Is water aerobics the equivalence of weight training?

Question

hi,

i was swimming around the pool the other day and desided to try and do some water aerobics like the elderly people do. just to have some fun and mess around cuz no one was watching and i quickly found out that it was hard and tiresome! at my high school i play a few sports and have to take weightlifting as a class and as i was doing these movements in the water i felt the same intense burn as i would have if i was benching weights. i must add that i was making all these movements up as i swam along ^_^

some of the things i did was i got neck high in water and extended my arms and fanned the water back and forth like a clapping seal. then i treaded water. all of these felt like a hard workout.

-so does water aerobics give you the same benifits as working out on land?

-also for future referrence, what water workout would tone abs? i tried to hold on the the diving bord and pull my extended legs up threw the water? would that work?

Answer 1

Water aerobics are great for people who can't put any kind of pressure on joints (elbows, knees, hips), so it's virtually low-impact but will still give you a great workout.

For the abs, purchase a water belt (Sports Authority, Modell's, etc...) and jump in the deep end. Bring your knees up to your chest as if you were doing a sit up on land, and repeat.

I used to go to a deep water class when I worked as a lifeguard, and that class tired me out! It's a great workout, but  I would suggest joining a class if you want to find some other workouts to do.