With swimming now officially the most popular participation sport in the UK* and new national awareness programs such as ‘Learn to Swim’ and ‘Free Swimming’ there’s never been a better time to visit your local pool.

These initiatives have prompted top personal trainer Lucy Wyndham-Read and behavioral psychologist Judi James – resident experts at AXA PPP healthcare’s Nutrition and Fitness website – to compile a series of water-based workouts and motivational exercises, which are designed to help you get the most out of swimming.

Lucy Wyndham-Read recommends swimming as a form of regular physical activity for people of all ages and fitness levels.
“Whether you’re an absolute beginner or a fitness fanatic, swimming is an excellent way to tone up, improve your cardiovascular health, lower your blood pressure and leave you feeling fighting fit.”

Judi James adds:
“Swimming is naturally enjoyable for most people and if you enjoy something you’re far more likely to stick to it.”

How swimming can help your fitness
Exercise such as swimming can indeed help combat stress and beat the blues, adds Lucy, as it releases endorphins (the body’s natural ‘feel good’ chemicals) into your bloodstream. It is also low impact putting less pressure on the joints unlike exercises such as aerobics and running, making it one of the safest activities you can do. Swimming also tones your entire body while still providing a great workout and being in the water keeps you cool, meaning you can work out for longer.

Expert Swimming tips

Lucy’s pool workouts

- Workout 1 – Add some variety to your swimming by doing one length as fast as you can, then the next two at a moderate pace. Repeat this several times. This is a great way to burn off extra calories.

- Workout 2 – Mix it up by switching strokes after each length. For example, use a combination of breast stroke (great for toning arms and legs), back stroke (great for upper body flexibility) and front crawl (great for working on speed and fitness).

- Workout 3 – Place a float between your knees and swim a length using either front crawl or breast stroke. This is a great way of training and toning your upper body. Then switch, and for the next length extend your arms in front, hold on to the float and power yourself using your legs only. Repeat several times.

- Workout 4 – This is a simple way of toning deep into your abdominal muscles. Using any swimming stroke, pull your belly button up tight to your spine, hold for 10 seconds, then release. Repeat several times.

‘British Swimming’, the national governing body for swimming in the UK says that any swimming that makes you breathe more heavily counts as ‘moderate’ activity. “Even treading water takes effort, so you are working most of the time you’re in the pool.” It adds that 30 minutes of steady-paced lane swimming burns off more than 200 calories.

Set up as part of the government’s ‘Be Active, Be Healthy’ strategy designed to get 2 million people more active by 2012 adults who are 60 or over and under-16’s can now swim for free in over a thousand swimming pools run by almost 300 local councils. Free lessons are also being offered in some areas to help the one in five adults who can’t swim learn.

AXA PPP healthcare’s Nutrition and Fitness website offers information and advice on topical healthy living issues, featuring articles, exercises, recipes and videos from many of the UK’s leading specialists.

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About the Author:
AXA Nutrition and Fitness

Much attention has been devoted to the dangers of suction drain entrapment since the passage of the federal Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act in 2007. The dangers of entrapment are significant, and anti-entrapment drain covers should be in place, but drowning presents an even greater risk as the second leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 5 in the U.S.  Statistics from both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Consumer Product Safety Commission show that hospital treatment for near-drowning is required for thousands of children each year. With the right steps, drowning is preventable.

Parents watch their children, especially during the toddler stages — but it’s impossible to watch them every second of every day, and a couple of seconds is all it takes for toddlers to come into harm’s way. There are times when a parent is distracted by cooking, doing laundry, checking email, taking a shower or other routine activities such as answering the phone or front door.  Ultimately, kids  are drawn to water like a magnet.

It’s vital to have layers of protection in place between your home and pool. Studies in areas where isolation fencing is mandatory, such as Western Australia, have proven that isolation fencing saves lives. Isolation fencing separates the pool from the home, either surrounding the pool or enclosing all doors leading from the home, to protect children who get out the door from moving beyond the patio. For above-ground pools, a smaller fence and gate surrounding the steps or ladder can prevent toddler access.

When a child gains unauthorized access to a pool and drowns or suffers permanent injury, it’s a terrible tragedy. It can also be a liability issue when the injured party is a visitor. You can improve the safety and security of your pool or spa with isolation fencing with self-closing, self-latching gate hardware by D&D Technologies.

“D&D’s MagnaLatch is the No. 1 selling child safety gate latch in the world,” says D&D Technologies’ Senior Vice President Jim Paterson. “Unlike common gravity latches, MagnaLatch has a built-in key lock, eliminating the need for a separate padlock. It won’t jam, is self-latching and vertically and horizontally adjustable. Our gate hardware is formed of super-strong engineering polymers with stainless steel components, so it won’t rust — ever. And it carries a limited lifetime warranty. With TruClose hinges, no external closing spring is required, and the homeowner can easily adjust the gate closing tension after installation with the twist of a screwdriver.”

Pool barrier codes require pool gates to be self-closing and self-latching, and to open away from the pool. D&D has two lockable MagnaLatch styles so the release can be mounted at the code-required height, typically 54 or 60 inches above the ground. Consult your building department for local regulations.

Pool safety advocacy groups like the National Drowning Prevention Alliance recommend several layers of protection to ensure that homeowners can experience the pleasures of swimming pools and feel an added degree of assurance that their children, grandchildren and visitors will be safe.

“We believe in promoting ‘The Safer 3,’ a program developed by the Swim for Life Foundation,” Paterson says. “This means safer water — including fencing and other safety devices such as alarms around the pool; safer kids — including adult supervision and swim skill attainment; and safer response — meaning adults should know CPR and rescue breathing, and a cordless phone should be kept poolside so that adults never have to leave the area to answer the phone while children are swimming.”

The National Drowning Prevention Alliance recommends that a “water watcher” be designated for safety when children are in the pool, to maintain eye-to-eye contact at all times. Toys or floating chlorine dispensers that look like toys should never be left in the pool area.  Most people don’t realize that toddlers are top-heavy, so are at a higher risk of falling into water while reaching.

“With isolation fencing and ‘The Safer 3’ in place, your family can look forward to years of safe relaxation and enjoyment of your pool,” Paterson says.

Paterson notes that rust free gate hardware by D&D Technologies is now available through pool stores, fencing contractors and on-line, and many hardware and home improvement stores carry the company’s products under the Stanley or National Hardware brand. For more information, visit www.ddtechglobal.com or www.ndpa.org.  For more information or a free “Pool Safety Kit” call (800) 716-0888, ext. 292 or e-mail mwilliams@ddtechusa.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent