Advantages Of Aqua Aerobics Exercise

Perhaps you should check out an aqua aerobics exercise class if you have tried aerobics classes and found that they don't work for you well for whatever reason. Aqua aerobics exercise is also known as water aerobics, has caught on as a popular exercise for many who have not enjoyed or not been able to get result from other type aerobics classes. Aqua aerobics exercise is a new, fun way to get in your aerobic activity so that you can remove weight and feel great. The aqua aerobics class is usually held in a swimming pool, normally in the shallow end. Aqua aerobics uses the water resistance to help you utilize the muscles in your body while at the same time getting a great aerobic workout. Aqua aerobics exercise is much easier on the joints and the back, since the water displaces most of your weight (up to 85%, depending on how deep the water is). Although this type of exercise goes easy on your joints, the natural resistance of the water still enables that you will obtain a great workout from a 45-minute class, including burning anyplace from 350-600 calories. The number of calories burned will vary based on how hard you exercise, and how deep the water is. Non-Swimmer's Aqua Aerobics Exercise Another advantage of aqua aerobics exercise is that you can participate in a class without knowing how to swim. Even some classes include lap swimming as part of the routine, many are done while standing in waist water depth for the entire session. The workout consists of a series of dance-type steps with some arm movements, sometimes set to music and using additional equipment such as kickboards or wrist weights. One thing to keep in mind about your aqua aerobics exercise class is that the instructor typically stands on the side of the pool, so she will not have the advantage of a watchful eye for each student to make sure position and motions are done correctly. It will be up to the student to check his own techniques to ensure that he is performing the exercises correctly. Aqua aerobics exercise Needs A Little Skill The moves may seem easier to do when you begin an aqua aerobics exercise, since you feel as if you are gliding through the water. Don't be deceived by the apparent ease of the exercise. All through your session the moves will become more difficult to complete, and your body will feel somewhat tired by the end of your workout. The water resistance makes your muscles work harder than you think, which is why you can rest assured that when you are having fun splashing about in the pool, your body is reaping the benefits from a great aqua aerobics exercise.

Helpful Hints & Tips

Encourage patron to wear water shoes to protect their feet and increase traction Be certain to have eye contact with ALL participants Ask if there are any patrons who are NOT swimmers keep a close eye on them Ask about medical concerns & provide modifications for those participants Use talk test to be certain everyone is working out hard enough Heart rate is NOT a good way to judge intensity in water because of the temperature of the water. If the participants faces are flushed and their heads are warm, they are probably working at a moderate pace. To increase the intensity, do deep water workout WITHOUT the buoyancy belt. NEVER do gutter ups with buoyancy belt on - AVOID if participants have shoulder problems. Use hand signals if the pool is crowded and noisy

Deep Water Workout

(pattern by Denise Martin)
Warm-up: (10 mins.) Jog, Cross-country Ski, Mountain Climbers, Scissor Jog (do in both directions) Cardio: (30 mins.) Intervals 2 mins. - Egg beaters 1 min - Dumbbell Bicep Curl 1 min. - Wall Chin-ups 2 mins. - Jumping Jacks 1 min - Dips (on bar or with Dumbbells) 1 min. - Dumbbell Speed Bag (both directions) 2 mins. - Pedal Bicycle 1 min. - Gutter Pulls (both ways) 1 min. - Barbell Bicep Curls 2 mins. - Barbell Hover Board Squats 1 min. - High Row with Barbell 1 min. - Wheelchair 2 mins. - Tread Water with Hands Up 1 min. - Dumbbell Fly & Reverse Fly 1 min - Dumbbell Sun Gods 5 mins. - Hamstring Kicks on Wall: 30 seconds fast - 1 min. recovery (moderate pace), 45 seconds fast - 1 min. recover, 1 minutes fast - 1 minute recover. Core: (2 mins. each - 10 total) Crunches, Diamond Crunches, Alternating Shoulder Crunches & Wall Squat Thrusts Cool-down: Jog 2 minutes Stretches: (8 mins.) Shoulder, Tricep, (on wall): quads, hams, calves, shin, inner thigh, and chest

