Christine Alexander is the author of 2 books on water exercise each published by Human Kinetics.
Water Fitness Progressions (2019) was written for water fitness instructors and aquatic personal trainers. It describes how to use periodization to help class participants and clients progress in their level of fitness. It contains lesson plans that illustrate how to progressively increase intensity for both cardiorespiratory endurance and strength training.
Water Fitness Lesson Plans and Choreography (2011) was written for water fitness instructors. It has 36 class ideas for shallow water exercise and 36 class ideas for deep water exercise. Individuals may find the exercise descriptions and photos useful for building a personal exercise routine.
In the quest for optimal health and well-being, instilling robust habits in children is a fundamental pursuit. This task, primarily falling upon the shoulders of parents and educators, holds immense potential to shape the future health landscape of our society. Here are several strategies aimed at fostering and solidifying healthful practices in children. These methodologies are not just about inculcating habits; they’re about crafting a canvas for lifelong wellness and joy.
Dynamic Play: The Joy of Movement
Active play is the gateway to robust physical health for children. It’s essential to curtail sedentary activities, especially excessive screen time, and replace them with more dynamic, physically engaging pastimes. Activities that involve running, hopping, and outdoor exploration not only boosts physical agility but also instill a love for movement. Regular engagement in such lively play cultivates a foundation for a physically active and healthy lifestyle, setting the stage for lifelong fitness.
Try a Water-Based Fitness Routine
Swum lessons are essential to keep children safe around water. The City of Plano Parks and Recreation Department offers swim lessons year round. In other locations, contact your local parks and recreation department or YMCA to sign your children up for lessons. A water-based fitness routine helps your child build strength and endurance while reducing the impact on their growing joints, making it a safe and effective form of exercise. The natural resistance of water improves their muscle tone and cardiovascular health, while also enhancing coordination and flexibility. Additionally, swimming and aquatic activities promote mental well-being, offering a fun way to relieve stress and boost self-confidence in the water.
Maintain Your Home’s HVAC
If your home’s HVAC system isn’t well-maintained, it can circulate dust, allergens, and pollutants throughout your living space, negatively impacting your indoor air quality. Dirty filters and ducts can harbor mold and bacteria, leading to respiratory issues or worsening allergies. Regular maintenance from HVAC experts – including cleaning and filter replacement – ensures that your HVAC system functions efficiently and provides clean, healthy air for you and your family.
Wholesome Choices: Nourishing Young Minds and Bodies
The path to health is heavily influenced by dietary choices. It’s crucial to foster a preference for nutritious, whole foods over processed, sugar-laden alternatives. This journey begins with mindful grocery shopping and extends to involving children in meal planning and preparation. Educating them about the nutritional value of different foods empowers them to make health conscious decisions. This practice nurtures a deep-rooted understanding and appreciation for a balanced, nourishing diet.
Hydration: The Power of Water
Children’s Hospital Colorado notes that central to physical health is the practice of proper hydration. Prioritizing water over sugary beverages is a fundamental habit that needs to be instilled from an early age. By making water easily accessible and the default choice at home, children learn to naturally gravitate towards it. Understanding the significance of hydration for bodily functions is a lesson that aids children in making healthier beverage choices independently.
Step by Step: Walking as a Family
Incorporating walking into daily routines is beneficial on multiple fronts. For families living in areas not conducive to walking, seeking out locales with a high Walk Score can be a game-changer. These shared walks offer not just physical benefits but also opportunities for family bonding and environmental appreciation. Establishing a routine that includes regular walks fosters a love for physical activity and an appreciation for the outdoors.
Honest Conversations: Building Emotional Intelligence
Focus on the Family points out that Emotional health is as critical as physical health. Encouraging open communication allows children to share their feelings and experiences freely. This practice lays the foundation for emotional intelligence, helping children develop the ability to navigate their emotions effectively. Such conversations also reinforce a sense of security and trust, essential components for emotional resilience and well-being.
Health Talks: Educating Young Learners
Discussions around health topics such as nutrition, physical activity, and sleep hygiene are vital. Regularly engaging children in conversations about these key health pillars equips them with the knowledge to make informed choices. This practice embeds the importance of a balanced lifestyle, gradually transforming these discussions into habitual actions that contribute to overall well-being.
Mind Matters: Prioritizing Mental Health
Fostering an environment where mental health is openly discussed is crucial. Regular dialogues about emotions, stress and coping mechanisms normalize the conversation around mental well being. Teaching children about the significance of mental health and the available support systems is as crucial as physical health education. This open communication nurtures a supportive environment and encourages seeking help when needed.
