Swimming is one of Australia's favourite sport and activity. It makes sense because Australia is surrounded by beautiful beaches, lakes, rivers and fantastic pools. No wonder Australia has some of the greatest Olympic swimmers of all time. While swimming can be done leisurely or competitively it has many great health benefits for you.
Here are the top 5 benefits of swimming:
1. Full body workout
One of the best things about swimming is that it requires the use of many muscles to perform any stroke, it's a full body workout. Because of the resistance of the water, swimming helps strengthens your muscles without putting any impact on joints such as ankles, knees and hips.
Even though it is a low impact sport, you can still safely increase your heart rate, get fit, gain muscle strength and build core stability all in the water.
2. Longevity
As mentioned above swimming is a low impact sport, meaning that even those with minor injuries can continue to swim with low risk of causing further injury.
This also means that it is not age restrictive- compared to high impact sports like ballet or netball, as the joints in your knees, ankles and feet are under reduced strain.
3. Swim anywhere!
You can swim anywhere! The options are almost endless as you can swim in leisure centres, ocean pools, the ocean, lakes, dams and rivers all around Australia.
Before entering a body of water always ensure the environment is safe and clean to swim in and follow any rules and regulations that are in the area.
4. It is fun!
The beauty of swimming is that is it fun to do! You can make new friends from swimming groups to help motivate and support each other. It is always nice to have a swimming buddy to greet you with a friendly smile on a Saturday morning before getting into the water.
5. Good for mental health
Swimming is good for your mental health as it releases endorphins which elevate your mood and reduce stress levels. A lot of people find swimming cathartic and the water calming, helping to focus on the experience rather than the stresses of every-day life.
By joining a swimming group you can meet some great friends. What's not to love about bonding over a delicious hearty breakfast and a cup of coffee after a swim. Swimming with friends can increase your happiness, sense of belonging and purpose.
If you are interested in ocean swimming, CanToo has many great ocean swimming programs throughout the year.
If you would like to learn more about ocean swimming in a fun, safe and supportive environment - check out CanToo's Autumn Ocean Swim Program in Sydney.
Autumn Ocean Swim 1km Program Autumn Ocean Swim 2.5km Program
