical stability while building confidence and making everyday movements safer. By incorporating water-based exercises into your routine, you may also significantly improve your balance and reduce the risk of falls.

Enhances Muscle Strength and Flexibility

Muscle strength and flexibility are key components of maintaining overall health and mobility.  Aquatic exercise provides an excellent way to enhance both by gently yet effectively building muscle strength through water resistance. Unlike traditional strength training that uses weights that sometimes lead to strain or injury, water resistance is evenly distributed across the body. You can easily adjust this resistance by moving slower or faster, allowing you to strengthen muscles in a safer, more controlled environment. 

Aquatic exercises can target specific muscle groups. Consider some of these popular options: 

• Flutter kicks: Strengthen leg muscles by holding onto the pool’s edge or a kickboard, and let your body float out behind you as you rapidly kick your legs up and down. 
• Water pushups: Increase your arm and upper body strength by facing the pool edge in water about chest high with your hands on the edge slightly farther apart than shoulder-width. Keeping your feet off the bottom, slowly bend your elbows to bring your chest closer to the edge, then push back to the starting position. 
• Dumbbell resistance training: Use floating 5-pound to 10-pound aquatic dumbbells to increase strength training for the upper and lower body, or do the same moves without dumbbells to start, and work your way up to using dumbbells. 

Flexibility is also crucial to keep aging joints free of pain while supporting good posture and balance. The supportive nature of water provides a greater range of motion, enabling you to stretch your muscles with reduced risk of injury. Stretching helps improve muscle elasticity, which enhances flexibility. Keep your joints happy with exercises such as: 

• Hip extension: Standing in water at hip level, close to the pool edge for support, slowly extend one leg backward in a controlled movement, then switch legs to maintain hip flexibility. 
• Arm circles: Standing in water at chest level, extend arms out to the sides at shoulder height, then slowly rotate both arms in small circles, gradually increasing the circle size to enhance flexibility and strength in the arms and shoulders. 
• Torso twists: Standing in water at waist level, with feet at hip-width and knees slightly bent, gently twist your torso to one side and then the other without moving your hips to increase flexibility and strength in your core. 

Improves Cardiovascular Health 

Aquatic exercise is also a powerful way to improve cardiovascular health, which is crucial for overall health and well-being. Regularly engaging in water-based activities can increase circulation, improve blood pressure and enhance lung capacity, which all help boost heart health. Best of all, the low-impact nature of aquatic exercise strengthens your heart muscle without straining the rest of your body. Consider these popular heart-healthy exercises: 

• Water walking: This is a beginner exercise anyone can do because it just involves walking around in the water. Warm up with a walk, and then transition to a jog to elevate your heart rate for improved cardiovascular health. 
• Jumping jacks: Standing in water chest-high, with your feet together and your arms at your sides, jump up while moving your legs apart and lifting your arms above your head. On your next jump, move your legs back together and your arms back down. It’s just like traditional jumping jacks but without the stress on your joints or fear of falling. 
• Aqua Zumba: Essentially dancing in water, Aqua Zumba is just like land-based Zumba, but it's performed in water and set to music. This lively, rhythmic exercise targets every muscle group to get your heart pumping while enhancing balance, flexibility and strength. 

By adding aquatic exercises into your routine, you can improve your cardiovascular health, potentially leading to improved stamina, reduced risk of heart disease and an overall healthier lifestyle. 

Remember, some soreness after aquatic exercise is to be expected. You’re still using those muscles even if it doesn’t feel like it while in the water. However, the soreness should diminish after a few sessions. Always speak to your doctor before starting a new exercise regime to ensure you don’t overdo it. 

Experience the Royal Oaks Difference 

While aquatic exercise is an ideal activity for summertime, seniors can also enjoy it year-round when they have access to a heated swimming pool like the one at Royal Oaks. Our Evergreen Fitness Center has a heated indoor pool and a heated outdoor walking pool to help residents stay physically fit. We also offer numerous fun and engaging health and wellness resources. 

Learn more about these and the many other amenities and services we provide at Royal Oaks when you schedule a tour by calling 623-208-6621.