It’s the time of year when leaves begin to change, and people start preparing to settle into their “cozy season.” With the changing weather, now may be the perfect time to switch up your fitness routine. What better way to do that than by adding some swim spa exercises!
Swim spas may not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a well-rounded exercise program, but did you know they offer a supreme environment for more than just cardio workouts?
These compact spas can elevate your workouts, offering a heated space to amplify your body weight exercises, increase mobility, and support a full body exercise regime year-round, no matter the weather!
We’ve previously talked about the many health and lifestyle benefits swim spas provide, so in this article, we’re going to give you ten exceptional exercises you can do in your spa so you can meet your fitness goals with ease this season!
10 Ultimate Swim Spa Exercises
One of the easiest ways to avoid burnout or boredom when it comes to your fitness regime is by adding new and exciting ways to work out into your routine.
That’s where swim spas come in, becoming a powerhouse solution to keep you on track and challenging yourself in ways that strengthen even the smallest muscles in your body!
Here are ten exercises to try in your swim spa this fall.
Cardio Exercises
Swimming
Swimming is the most obvious exercise to do in a swim spa.
Swim spas create a unique environment for your swimming workouts, giving you a way to customize the difficulty of your swim. Whether you want a more casual pace or you’re ready to take it up a notch and challenge yourself, swim spas provide a way for you to do this.
This means your spa will essentially grow alongside you, helping you get stronger and have a more powerful cardio exercise than you would in a traditional lap pool. All you have to do is set the jet stream to the strength you want and get to paddling!
Jogging
You may be wondering how you can go for a stationary jog without a treadmill. Swim spas have eliminated the need for an underwater treadmill to help you get a gentle, joint-protecting run!
Once you turn on the jets, you’ll be able to run against them, putting yourself through the paces as the stream keeps your body in place and the hot water amps up your body temperature.
Jogging in a swim spa offers many benefits, including:
- Customizable cardio
- Joint protection
- Higher calorie burn
- Better circulation
- Improved mobility
Not only will the buoyancy of the water support your weight and remove the impact your joints face during a traditional jog, but the warmth of the water will also support your muscles. It provides better oxygenation through increased circulation and can help them move more freely from the relaxation effects it has on the body.
Cycling
While your mind may automatically go to an underwater bike, you can perform this workout without one!
To do this without an aquatic bike, lean your body back on the edge of one of the seats, holding your torso at an angle and using your core to keep yourself steady. Then, lift your legs and move them as if you were cycling a bike.
Make this exercise even more difficult by using your arms to hold your entire body above the seat as you perform this move. You’ll be feeling a full body burn in no time!
You can also amp up this exercise by turning on the jet stream and peddling against the pressure, making it even more difficult to push against the water pressure and maintain your balance.
Due to how you perform this workout, it serves as both a cardio exercise and a functional training exercise, making it a powerful addition to your routine.
Functional Strength Training
Yoga
Moving through a yoga flow can be a great way to add a new kind of challenge to your traditional practice.
This can happen in a few unique ways.
- Buoyancy
- Underwater Movement
- Passive body heating
The buoyancy of the water will provide an added layer of support as you sink into each pose, adding some joint protection and allowing you to attempt poses you otherwise may not try in the studio.
Moving through the water provides multiple benefits. First, it adds some additional resistance as you transition from one move to the next. This challenges your muscles and will increase the strength you build during your practice.
Additionally, as you move through the water, the movement will change how your body has to respond to keep you stable throughout the transition and the pose. This movement will help strengthen smaller muscles in your body, most notably those in your ankles.
When these muscles can be strengthened, your entire body will gain better support both inside and outside of the water, and you’ll experience better stability and posture throughout your everyday life.
Lastly, as you’re submerged in warm water, your body is experiencing something called “passive heating.” Essentially, your internal temperature rises not only through movement but also simply by being in the water. This heating of your muscles will help them relax and give you better flexibility and mobility throughout your workout.