The implementation of these strategies is a journey toward nurturing healthier, happier individuals. The key lies in consistency, support, and setting an example. Starting these practices early sets the groundwork for children to develop into health-conscious adults. It’s a journey not just for the present but the gift of a healthier, more aware future generation.
Thanks, Jill. Feel free to post any questions below.
Water is essential for life. About 71 percent of the earth’s surface is covered with water. About 60 percent of the human body is water. We are encouraged to drink 8 glasses of water every day to stay hydrated. I love to exercise in the water! But Planet Earth’s water is not as clean as it should be. There are microplastics floating in water everywhere.
Microplastics are small plastic pieces less than 5 millimeters long which can be harmful to oceans and aquatic life. Microplastics have been detected in marine organisms from plankton to whales, in commercial seafood, and even in drinking water. Microplastics are found everywhere on the planet, including the soil, the air, and even in the Arctic. It has been estimated that the average American eats, drinks, and breathes in more than 70,000 microplastic particles every year, or a credit card’s worth of plastic every week. Those numbers have been disputed by the American Chemistry Council, nevertheless, microplastics have been found in our lungs and bloodstreams. How much damage they cause is unclear.
Where do microplastics come from? Plastics were developed during World War II and have become immensely popular since then. They are used for everything from computers to medical equipment to single-use containers. Microbeads, tiny particles designed for commercial use, are found in cosmetics, cleansers, and toothpaste. Microplastics are also in microfibers shed from synthetic clothing and other textiles. More than one-third of all plastic goes into packaging, which by nature is single-use. Plastics are man-made and there is nothing in our natural environment that breaks it down. When plastic water bottles and drinking straws and other plastics are discarded, they degrade into tiny pieces by exposure to sun and ocean waves. Some of the microplastics in the ocean come from littering on the beach but most of it ends up there as a result of storms, water runoff, and wind.
Single-use plastic is hugely popular. Only about 9% of plastic gets recycled. The rest is discarded. There are some efforts around the world to limit single-use plastics. The UK has banned plastic cutlery, straws, drink stirrers, plates, and Styrofoam containers, as well as beauty products containing microbeads. In 2015 President Obama signed the Microbead-Free Waters Act banning microbeads in cosmetics and personal care products. Nearly 100 countries have banned plastic grocery bags. Kevin Schug, a professor of analytical chemistry at the University of Texas Arlington is working on a process to melt plastics into an oil that can be used to create new plastic, thus diverting plastic waste from the environment. (See “Plastics research may help” in the Dallas Morning News, July 30, 2024).
There are some things that we can do now to limit our consumption of microplastics. Use glass dishes in the microwave. The heat from the microwave oven breaks down the plastic in microwaveable plastic dishes and it ends up in your food. Don’t put plastic containers in the dishwasher, as the heated water degrades the plastic and flushes it into the water system. Teflon cookware leaches microplastics into your food. Stainless steel or the new green cookware is a safer choice. Drink filtered tap water. A carbon block filter or a distillation filter both filter out 100% of known microplastics. Use a stainless steel or glass water bottle. Buy reusable metal drinking straws. Take a reusable cup to your favorite coffee shop instead of getting your coffee in a takeaway cup. Recycle your single-use plastics. Plastics 1, 2, and 5 are recyclable, although if your city uses mechanical recycling, only 1 and 2 (basically soda bottles, water bottles, and milk jugs) can be separated out by the sorting machines. Plastics 3, 6, and 7 are especially harmful, so try to avoid buying those plastics. Buy clothing made of natural fibers when possible. You can reduce the amount of microfibers that break off your synthetic fabrics in the washing machine by using a laundry ball, such as a Cora ball, or by washing your synthetic fabrics in a Guppyfriend bag which traps the microplastics to keep them from washing away with the wastewater. Check the ingredients in your facial wash products and toothpaste to make sure they do not contain acrylate copolymer, which means microbeads. Limit your seafood consumption because of the high volume of microplastics found in fish. Tea bags contain plastics that leach into your tea, so brew looseleaf tea with a tea ball. And finally, since microplastics even get in the air, dust and vacuum regularly. Use a vacuum with a HEPA filter.
Together we can make a difference in the proliferation of microplastics. See you in the pool!
Functional fitness is training with exercises that look like movements you do in daily life. This type of exercise uses large muscle groups as opposed to focusing on an individual muscle. It makes sense to include this type of exercises in your fitness routine so that you can continue to get up and move and do all the things you enjoy. There are a variety of functional fitness exercises. Seven of them are called primal movements because they are the basis of every movement that you do. They are: squat, lunge, push, pull, rotate, hinge, and gait. Below are primal movements that you can do in the pool, along with how they relate to movements you do in everyday life.
