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Using Your Swim Spa as a Cross Trainer Machine
Cross training in your swim spa not only allows you to train harder but smarter. The unique aquatic environment effects almost every system of your body positively.
Here are a few examples
The buoyancy of the water reduces impact and limits the wear and tear on your joints. This helps to decrease the risk of overuse injuries as well as muscle soreness.
The waters hydrostatic pressure is very powerful, it helps to eliminate your bodies waste products produced from stressful land based training. At the same time, it causes your heart to function more efficiently and provides increased resistance on your chest to help strengthen breathing muscles for an improved workout. These benefits cannot be easily duplicated with a typical land-based training program.
The waters assistive and resistive properties will help to improve your muscle balance and flexibility. This will help to improve performance and reduce the likelihood of injuries.
Water provides 3-dimensional resistance so your muscles are trained much differently than on land. I like to call the water “the great equalizer” meaning the harder you push the water, the harder the water pushes you back. This is a very holistic, safe and effective way to train.
Using your swim spas current or jets creates increased turbulence, this additional challenge helps to improve your core stability, balance and coordination.
The waters resistance also allows for a great cardiovascular workout ,whether swimming or water running the benefits can be greater than land based training.
The temperature and pressure of the water as well as the introduction of the swim spa jets allows for improved circulation to help with muscle relaxation, faster recovery rates and diminished delayed onset muscle soreness
Cross training in your swim spa also provides:
Variation in your normal training program so you don’t get bored
Training your body differently can help you break through a plateau
By reducing gravity and momentum in the water it can help assist with your overall movement patterning meaning simply you move better.
Attention must be paid to correct exercise form, technique, intensity, program frequency and duration, but when used correctly your swim spa is an excellent cross training machine!
Dr. Rick McAvoy, PT, DPT, CSCS has specialized in Aquatic Physical Therapy, Fitness and Sports Performance for over 25 years. Rick is the Owner of Swim Spa Exercise, a virtual training company to help people maximize the use of their swim spas. He wants everyone to Move Better and Live Better.
For more information of how to maximize the use of your Swim Spa and how to Move Better and Live Better visit.
Arthritis Pain Relief in Your Swim Spa
Not Just Your Grandma’s Arthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common form of arthritis. There's a 50-50 chance that at some point in your life, you are going to develop osteoarthritis. I would not buy a lottery ticket with those odds!
In OA the strong, flexible substance that cushions your joints called cartilage begins to break down, leading to symptoms such as pain, stiffness, swelling particularly in the joints of the knee, hip, spine, hands and feet. Even though the cause of OA is unknown, age, gender, excess body weight, previous joint injury, occupation and genetics are all contributing factors.
Over the past decade knee replacement surgeries have tripled in the 45-to-64 age group because of OA.
One of the most effective ways to treat OA is to exercise. Your swim spa is one of the most comfortable and effective places a person with arthritis can exercise. Here’s why:
Water significantly reduces the impact on your joints making it much easier to move.
Water allows improved joint flexibility, which will improve range of motion and general mobility.
Water provides up to 12-15 times the resistance of air, allowing you to really strengthen your muscles and bones.
Your swim spas warm water and jets will aide in reducing any pain associated with OA.
Your spas current or jetted system can assist to improve cardiovascular fitness, calorie burning and weight loss.
The water 3 dimensional surrounding properties can help improve your balance, coordination and walking mechanics which then can transfer to land.
Your swim spa obviously provides significant benefits from a low impact standpoint. However, it is also a great place to get a high intensity workout.
A recent study with patients who suffered from OA and participated in a 6 week high intensity aquatic workout reduced joint pain and improved balance, function, and their overall mobility
Your swim spa can help to significantly alleviate and improve the symptoms associated with Osteoarthritis.
It is not necessarily the Fountain of Youth, but it’s pretty close.
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Dr. Rick McAvoy, PT, DPT, CSCS has specialized in Aquatic Physical Therapy, Fitness and Sports Performance for over 25 years. Rick is the Owner of Swim Spa Exercise, a virtual training company to help people maximize the use of their swim spas. He wants everyone to Move Better and Live Better.
