High Intensity Interval Training is one of the greatest exercise routines you can do. And yes, you can do it in the water!
H.I.I.T. involves pursuing one exercise, e.g. running, for 60-90 seconds as hard as you can go followed by 15-30 seconds of slower exercise, e.g. jogging. Then lather, rinse, and repeat. For a more comprehensive explanation, here’s what Wikipedia says about it:
High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is a training protocol alternating short periods of intense or explosive anaerobic exercise with brief recovery periods until the point of exhaustion.[1] HIIT involves exercises performed in repeated quick bursts at maximum or near maximal effort with periods of rest or low activity between bouts. The very high level of intensity, the interval duration, and number of bouts distinguish it from aerobic (cardiovascular) activity, because the body significantly recruits anaerobic energy systems (although not completely to the exclusion of aerobic pathways).[2] The method thereby relies on “the anaerobic energy releasing system almost maximally”.[1]
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To perform HIIT exercises in the water is easy. Take any exercise – the running/jogging mentioned above; squat jacks; cross-country ski or almost any exercise or exercise combo that you can go full board for a minute followed by a slowdown. The benefits: HIIT boosts metabolism, strengthens bones, burns fat, builds muscle, and maintains muscle mass. Your stamina, and your endurance are amazing and experts rave about it. I rave about it too. You don’t have to go nuclear with it; 3 days of 5 minutes of HIIT during a 45 minute total workout is sufficient to put you on track. You can find some good books that illustrate various water aerobics exercises! Check out the ones below:
Time yourself, using the pool’s chronometer, your smartwatch, or one of these:
Question: What about bringing intensity to the pool?
Answer: This one is a little tricky. On the one hand, yes, you definitely want to be focused on your workout and serious about the desire to attain and maintain results. On the other hand, the water is – with the possible exception of lap swimming – a more relaxed environment than the gym. Some of the same traditional “Gym Rules†for attitude still apply, such as:Â
- Leave your day’s problems at the door.
- Leave your bad mood at the door.
- Be courteous to everyone.
- Return the equipment to its designated space when finished using it.
You should really try, for your sake and others’, to take responsibility for these actions and attitudes.Â
At the same time, I believe people in the water are more relaxed and want to talk more than people at the gym. I may be wrong, I spend 99% of my time in the water, but I believe the water provides a connection to everyone in the pool that the air in the gym or the carpet in the gym doesn’t provide. People who get wet together seem to become closer friends. I mean, for cryin’ out loud you’re wearing very few clothes, you’re wet (maybe a little vulnerable?), and you’re just a short distance in shared water from the next guy.
This shared water space seems to really open people up…which, in my view, is good and – sigh, sometimes not so good. Some people seem to come to class only to revert to a relaxing day at the pool or the lake or the beach. They just want to kick back, talk and talk, and their only intensity is intensely wishing they had a cold drink in their hand. They came to play, not work. Unh, hunh. They’re in the wrong place.
Focus is important with any exercise routine. When I’m teaching class, I encourage camaraderie but not talking. What do I mean? I mean that if you want to discuss your day or your work or your friends outside the pool, get to class a few minutes early or stay late. I enjoy personal time with my class attendees so much. It’s great to get to know each other and to share! But don’t use class time to talk. During class, if you want to ask questions about the exercises, the pool, or share information about fitness, then please speak up. Otherwise, save it.
Your body’s shape or level of fitness is not going to improve talking about Jake or Sally, the kids, how much your spouse ticked you off, or that report you didn’t finish at work. However, it is going to improve if you’re focused and in step with the exercises we’re doing.
I also have a personal workout which I usually do daily for an hour. On non-class days I do it before my regular workout, and on class days I do it about an hour prior to class. During this time, I’m running across the pool, doing some stretching, and a few exercises. This is “my time,†and I’m every bit as intense as anyone can be working out. Because I’m spending the majority of the time running, it’s hard to talk or keep up a conversation. I try very hard to balance my need to focus and breathe properly with someone else’s need to talk to me without interrupting my class. LOL, it’s a high wire act sometimes. See #3 above.
So intensity at the pool is great for exercise routines, sometimes a little sticky for enhancing naturally occurring personal relationships. There’s a way to balance it, just don’t be rude and don’t be annoying, no matter what side of the workout/desire-to-talk equation that you’re on.
Now, equipment for the HIIT exercise protocol. I encourage you to get good shoes for the water in order to do these exercises properly. Don’t waste your money on “aqua socks,†or extremely cheap brands of shoes. Just like a good running shoe, you need a pair of good water shoes for your feet. They should have traction soles, drainage ports, and fit comfortably. The best for women are Ryka, shown below, and the best place to get them is H20Wear.com or Amazon. These shoes last for years!
If you’re a man, I have heard good things about these shoes, available on Amazon:
The HIIT protocol will make you sweat in the water – which is a glorious feeling, by the way – and you’ll want and need to rehydrate. So bring your water bottle to your workout! I know, it makes you have to go to the bathroom. But it is so healthy it’s worth it!! If you drink more water, eliminate salt from your diet, and cut back on sugar, then along with a workout there is no end to how far you can go in improving your health. Disposable water bottles are not where it’s at, nor what you want poolside. Try out these water bottles:
I’ll see ya’ in the water!
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