Shallow Water Workout

Warm-up: 10 minutes Jog, Butt kicks, High knee jog, Front kicks, Cross country ski (both direction) Cardio Portion #1: (move in both directions) - 10 minutes 2 minutes: Jog with bicep curl (knuckles up & palm up) 2 minutes: Butt kicks with tricep kickbacks 2 minutes: High Knee Jog touching same hand to same ankle 2 minutes: Cross-country Ski with high & low row 2 minutes: Fast Feet (tire drills) with speed bag punches in both directions Cardio Portion #2: Intervals on Gutter (2 X through) - 10 minutes 45 seconds: Pushups 15 seconds sprint to lane line & back to gutter 45 seconds: Diamond Pushups 15 seconds sprint to lane line & back to gutter 45 seconds: Chin-ups (flutter kick with legs) 15 seconds sprint to lane line & back to gutter 45 seconds: Gutter-ups (dips with hand on gutter) 15 seconds sprint to lane line & back to gutter 45 seconds: Squat thrust on wall 15 seconds sprint to lane line & back to gutter Cardio Portion #3: Plyometric Intervals - 10 minutes 30 seconds jumping jacks 1 minutes Abduction Jumping Jack (outer thigh) 30 seconds jumping jacks 1 minutes Adduction Jumping Jack (inner thigh) 30 seconds jumping jacks - 1 minutes Star Jumps 30 seconds jumping jacks - 1 minutes Frog Jumps (elbows down & knees up) 30 seconds cross-country ski - 1 minutes Plyometric cross-country ski Core Strength: 10 minutes (2 minutes each) - Knees to chest, Both Knees to alternating shoulders, Diamond Crunches, Roll Front to Back Roll Side to side with straight legs Cool-down & Stretches: 10 minutes Shoot Hoops 1 minute Heel Walk 1 minute John Wayne Walk 1 minute Stretches: Quads, LB (knee to chest), Hamstrings (leg out front), Adductors (Leg to side), Calf, Shoulders, Triceps, Traps, Upper Back (hug yourself and roll forward), Bicep, and Chest & Abs (Titanic Stretch - back to gutter, hold gutter with arms behind you, feet on wall and arch back and look up).

(Pattern by Denise Martin)

Aqua Kickbox
(pattern by Denise Martin)
Warm-up: 10 minutes Jog, Butt kicks, High knee jog, Front kicks, Cross country ski (both direction) Cardio Portion: Lower Body / Upper Body: 2 minutes each + 1 minute combined Front Kicks (legs) Front Punch (arms) Back Kicks (legs) Back Punch (arms) Side Kicks (legs) Side Punch (arms)

Fast Feet (tire drills-legs) Speed Bag (arms)

Bob & Weave (legs) Upper Cuts (arms) Side Squats (legs) Sun Gods (arms)

Side Shuffle (legs) Cross Punches (arms)

Star Jumps (legs) Frog Jumps (legs) Cool-down: 3 minutes Shoot Hoops 1 minute Heel Walk 1 minute John Wayne Walk 1 minute Stretches: Quads, LB (knee to chest), Hamstrings (leg out front), Adductors (Leg to side), Calf, Shoulders, Triceps, Traps, Upper Back (hug yourself and roll forward), Bicep, and Chest & Abs (Titanic Stretch - back to gutter, hold gutter with arms behind you, feet on wall and arch back and look up).

Aqua Step
(pattern by Denise Martin)
Warm-up: 10 minutes Jog, Butt kicks, High knee jog, Front kicks, Cross country ski (both direction) Cardio Portion:(approx. 18 mins) Cross-country Ski Side Squats (both legs) Straddle Step Hip Abduction (both legs) Hip Adduction Soccer Kicks (both legs) Back Lunge (both legs) Front Kick (both legs) Supermans (both legs) Alternating Knees (both sides) Alternating Hamstring Curls (both sides) Strength: (approx 11 mins.) One Arm Row (both arms) Low Row Pushups (on wall) Pullups (on wall) Gutter Ups (gutter tricep dips) Bicep Curls (both arms & both grip) Tricep Kickbacks (both arms) Sun Gods Lateral Raises External Shoulder Rotation

Core Strength: 10 minutes (2 minutes each) - Knees to chest, Both Knees to alternating shoulders, Diamond Crunches, Roll Front to Back Roll Side to side with straight legs Cool-down: 3 minutes Shoot Hoops 1 minute Heel Walk 1 minute John Wayne Walk 1 minute Stretches: Quads, LB (knee to chest), Hamstrings (leg out front), Adductors (Leg to side), Calf, Shoulders, Triceps, Traps, Upper Back (hug yourself and roll forward), Bicep, and Chest & Abs (Titanic Stretch - back to gutter, hold gutter with arms behind you, feet on wall and arch back and look up).