For more information of how to maximize the use of your Swim Spa and how to Move Better and Live Better visit.
Dynamic Training in a Swim Spa
Water is a buoyant, three-dimensional, holistic, non-momentum prone environment which is the opposite of what is found on land. For aquatic training to be effective a very different philosophy needs to be used. Training in the water is just not land based exercises put into the water.This is what many people and trainers do not completely understand.
Because of the waters unique properties we are able to target functional movement type exercises much easier than when training on land. This functional type training helps people of all levels move better in their day to day lives.
Using a swims spas current with functional exercise can create even more of a challenge. Whether it be a propulsion system or a jetted system if used properly significant gains can be achieved.
All core all the time: Your core is the foundation for all movements in your body. Because of the waters properties your core muscles will become engaged easier during exercise to maintain proper posture. With the added resistance from the current or jets it gives you even more feedback and challenge during exercise.
Let’s take a basic walking forward motion. If I walk towards the current or jets I am getting more resistance in the front of my body. I have to use my core was well as my arm and leg muscles especially my buttocks muscles to push off and fight against the current or jets.
Now lets take the same exercise but with the current/jets pushing behind me. I have to still use my arms/legs and core muscles but now my back and leg muscles function much differently because I have to resist the current from not pushing me over.
This type of training will also help with challenge your brain in a much different way. We tend to be very patterned individuals and perform very similar activities throughout our day. When in the water both gravity and momentum are significantly reduced and your body becomes very uncoordinated. This nervous system “reset” can really help to improve your ability on land no matter what fitness level you are.
I am often asked, if we live on the land then why train in the water? I feel that by using water training we can create a more holistic approach and have much faster results. Water training alone does not work well unless it is combined with some sort of land based activity or training. I always like to compare water and land to Peanut Butter and Jelly. Separate they are good but when they are combined they are great!
And who doesn't love Peanut Butter and Jelly.
For more information about swim spa exercise visit: swimspaexercise.com
Train in 3D, No glasses required
3-dimensional functional training has always been a major focus of mine. As a physical therapist I have to develop functional training programs for clients who need to return to work, sport and overall quality of life.
My education in 3D functional training came early while I was attending the University of Connecticut. One of my professors there was David Tiberio who together with Gary Gray are pioneers in the field of functional training. Both Gary and David offer functional training education though the Gray Institute.
The Certification in Applied Functional Science is a great course through the Gray Institute that I highly recommend to anyone especially those specializing in aquatics. It will help to maximize the use of the water with your clients or athletes.
Why is 3D training important?
As Gary Gray explains human beings are three-dimensional: “We’re capable of moving in three planes of motion — forward and back, side to side, and rotationally. But it goes further than that: We’re also muscles, bones, and nerves. We can express strength, endurance, and power. And we’re mind, body, and spirit. If we leave any of those dimensions out, then we’re not training the whole person.”
We are very patterned individuals. We tend to sit too much during the day and most times if and when we exercise we incorporate straight plane type movements. This tends to lead to muscle imbalance, joint dysfunction and hence injury.
By incorporating the water, functional gains can be made faster incorporating 3D training because:
Water provides three-dimensional resistance inherently, so the muscular and neurological systems receive a more comprehensive training effect than land.
In the water, the focus can be on both flexibility and strength/stability at the same time. This will assist in reducing muscle imbalances and improving posture and function on land.
The ability to target movements not just muscles. Because of the waters surrounding properties clients and athletes are able to train functional movement patterns easier than on land
One of the most important things that I think the water provides is the benefits to train the nervous system.
Muscle imbalances can cause increased inhibition which leads to increased apprehension. By decreasing muscle inhibition it will lead to decreased apprehension and produce cleaner movements.
Because water is a surrounding proprioceptively enriched medium, it provides increased kinesthetic feedback. This feedback helps to clean up dysfunctional movement patterns.