Because of this, you may be able to move deeper into each pose, stretching your muscles and making them work harder than they would outside of the water as they sustain the pose and transition you out of the pose and into the next.
Rowing
Rowing is a great exercise that combines cardio and strength training in a unique, full-body exercise.
Most swim spas have a way to attach resistance bands to them, adding the needed resistance to make this an effective exercise.
When purchasing your bands, make sure they can be used in water. Try searching for “aquatic resistance bands,” and you should be able to find them quite easily.
To complete this move, plant your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart and sink down into a half-squat position with your arms straight out in front of you. Then, pull your arms back on an angle towards your body while maintaining a straight back.
When performing a row in this position, the resistance will target your triceps and chest as you pull the resistance band back.
Bicep Curls
Bicep curls are a great exercise to do in a swim spa and can be done with either water weights or with your resistance bands.
If you’re using water weights, you can move through this workout much as you would outside the water. When using resistance bands, you can either have them attached to the swim spa or use a longer set and stand on them, curling your arms up to bring your hands toward your chest.
Doing bicep curls in your spa can create a more challenging workout with less weight as you pull against the water, causing extra resistance during this movement.
Body Weight Exercises
Push-ups
Swim spas provide the ideal environment to gain upper body strength through push-ups. The buoyancy of the water will help support your body, making it easier to move through this exercise and make it less daunting than if you try this outside the water.
Holding onto the edge of the swim spa, stand far enough back that your body is at an angle that’s comfortable for your strength level. Then, keeping your core tight, lower yourself down until your chest is close to the edge of the spa. Once you go down as far as you can, push yourself back up.
How angled your body is will change how difficult this exercise is, making it a great way to build up enough strength to move through a traditional push-up on the ground when you’re ready.
Squats
This lower body exercise is a great addition to any fitness program.
When doing this move in your swim spa, the buoyancy of the water will help support your body as you sit back, while the movement of the water will make it more difficult to keep yourself balanced.
This makes it easier on your joints and helps strengthen the smaller muscles in your ankles, giving you greater stability and balance outside of the water.
An added bonus of doing squats in a swim spa is that seats are already built in. This is helpful in two ways.
- If you’re just beginning to add squats into your workout, you can slowly lower yourself into the seat, then stand up after you’ve sat in it. This will allow you to gradually build strength without requiring constant pressure on your muscles from start to finish during this movement.
- These seats can also serve as a guide, giving you a way to signal when you’ve lowered yourself enough before standing back up. Simply lower yourself down into a squat position until you’re just hovering over the seat, then push yourself back up.
Flutter Kicks
Flutter kicks are an exercise that works out your abs, as well as your legs.
To perform this move, sit on the edge of one of the seats and lean slightly back. Then, lift your feet out in front of you and kick them up and down in opposite directions.
The difficulty of this move is increased by the resistance of the water, while the buoyancy supports your upper body, reducing the strain on your core.
Alternatively, you can do this move similar to the seated cycling exercise above by holding your body above the seat, adding a component of upper body work to the movement as well.
Lunges
Adding lunges into your aquatic exercise routine is a great way to work out your lower body while also gaining mobility.
You can move through this exercise in two ways, with the second offering a more difficult challenge.
First, step forward and lower yourself into a lunge position. Using your back leg, push your body forward and upright. Then, simply turn around, stepping forward with your opposite leg.
Alternatively, after you’ve stepped forward into your lunge, you can push yourself back into a standing position using the leg you stepped forward with.
Shop Swim Spas at All Seasons Pools & Spas
We’ve served Northern California communities for the last 30 years with bright, welcoming showrooms in Granite Bay, Grass Valley, North Auburn, Roseville, and Shingle Springs.
We’re proud to offer Sundance® Spas and Swimlife® Swim Spas, allowing us to bring the powerful benefits of hydrotherapy to families across the country!
If you’ve been looking for a way to elevate your backyard and create lasting memories of year-round fun, All Seasons Pools & Spas has the spa for you.
Visit your local showroom today to discover how a swim spa can transform your everyday living!
