Go for a Swim
Do me a favour. Stop five random people during your daily routine and ask them whether or not they can swim. Not tread water, not dog paddle or stay afloat, but swim – as in do a proper stroke. You will be amazed to find out that the majority of answers may be a no. Strange right? Especially considering that we live on a small rock, completely surrounded by water. To be quite frank, this is not unusual; it is actually the norm in most other islands in the Caribbean and though younger kids seem to be able to swim, their parents, have not yet taken the plunge!
Other than perhaps saving your life, there are many good and healthy reasons to learn to swim.
Full Body Workout
Swimming practically works all of the muscles in the body if the routine consists of a variety of strokes. Regular swimming builds endurance, muscle strength and cardio-vascular fitness. It can even serve as the cross-training element in your weekly workout schedule.
Low Impact
Swimming is easy on the joints and perfect for persons who cannot participate in high impact exercise such as aerobics. When the human body is submerged in water, it automatically becomes lighter. This means that the pool or the ocean provides the perfect place to work on stiff muscles and achy joints, especially if you are injured, overweight or suffer from arthritis.
Weight Control
Coupled with the fact that swimming allows you to build endurance, increase flexibility and tone muscles, swimming is a great way to burn calories and therefore aids in weight control when combined with a healthy diet and other exercise activity such as jogging or power walking.
Stress Relief
Swimming is a relaxing and peaceful form of exercise which helps alleviate the stress of the daily routine. As you get better on your strokes, try to let your mind wander or even simply focus on nothing but the rhythm of your stroke. You will find yourself benefiting from an improved sense of well being, leaving you re-energised and ready to go on with the rest of your day.
Social Activity
Spending time swimming in a group or even just swimming on the beach will definitely prove to become a great opportunity to meet new people.
Beat the Heat
Swimming is the cheapest way to cool off in the sweltering heat and provides wonderful recreational activities for individuals and families alike.