Squat. A squat is a movement pattern where you plant both feet on the ground, then bend your knees to lower your body. Squats use your upper legs, particularly the quadriceps muscles. You can squat with feet hip distance apart, close together, wide apart, with toes pointed out, or toes pointed in. In deep water you mimic the squat by tucking and pressing the legs down or you can squat standing on a noodle. Squatting is the same as sitting down and getting up from a chair.
Lunge. A lunge is a single leg movement pattern that requires one leg to step forward and bend. Lunges strengthen your back, hips and legs while improving mobility and stability. You can do stationary lunges, in which you step forward and return to the starting position, or you can do walking lunges. Take a large step, lunging low in the water, followed by a step and lunge with the opposite leg. In deep water a tuck ski is a similar move. In daily life you lunge to pick something off the floor. You also do a lot of lunging if you play tennis or pickle ball.
Push. This is a movement pattern in which your upper body pushes you up from the ground, or pushes things away from your body. Pushing uses the chest, shoulders, triceps and forearms. The classic push exercise is a push-up, which you can perform in the pool, in either shallow or deep water, using a noodle or foam dumbbells. In shallow water you can balance on your toes while doing your push-ups, but you can also do them suspended. To push things away from your body, stand upright and push the water away. Increase the intensity by using drag equipment, such as webbed gloves, paddles or kickboards. In daily life you need the ability to push yourself up off the floor. You also push doors open, push shopping carts and baby strollers, and push (and pull) a vacuum cleaner. Which brings us to the next movement.
Pull. Pulling is the opposite of pushing. It requires your upper body to pull things toward your body, or pull your body towards an object, as in a pull-up. Pulling works your latissimus dorsi, trapezius, rhomboids, posterior deltoids, and biceps, in other words, the muscles of your upper back. Common lifestyle habits, such as sitting at a desk all day, often results in rounded shoulders. Therefore, strengthening these muscles is important for maintaining good posture. You cannot do pull-ups in the pool, but you can perform pulling movements with rows, the crawl stroke and bow string pulls. Increase the intensity with webbed gloves, paddles, kickboards, elastic bands or rubber tubing. In daily life you pull carry-on luggage from the overhead bins in the airplane, pull the car door open, and pull (and push) the vacuum cleaner.
Rotate. Rotation, or twisting, is a core activated movement. It means reaching across the midline of your body. Since the right side of your brain controls the left side of your body, and the left side of the brain controls the right side of your body, crossing the midline of your body requires using both brain hemispheres, causing more neurons to fire and making more connections. Rotation works the abdominals and obliques, as well as involving the abductors and adductors in the legs. Pool exercises that involve rotation include upper body twists, cross-country ski with rotation, and crossover kicks. In daily life we rotate when we walk, run, swim, throw, kick. turn to look at someone, or reach for something that is not directly in front of us. People with osteoporosis may need to limit the range of motion when they rotate to avoid microfractures in the spine.
Hinge. Hinging or bending is a movement that involves bending at the hips while keeping your back in a neutral position (flat). Hinging uses the gluteus maximus, hamstrings and erector spinae. In the pool you can do a hip hinge by swinging one leg forward and back and bending forward as the leg swings back. You also hip hinge when you stretch your hamstrings. In deep water, abdominal pike and spine extension involves hinging at the hips. Sometimes when you pick up items from the floor in daily life, you use a lunge or a squat. But often when you drop something small, you just bend forward to pick it up. You may also find yourself leaning forward when climbing stairs or a steep hill, which is a slight hip hinge. Proper hinging maintains good posture, and strengthens the lower back.
Gait. Gait means walking. It is the most commonly used movement of all. Walking is a complex movement pattern using multiple muscle groups in both the lower body and the upper body. Any exercise where you have to put one foot in front of the other involves gait, and that includes not only walking, but jogging, running, sprinting, jumping and leaping. You can do all of these in the pool. In deep water you don’t jump or leap, but you do travel with cross-country ski. You use your arms in a natural arm swing, pulling with more force as speed increases. There is also a slight rotational movement as one arm swings forward and the other arm swings back. A strong gait improves posture and boosts the health of your lower body. A weak or shuffling gait puts you at risk for falling.
Include these primal movements in your fitness routine to keep your body functioning well so that you can continue to do all the activities of daily living that you enjoy. For more information on functional fitness check out the article “How to Exercise with Functional Training” from WebMD. For more information on primal movements see Stephanie Thielen’s article “7 Primal Movements” in the April/May 2017 issue of Akwa magazine. Log in to the members section of the AEA website at https://aeawave.org/ For lesson plans that include functional fitness exercises, see my book Water Fitness Progressions.
