MIND-BODY POOL FITNESS
EVIDENCE BASED
This post is the second in our summer series introducing you to new exercise options. In each post I provide evidence based information and, if you find something piques your curiosity or invites you to try it, I’ll be thrilled. My goal with this series is to provide you with data and support in loving yourself healthy.
Did you know that the sensory-rich pool environment—soothing and simultaneously challenging—is an ideal setting for mindful movement and a welcome respite from digital stress? Fitness innovators have been creating mind-body pool fitness offerings in the water, with programs like paddleboard yoga, aquatic Pilates, Ai Chi and fusion classes.
What Is Mind-Body Pool Fitness?
Use of the term “mind-body” here doesn’t imply that other fitness forms are not mindful. Rather, mind-body indicates that the activity’s predominant objectives are to:
Intentionally coordinate breath with movement,
Emphasize precise alignment,
Challenge balance and centering,
Enhance kinesthetic and present-moment awareness.
This creates a more mindful, meditative state, while at the same time conditioning the body.
Healing Benefits of Water
Bruce Becker, MD, MS, director of the National Aquatics and Sports Medicine Institute and adjunct professor at Washington State University in Spokane, Washington, and other investigators studied the healing benefits of immersion in different temperatures of water. They discovered that immersion in “cool,” “neutral,” or “warm” water can benefit healthy individuals by:
Lowering blood pressure and increasing cardiac output and stroke volume (all water temperatures);
Strengthening respiratory muscles and thereby improving breathing capacity (all water temperatures);
Enhancing mood and relaxation (warm water)
The authors of this study suggest that these benefits are amplified when water immersion is combined with exercise.
YOUR MIND-BODY FAVORITES—IN THE POOL!
Yoga
Pool yoga can be a chance to explore the self-discovery that water offers if you have mobility limitations on land. “Most asanas can be adapted to water, but to me this is not the point of aqua yoga,” says water yoga pioneer Françoise B. Freedman, PhD, author of Aqua Yoga and founder of the Birthlight Trust, an educational charity based in the United Kingdom that has been offering water yoga for over 30 years. “Through mindfulness, we gain awareness of our rhythms in relation to the water environment.”
“More and more people are coming to the water for the meditative aspect. They want to be someplace where they can’t take their phones.”
Standup Paddleboard Yoga and Mat Pilates
These exercise forms are appealing if you are eager for a challenge but also want a more mindful experience. In 2012, Jessie Benson founded FloYo®, a paddleboard yoga program she describes as a workout that utilizes the core while connecting mind and body to create a strong physique and a clear mind.
Similarly, Pilates classes feature mat Pilates exercises performed on a floating board.
Benson says, “More and more people are coming to the water for the meditative aspect. They want to be someplace where they can’t take their phones. [Not everyone can do] a regular sitting meditation practice, and water attracts a broader range of people who want the clarity [that meditation can offer].”
Tai Chi and Ai Chi
Water-based programs inspired by tai chi and qigong may appeal to you if you are seeking restoration and recovery. Ai Chi is a globally popular program created by Jun Konno, president of Aqua Dynamics Institute in Japan. Ai Chi includes visualizations and affirmations and is based on three principles:
Deep diaphragmatic breathing
Concentration on form and body awareness
Acceptance that “how it turns out is the way it’s meant to be”
“Your individual path is unique. Listen to the wisdom of your body and the power of your intuition to discover what is good and right for you.”
If Mind-Body Pool Fitness sounds like an interesting option to explore, do a search of your local area to find out what’s offered. I’d love to hear your experience if you take a class!
Until next time may you be at ease and peace and remember to love yourself healthy!
References
Hildenbrand, K., et al. 2010. Age-dependent autonomic changes following immersion in cool, neutral, and warm temperatures. International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education, 4 (2), 127–46.
Naumann, J., et al. 2016. Outcomes from a three-arm randomized controlled trial of frequent immersion in thermoneutral water on cardiovascular risk factors. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 16 (250).
Have you downloaded your Path to Peace Free Guided Journal?
Go from feeling anxious and stressed
to calm and at-ease in 5 simple steps!
I’m a wellness visionary, integrative health educator and embodied mindfulness expert.
If this post helped you, please share by using the social buttons above. I appreciate your support!
Visit my YouTube channel to subscribe for more tips. Have you downloaded Your Path to Peace? Go from stressed and anxious to calm and at ease in 5 simple steps.
If this post helped you, please share with friends now, by using the buttons below. Thanks!
