Swimming to lose weight is one of the ‘oldest tricks in the book’. Everyone is familiar with how physically demanding swimming is, and how that can help one lose weight.
Think about how much you see swimming promoted as a very healthy and amazing way of losing weight and getting fitter.
Unfortunately, it happens very rarely that big media outlets, who specialize in dieting, weight management and such, talk about swimming in this light.
Swimming is a natural activity that everyone can partake in. It is something that we have been doing for millenia and it doesn’t include the purchasing of anything. One only needs a body of water to swim.
In a world where advertising is king, it is much more profitable for companies to sell evil weight loss pills than to promote a much healthier and safer alternative such as swimming to lose weight.
Swimming to lose weight, also somewhat suffers from hiding in plain sight. Everyone knows the benefits of swimming and its effects on one’s weight, yet very rarely people choose to practice it.
Of course, within the swim enthusiasts community, people are aware of most things swimming related but when viewing humanity with a broader scope you start to see these things.
We want to shed more light on swimming to lose weight, and to do that today we have decided to count some of the main benefits that come from this activity.
Swimming To Lose Weight Is Healthy
Being in top health is something that requires a lot of work and discipline. The more we learn about medicine, the more we understand that keeping ourselves healthy is quite a task.
Indeed, our bodies are fascinating machines that can perform almost miraculous feats and endure so much, but that’s something that we should never take for granted.
One thing that we have discovered, that feels almost antithetical to everything we knew prior, is the fact that ‘being healthy’ can be taken too far. Far enough that it becomes unhealthy.
This is especially the case when it comes to eating and dieting. The obsession that people can develop with food can lead to a number of psychological and physiological pathologies.
Swimming to lose weight is not immune to this of course, but it is one of the best exercises that you can combine with healthy dieting and healthier life choice.
You see, where a lot of people go wrong, is having a tunnel vision on one aspect of being healthy and they refuse to pay attention to all else.
As an exercise, swimming checks all the boxes, and it can be challenging to take it too far when it comes down to it.
Being a cardiovascular exercise, swimming is ideal for two main things. First; weight loss! As all cardio exercises, one thing that swimming does well is burn calories.
Among the many factors that go into account when you try to calculate how many calories swimming burns, the most complicated ones are related to the swimming style, and intensity that you will swim with.
However, as a general, oversimplified, under optimal conditions rule, we can say that with low intensity swimming, one can burn as much as 400 calories per hour.
The amount of calories you burn will significantly go up, if you choose to add intensity or if you go for more complex swimming styles and strokes.
Swimming to lose weight however, will also have a massively positive impact on your cardiovascular system. Swimming is a well known benefactor of all things heart related.
On top of that, swimming can be healthy for your lungs, skin and even general mental well being. On top of helping you build a stronger core, as swimming is a whole body workout.
All these reasons combined is why we believe swimming to lose weight to be the best and arguably the healthiest alternative for doing so.
Swimming To Lose Weight Is Cheap, Fun And Convenient
As we mentioned earlier, losing weight is something that a lot of people are interested in, creating a demand for different types of products and services that ‘help’ in this regard.
Swimming is one of the cheapest sports to exercise. This is especially true if you live close to the sea, a lake or even rivers.
It should go without saying that if you decide to swim in such places, make sure that you follow proper safety measurements, and never do things that could put you or others at risk of drowning.
Even if you don’t have the luxury of living near a body of water, most gyms are equipped with swimming pools, and most gym memberships allow access to swimming pools.
The fun side of swimming to lose weight also kicks in here. We all know people (or have done this ourselves) who buy a gym membership and after 2 days there, never bother to return.
Swimming to lose weight can help keep you disciplined simply due to the fact that swimming is a very fun activity that doesn’t make you feel like you’re sacrificing something to get healthier and fitter.
Most of the time people who use swimming to lose weight start practicing it for the sake of their health and end up sticking to swimming often just due to how much they end up enjoying it.
As if this wasn’t good enough, swimming is also something that is extremely convenient. Unlike many other sports, swimming can be done alone.
Unlike many group sports, where you have to find people to join you in order for things to be enjoyable and right, swimming doesn’t have such requirements.
It is also convenient in that everyone can learn to do it. All you would need is to have a few swimming lessons and you too can benefit from it!
Swimming To Lose Weight Is Efficient
As we already established, swimming to lose weight can be a very intense calorie burning exercise.
The perfect thing about swimming to lose weight is that you get to pick what pace you want your weight loss to move in.
Swimming to lose weight also works in a very intricate way, where the amount of calories you burn is closely related to your weight.
This relation is a beneficial one, as the more you weigh, the more you will burn calories when you go swimming.
Combine this with the fact that more intense swimming can also increase the amount of calories burned and you see why swimming to lose weight allows you to pick the pace you want.
The best way to get all the possible benefits of swimming however, especially those that are related to weight loss is through combining your swimming with a healthy, low calorie diet. Doing so maximises the health benefits of swimming.
At the end of the day swimming to lose weight makes for a fantastic, healthy, convenient and efficient exercise for anyone willing to dip their toes into a pool.
