Why Swimming Is One of the Best Ways to Lose Weight

27 Oct Why Swimming Is One of the Best Ways to Lose Weight

As summer is around the corner, many people are looking to shed a few pounds. If you like to spend more time in the water than at the gym, you might be wondering if swimming is the best sport to lose weight.

You Work Out All Muscle Groups

Like other cardiovascular exercises, such as jogging or walking, swimming burns calories, which, in turn, leads to weight loss. But swimming needs more resistance, as it is in the water, and this makes you use more of your muscles.

This activity requires the use of many muscle groups at the same time, such as your upper body, lower body, and core, making it the best full-body workout that will tone you up better than other cardio activities.

You Burn a Lot of Calories

With a resistance 800 times greater than air, moving in water requires a lot of energy from your body. A swim at a slow pace burns on average 500 calories in an hour, while a more solicitant swim burns around 800 calories. It is worth mentioning that lean muscles require more calories to function; thus, your metabolism works faster and burns more calories even when you are in a state of rest.

A 30-minute session of breaststroke can burn approximately 367 calories, while freestyle swimming requires 404 calories. With a brisk walking session of 30 minutes, you burn only 100 or 300 calories while running for half an hour at 6 miles per hour.

You Lose Weight Fast

Another advantage which proves swimming is the best sport to lose weight is that you see the results faster than other exercises. Researchers made a study in which middle-aged women who had 60-minute sessions three times a week lost a lot of body fat in just 12 weeks.

You Can Target Various Places to Lose Fat

While swimming is the best exercise to lose weight all over, maybe you want just to target a certain place on your body. Depending on the swimming exercises, you can target specific areas, for example, breaststroke and butterfly that work your shoulders, arms, and chest, while the backstroke develops your back, abs, and quad muscles.

You Can Stay Younger for Longer

Studies have shown that regular swimmers are 20 years younger biologically than their actual age. Researchers from the American College of Sports Medicine Conference concluded that regular swimmers have the blood pressure, cardiovascular system, central nervous system, cholesterol levels, and cognitive functioning at the same values found in people younger their age. This also means that your metabolism will not decrease as you age.

Swimming is the best sport for weight loss, as it can be an efficient full-body workout. And it is more fun than doing boring reps at the gym. Therefore, if you live in places where the sea is constantly at a good temperature, you can also enjoy an outdoor exercise which is even more beneficial.