Having your own pool allows you to create an outdoor space that’s an extension of your home and lifestyle. It can be a gateway to social gatherings, a hub of tranquility, a place to cool off from the intense summer heat, and maybe most functional of all, a spot for your next workout. Gold Medal Pools has a few ideas to help you transform your backyard pool into a fitness hub!
Swimming beyond the Olympic-sized pool:
For elite athletes, laps in a large commercial facility pool will always have a place for working on distance or perfecting strokes. However, even the most serious fitness buffs can benefit from backyard pool workouts; all you need is the right equipment and a little creativity to negotiate the design or size. Without the hassle of public changing rooms or the stressful dynamics of lane sharing, your backyard pool is the ideal location to begin or maintain your fitness journey.
Leave the gym behind and hit the pool:
Strength training in the pool is the perfect combination of staying strong while staying cool in the hot Texas heat. Working out in the water offers many benefits, especially the buoyancy achieved when focusing on muscle gains in the water. The human body reduces in weight by up to 10 percent when submerged to chest height, allowing high-intensity workouts with less risk of damage to muscles and joints. Unlike land-based activities, this type of water-based training can be performed for consecutive days for those determined to dive into a steady training regime. Learn how to transform your pool into a fitness hub, through a few easy steps anyone can implement.
Getting started:
Many programs advise using resistance bands designed explicitly for water-based activities. Use the bands to extend legs and arms similar to your usual workout routine and enjoy the additional resistance the water provides for an effective workout. You can also wrap bands around a pole, climbing ladder, or a solid object and pull to extend them (just avoid wrapping them around your sun lounger!) and ensure you remain at chest height at all times.
For the swimmers:
For swimmers, integrate strength training into your usual sets of strokes by swimming the distance of your pool and performing a strength in intervals. This can help to provide an additional burn to your workout as well as the essential core strength required for competitive or improving swimmers. Strength training between laps can also help to enhance your at-home workout when navigating laps in a medium-sized pool.
Jump into the pool and strengthen your lower legs:
An exercise suitable for all levels and abilities, lower leg workouts in the water offer injury-free solutions to keeping fit if you’re willing to get a little wet. From squat jumps in the water to take a stroll through the pool, take advantage of a simple squat routine or fast-paced walk without the aches and pains that gravity puts on your body.
Getting started:
Stand in the water at chest height to allow the pool water to alleviate your weight as much as possible. For squats, bend down into the standard squatting position and then release with a jump. You may have to put your head under the water for the initial position of the jump, so ensure you are confident before submerging. Repeat this routine for an effective workout or mix it up with jumping up on one foot or adding weights for extra resistance.
For walkers, plan your route across your pool based on the depth. Take off by raising your leg to belly button height if possible (or as high as you can get it) and continue this for each step. If you’re looking for more intensity, walk in a marching position to get more of your body moving or add weights for extra resistance.
Touch up your abs, with a swimmer’s best-kept secret:
A swimmer’s best-kept secret is the toned muscle a core workout in the pool can offer. Although you may not develop an immediate six-pack from working regular sets in your backyard pool, swimming allows a workout for muscles throughout the entire body, strengthening your lower half through kicking, building upper body strength in major muscle groups, and working your abs in maintaining stability and control.
Getting started:
Choosing sets of strokes that negotiate your pool size as well as your desired muscle groups. Strokes involving kicking movements will engage muscles in your abdomen, such as freestyle or backstroke. Breaststroke and butterfly directly target your abs by leveraging control of the body. A smaller pool will require multiple sets to achieve an intense workout with faster strokes, whereas breaststroke can allow you to navigate around the constraints of your pool size in smaller sets.
For those not looking to swim laps, activities such as wall kicking can offer an intense core and cardio workout. Hold yourself against the wall of your pool and kick intensely for up to a minute with short rests in between sets. You’ll require a clock or sports watch to time the activity to ensure you are working out long enough for the desired set. This routine is perfect for those with smaller-sized pools who wish to maintain their cardio fitness at home.
Pool designs and installation in the Dallas/Fort Worth Area:
If you’re considering building a swimming pool for your next home renovations, Gold Medal Pools has the experience and knowledge to bring your dream pool to life.
We understand many factors go into the design of a residential pool, and one of our biggest questions facing our customers today is how to balance their pool design for both fitness and leisure. Depending on your outdoor space and the specifications of your pool, you can make your dream pool a reality, with some key factors to help you with your planning:
- 10-foot x 10 feet is considered a small-size pool, allowing exercises such as strength training, squat jumps, and kicks for pool workouts.
- An ideal pool for swimming laps is 6 feet in width and 60-75 feet in length, allowing stroke improvement and more intense cardio routines.
- Consider depth when you have small children, pets, or inexperienced swimmers in your household. Many workouts can be performed at a comfortable chest height.
Ready to take the plunge and design your private paradise? We provide pool and backyard services to the greater Frisco, Texas, area. Let our professional pool builders help transform your backyard pool into a fitness hub. Get in touch today!
