Accessibility
One of the key benefits of aqua classes is that they are accessible to everyone, irrespective of their fitness levels, confidence or swimming ability. For starters, you’ll be spending most of the time standing in the water, so swimming isn’t required and you can even use floats to help keep yourself steady if needs be. Furthermore, each class can be taken at your own pace, so regardless of your fitness levels, you can either really go for it or take it more gently until you’re up to speed.
Fun and sociable
As well as giving you a fantastic workout, taking part in aqua classes are a great way to meet new people, while the exercises themselves are great fun and the instructors go to great pains to ensure everyone in the class has a great time.
Decreases heart rate and blood pressure
In the water, your heart rate is around 10-15% less than it is out of it, due to the increase in pressure. As a result, you can do more exercise thanks to this lower heart rate, while it also reduces your blood pressure while exercising.
Great for burning fat and calories
Although the exercise may look gentle, aqua classes are actually among the most effective for burning calories and fat. Most people will burn between 400 and 500 calories during a typical session, depending on how intense you are being.
Improves muscle tone, strength and stamina.
Every move is working against the resistance of the water, which is between 10 and 12 times thicker than air therefore constantly challenging the body.
Low impact for joints
Being in the water means that all your joints are supported much more than they would be on dry land. This means you’re far less likely to have to endure any joint pain compared to, say, pounding the pavements while going for a jog. Meanwhile, this extra support also helps in the avoidance of osteoporosis in later life.
Increased flexibility and range of movement
As well as helping you burn calories, lose weight, tone muscles and improve stamina, aqua classes can also help you become more flexible and improve your range of movement. This is, once again, thanks to the resistance offered by the water, helping strengthen your joints and the muscles around them without putting anything like as much stress through them.
Water dissipates sweat
Therefore, your body stays cooler and, as a result, you’re able to work harder for longer periods of time, bringing about all the health benefits already detailed here.
Great for lowering stress levels
Alongside substantial benefits to your physical health, aqua classes are also great for your mental health. This is largely thanks to the relaxing nature of the exercises, and the natural positive effect that all exercise has on your mental health.