So the next time you are training clients in the water, try to remember and incorporate a 3D philosophy. For example, can the client perform an exercise in which the arms are moving in one plane while the legs are moving in another? I think you will find it challenging as well as beneficial for your client or athletes.
Bridging the Gap Between Water and Land
Almost everyday I witness the power that water has influencing peoples lives. I see people in aquatic exercise classes smiling and feeling incredible with a freedom of movement not always experienced on land. However, when they exit the pool they are influenced by gravity and momentum which usually puts them in the same state that they were before getting into the water. These programs are obviously fun but will it help them functionally on land?
Over the past 25 years working in aquatics, I have worked with clients of all levels and abilities, from neurological disorders all the way up to professional and world-class athletes. I believe the pool should be fun but foremost functional. By performing functional aquatic training it will help to “bridge the gap” between water and land based training.
Functional training should focus on movements not just muscles. Functional training should be individual to a persons goals but it usually does encompass a few common components such as multi-planar and multi-joint actions that recruit the body’s stabilizers synergistically to facilitate correct movement. These programs should include core strength, flexibility, balance and coordinated movements to mention a few.
Integrating functional training into the water is much easier if we try to think more functionally.
A few thoughts:
Core Strength:
Core strength is the basis of most all exercise. It is not possible for the arms and legs to produce more force than the core is able to stabilize. Because of the waters unique properties it provides kinesthetic feedback to assist with core stability. Having clients perform movements such as push/pulls or rotation can be easily transitioned to land by incorporating body weight, bands, balls or even light weights.
Flexibility:
Flexibility should be established in all 3 planes of motion to have proper muscle balance and strength. In the water the focus can be on both flexibility and strength/stability at the same time. This will assist in reducing muscle imbalances and improving posture and function on land.
Balance/Coordination:
Coordinated upper and lower body movements can enhance both flexibility/mobility and hence function. Functional training should incorporate controlled amounts of instability such as in single leg exercises. The water’s properties helps to improve balanced coordinated movement patterns that may be more challenging to achieve on land.
Remember,the body moves in three planes of motion. Even though we move usually in one plane of motion at a time (forward/backward/sideways), we have to have stability in the other two planes. Because water is a surrounding 3-dimensional medium it provides this inherently so the muscular and neurological systems receive a more comprehensive training effect.
When developing aquatic fitness programs, try to think functionally. Water has its place but we function on land. You can still have fun in the water but if you integrate functional components into your program you will have clients that perform better on land as well. And honestly isn't that what it is all about?
Aquatic Movement Screening
I have been incorporating water into my athletes' training programs for a number of years. Now more than ever, there is significant research in the strength and conditioning journals validating the benefits of aquatic training for strength, flexibility and power to mention a few.
Using the water as a movement screen is something that I have discovered to be very beneficial and have incorporated into every athlete's aquatic training session. In the water, you are able to target multiple muscle groups much easier as well as train both mobility and stability simultaneously.
Athletes are very patterned to their specific sport. They also, like all of us, are influenced by gravity and momentum. In the water, both gravity and momentum are diminished and movement tends to be slowed down. This commonly brings out dysfunctional patterns more clearly. Because water is a surrounding medium and provides three-dimensional resistance, when an athlete moves in the water, he or she is subjected to the forces of buoyancy, viscosity and drag. These factors tend to turn most athletes (at least initially) into very uncoordinated individuals. Even the simplest movements, such as walking forward or backward with proper reciprocal arm swing has frustrated the most elite athletes in my experience. I encourage them to always remember, "The harder you push, the harder the water pushes you back, so there is no way you can ever overpower the water." On a good note, the water's hydrostatic pressure acts as a “second pair of hands” and assists with increased proprioceptive feedback so the athlete is able to improve his or her body awareness and motor patterning relatively quickly.
By incorporating aquatics into your athletes existing land based training you will be able to target movement pattern dysfunctions to a greater extent, thus enabling you to design more effective sports performance training programs.
This will not only help enhance your athletes' performance but also will hopefully reduce the frequency of athletic injuries overall.
