How to exercise in winter (and year round) with a water workout

If you're anything like me, you'll always find excuses not to exercise. In the winter, you can complain that it's too cold or too dangerous on the ice to go out for a long run in the park. During the summer, you can say it's often unsafe to run when the sun is at its hottest across the middle of the day. Given that we think about water a lot, we've actually found that exercising in water – like a workout in the local swimming pool – works perfectly well all year round. There are so many diets and recommendations available to everyone these days, but it's difficult to know which really work and which are just stealing your money. You should know by now that dieting alone is not enough to help you reduce weight or tone your body. To achieve those targets, at any age, you need to exercise regularly and have a healthy diet and what better place to achieve that than in the comfort of warm water? It's not all about swimming Although most people enjoy swimming, it can be quite boring just going up and down the lanes of your local swimming pool. This can be a quite difficult exercise if your local pool doesn't section off individual lanes for lane swimmers because trying to swim in a straight line in a busy pool is more difficult than driving around the M25. Specific exercise routines in the pool may suit you better because they give you the opportunity to exercise alone, or if you need the camaraderie of team support, you can join exercise classes to burn calories and boost your metabolism while firming all the muscles in your body without putting stress on the major joints at your knees, hips and elbows. You don't need to spend a day in a sports superstore, choosing lots of special gear for running, jogging or a day in the gym. You only need a swimsuit and possibly some goggles. How water helps you At different stages of your life, you will exercise in a way that is appropriate to your age and lifestyle. Nevertheless, at any age, you can burn 400-500 calories an hour with moderate effort with a water workout and if you really need to burn off a few heavy dinners, hard work can help you burn up to 700 calories. Water works exceptionally well because it is nearly 800 times stronger than air. This means that every push, pull or motion you complete in the water is helping you achieve a complete resistance workout for your entire body. Instead of pulling weights in the gym, it's much easier to push water and achieve the same results. Quite soon, you will see the results of strengthening your core, your arms and shoulders and particularly, your glutes. As you build your muscles, you will set your metabolism working so it will still burn a few more calories even after you've been through the shower and dried off. Water exercise classes help your joints One added advantage of exercising in water is that gravity is neutralised around you so that you become almost weightless when you are immersed. This helps provide all of your joints with a much needed rest, even when you exercise. When you're lucky enough to have a pool at home, you can choose your own music and burn calories at a time that suits you. If you have to visit your local swimming pool for your workout, you will usually find plenty of opportunities because water workout classes are extremely popular. And don’t forget about the health benefits of drinking water, too! An Eden office water cooler makes sure you have refreshing, healthy water all through the day. Image credit: aspaonline