Jeaneth's Aqua Kickboxing Moves This is an Aquatic pattern from www.turnstep.com. (pattern 17070)
Start with your favorite warm up & stretch moves Set#1 Jogging in place: Arms punching, alternating to the front (2sets of 16 counts) Arms punching, alternating overhead (2sets of 16 counts) Arms punching, alternating down by your sides (2sets of 16 counts) Then add directions: Jogging forward, with front punches (8 counts) In place, with overhead punches (8 counts) Jogging backwards, with side punches (8 counts) In place, again, with overhead punches (8 counts) Modifying: with both arms punching together to the front/overhead/sides (done in place and/or adding directions). Set#2 Wide jogs in place. Knees out to the sides (16 counts) Get down & double time into football run, with arms up. It's all about the legs. Cue: abs tight, feet flat on the floor as they land, tailbone down under towards the floor (3 sets of 8) Football run sideways right, with arms still up (8 counts) Football run in place, arms in the water doing strong speed bag arm movements, going one direction, then reverse. Football run sideways left, with arms up (8 counts) Football run in place, arms in the water doing strong speed bag arm movements, going one direction, then reverse. Set#3 Back to regular wide jogs in place. Knees out to the sides (16 counts) (this will be their little breather) Right side kicks (imagining target on the bottom of their foot), with left leg hopping as they kick, right arm will punch out to the right side. Put the kicking foot back down on the floor after each kick.(16 counts) Then with power kicks & punches (16 counts) Repeat on the other side. Set#4 Back to regular wide jogs in place. Knees out to the sides (16 counts) (again, this will be their little breather) Roundhouse kicks (imagining target on the front of their shoe laces, toes pointed). Left leg hops as they kick on the right. Fist hands protecting the face. Put the kicking foot back down on the floor after each kick (16 counts) Hold right leg out to the side on the 16 kick, then just pulse. Legs pumping, toes pointed (3 sets of 8) Repeat on the other side. Set#5 Alternating front kicks, with heels leading the way on this first routine. 3 different leg heights.(16 counts per set). Start with legs kicking low, then belly button height, and then as high as they can kick. If at all possible toes out of the water as they kick out. Then back to mid height, then low again. Second routine. Same as above but toes are pointed this time as they kick front, creating more drag. That will get their heart rate even higher. Always remind them of abs pulled in & heels coming down to the floor after each kick. Finish with a cool down & stretch

Cardio Focused Interval (30 Minutes) This is an Aquatic pattern from www.turnstep.com. (pattern 17067)
This combo works for a varied class working in mid-depth to suspended, no one is left out! All you need is a clock with a second hand (a cd with 30 second timers is wonderful)! Begin with a good warm up, Include long cross country ski's encouraging participants to reach toes and fingers as far front and back to warm up shoulders, hips, and knees. Jumping jacks, rocking horse, pendulum and high knee jogs. All exercises should be performed controlled and at warm up speed. Total Time 5-7 minutes 60 seconds cross country ski with straight legs, straight arms working like paddles right along side the legs. You can modify by turning the palms toward the body for less resistance. 30 Seconds tread water cross country (legs kick front back) 60 seconds cross country ski with a tuck (pull knees up underneath the body as they switch) 30 seconds tread water cross country 60 seconds cross country ski with a double tap in the extended position (stop the cross country motion to bounce once before switching legs) hands wait patiently at the top of the water, straight to the front and back before a strong pull to the other side (encourage participants to keep arms straight and up and the legs straight using just the toes to bounce) 30 seconds tread water cross country 60 seconds cross country with a double tuck. Legs are extended (not together) pull up twice before a strong switch. Hands again stay straight and on the top of the water. This forces the core to work hard. Finish strong with a 30 second tread water cross country. Total Time: 6 minutes Grab a drink, maintain a jog but allow a brief cool down. Total time: 1-2 minutes

Cardio Focused Interval (30 Minutes cont)

This is an Aquatic pattern from www.turnstep.com. (pattern 17067)

Next set: 60 seconds Jack touch in/out (Make an M: touch wide, tuck knees, touch middle, tuck knees etc.) Arms mimic the M at chest level. Scoop hands towards chest, push away to sides and scoop back in and push it away to the front. 30 seconds tread water jumping jacks (legs kick to the side and arms work hard side to side) more challenging so give lots of encouragement 60 seconds jack knees up in the middle (no touch in middle) scoop arms palms up to surface, push palms down to side 30 seconds tread water jumping jacks 60 seconds Jack with touch in the middle and flying jump out to sides (opposite of heel clicks)Keep feet straight ahead and catch some water (air) 30 Seconds tread water jumping jacks Total time: 4 minutes 30 seconds Drink and brief cool down Total time 1-2 minutes Last Set: 60 seconds rocking horse right leg lead, strong paddle arms pull water up into bicep curl and flip over to push down into tricep press. 30 seconds tread water cross country 60 seconds rocking horse left leg lead 30 seconds tread water cross country 60 seconds pendulum big sweeping arms 30 seconds tread water jumping jacks 60 seconds penguin pendulum (crazy jacks) arms stay to the side and reach down to meet the leg that is coming up (working obliques) 30 seconds tread water jumping jacks Total time: 6 minutes Cool down and incorporate some upper body or abs (look for Superarms!)

Resources
http://scwfitness.com/index.php?story=139 aerobicsroutine.net www.turnstep.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2047753_choreo graph-water-aerobics-routine.html http://www.better-exercise-fitness-forlife.com/water-aerobics-routines.html