In the relentless hustle of modern life, balancing career demands with personal well-being often feels like a daunting challenge, particularly for working women. This article explores actionable strategies designed to enhance your daily routine, empowering you to not only survive but also flourish both personally and professionally. These methods aim to elevate your overall quality of life, ensuring a harmonious balance between professional success and personal health.
Setting Achievable Milestones
Begin by setting realistic goals for yourself. Whether aiming to complete a project ahead of schedule or planning a small weekend getaway, goals should be attainable and aligned with your capabilities. This approach reduces stress and fosters a sense of accomplishment, which can be incredibly uplifting. Embracing manageable expectations helps maintain motivation and keeps you focused on progressing steadily rather than burning out.
Refresh and Revitalize with Water Fitness
Dive into the refreshing world of water fitness. This invigorating form of exercise not only enhances your physical health but also offers a serene escape from the daily grind. The buoyancy of water reduces strain on joints and muscles, making it a perfect activity for unwinding after a long day. Engaging in water aerobics or swimming laps around the pool can clear your mind and invigorate your body, preparing you for the challenges ahead with renewed energy.
Expanding Horizons through Online Education
If you’re contemplating a career shift or aiming to advance professionally, consider getting a degree in psychology through an online program. This type of degree offers profound insights into cognitive and affective processes, equipping you to effectively support those in need as you build a career that fulfills you. Online degree programs provide the flexibility needed to continue full-time employment while enhancing your qualifications, allowing you to improve your career prospects without compromising your current job responsibilities.
The Power of Positive Speech
Practice positive self-talk. This is about nurturing your inner dialogue to be more compassionate and encouraging. Replace self-criticism or doubt with affirmations and optimistic perspectives. This shift not only enhances your mental resilience but also improves your overall emotional health, paving the way for a more productive and fulfilling work-life experience.
Entrepreneurial Aspirations
For those dreaming of entrepreneurship, becoming your own boss is an exhilarating prospect. Start by drafting a business plan and understanding market needs, then go to the website of an online logo maker to create a distinctive and appealing logo on your own. By selecting a suitable template and customizing it with the right fonts and colors, you can effectively reflect your brand’s ethos, which is crucial in establishing your business’s identity and attracting potential customers.
Learn Forgiveness
Incorporate forgiveness, both towards yourself and others, into your daily life. Letting go of past grievances or self-imposed guilt can dramatically decrease emotional burdens and enhance mental clarity. This liberation from negative past experiences allows you to focus more on present opportunities and future aspirations.
Reflect, Learn, and Grow
Engage in regular self-reflection by dedicating time each week to contemplate your recent experiences, the decisions you’ve made, and their outcomes. This practice aids in learning from past actions and supports making more informed decisions in the future. Enhancing your decision-making process can significantly boost your sense of self-efficacy and overall mental well-being.
Mental Gymnastics
Make time for activities that promote mental stimulation. From solving puzzles to engaging in creative writing, activities that challenge your mind can enhance cognitive functions and lead to greater job performance and personal satisfaction. These activities are essential in keeping your mind sharp and ready to tackle complex problems both at work and in personal endeavors.
Each day presents a new opportunity to enhance your well-being while achieving professional success. By integrating these strategies into your routine, you not only improve your quality of life but also empower yourself to meet career challenges head-on. Embrace these practices to navigate your work-life path with confidence and grace, ensuring you thrive in all aspects of life.
Water Fitness Lessons offers resources to help instructors learn how to manage their own water fitness classes and provide the best possible experience for their students. Get in touch today with questions or comments.
Stretching keeps the muscles flexible and healthy, and maintains the range of motion in our joints. Without stretching our muscles shorten and become tight. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends stretching at least 2-3 times a week and notes that daily stretching is the most effective. Most adults should hold a stretch 10-30 seconds, but older adults get greater benefits from holding the stretch for 30-60 seconds. Bring the stretch to your full range of motion, but not past the point of pain. Avoid bouncing, which could lead to an injury. The other way to stretch is to slowly move a joint through its full range of motion. It is important to warm up the muscles before you begin to stretch. That means that for water fitness participants, the ideal time to stretch is at the end of class.
Muscles that need stretching include the gastrocnemius (calf), hamstrings, quadriceps, iliopsoas (hip flexors), adductors (inner thigh), gluteus medius (outer thigh), trapezius (upper back), pectorals (chest), anterior deltoids (front of shoulder), sternocleidomastoid (side of the neck), erector spinae (lower back) and obliques (waist). You probably don’t have time to stretch all of those at the end of class, but you can stretch the muscles that you worked especially hard that day. Sometimes instructors get in a rut of performing the same stretches – calf stretch, quad stretch, clasp the hands behind the back – all the time. One way to mix it up is to stretch a muscle you don’t usually include, like holding a side lunge to stretch the inner thigh, or giving yourself a hug to stretch the upper back, or bringing the ear toward the shoulder to stretch the neck. Here are some other ideas:
Use the Pool Wall. For the front of the shoulder, face the wall, stretch one arm to the side with the palm on the wall; turn away from that shoulder. For the hamstrings, place the bottom of the foot on the wall at hip level, then hinge forward from the hips. For the calf, do the runner’s stretch. For the hip flexors, stand close to the wall and lift one straight leg to the back, pushing the hip toward the wall. For the quadriceps, turn your back to the wall and place the bottom of the foot on the wall. For the waist, turn one side to the wall and place that hand on the deck, stretch the other arm overhead and lean in toward the wall.
Noodle Assisted Stretches. You can stretch the leg with a noodle under the thigh. It may be difficult for some participants to thread the noodle under the thigh, but most people can straddle the noodle like a bicycle. From that position it is easy to push the noodle under the thigh. Straighten the leg to stretch the hamstrings. Some participants will be able to push the noodle to the ankle for this stretch. If they can put the noodle under the ankle, pivoting and bringing the knee down becomes a noodle assisted quad stretch. With the noodle under the thigh, open the hip and bring the knee to the side to stretch the inner thigh. Sit on the noodle like a bicycle and put one ankle on the opposite knee to stretch the outer thigh. Still sitting on the noodle, grasp the noodle with both hands behind the back and push it toward the floor to stretch the chest. Hold the noodle in the hands like a rainbow and lean to one side to stretch the waist. Or stretch the waist by placing the rainbow on the surface of the water and rotating in a slow waist twist.
Dynamic Stretches. This means moving a joint slowly through its full range of motion. If the pool water is cool, dynamic stretches are the way to go. Extend the left arm to the side with the thumb up and walk in a clockwise circle to stretch the front of the shoulder; with the right arm walk counterclockwise. Make big figure eights with the arms to stretch the shoulders. Walk forward with the arms pointing down at an angle to the sides, dragging the arms behind you to stretch the chest. Swing one leg forward and back through its full range of motion for the hip flexors. Do a slow pendulum side to side for the inner and outer thighs. Or swing one leg to the side, cross it in front of the other foot, swing it back to the side and then cross it behind the other foot. A crossover step stretches the outer thigh.
Ai Chi. These slow gentle movements are a form of dynamic stretching originated by Jun Konno in Japan. Ruth Sova gave the postures their names. The movements are breath centered and performed in flowing patterns. There are 19 postures, or movements, some for the upper body, some for the lower body. You can do an entire class of Ai Chi, or you can do some of the postures for stretching and relaxation at the end of class. Click on Jun Konno to see a 9 minute-30 second video demonstration. For more information you can purchase Ruth Sova’s Book Ai Chi: The Water Way to Health and Healing.
Yoga Poses. Water Yoga is another option for adding variety to the stretching part of a class. Many poses are performed standing, such as Mountain, Chair, Goddess, Triangle, Warrior I and Warrior II. Some are balance poses such as Tree, Side Leg Lift, Half Moon. Figure Four, Dancer and Warrior III. You can do poses without equipment, or you can add props like noodles or kickboards. For more information you can click on Christa Fairbrother’s 3-minute video demonstration, or purchase her book Water Yoga: A Teacher’s Guide to Improving Movement, Health and Wellbeing.
Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) Stretching. This may be the most effective technique for increasing range of motion. It involves moving the shoulder joint or hip joint in diagonal patterns through all three planes of motion. There are two diagonal patterns for the upper extremity, called D1 UE and D2 UE; and two diagonal patterns for the lower extremity called D1 LE, and D2 LE. Click on the links at the name of each stretch for short videos on how to perform the four patterns.
Controlled Articular Rotations (CARS). These are rotations around a joint either toward or away from the midline of the body. They are called controlled because they are performed slowly in order to flood the joint with synovial fluid. These motions improve the mobility of the joint. Rotations can be performed with ten joints: neck, thoracic spine, shoulders, scapula, elbow, wrist, hip, knee, ankle, and lumbar spine. To see video demonstrations of each of these movements, click on Larissa Armstrong-Kager, a practitioner of this technique.
As you can see, there are multiple options for the stretches at the end of your water fitness class. Try something new and let me know how it went. See you in the pool!
