Creating a Water Aerobics Workout, Part I: Learning the Vocabulary

There’s a lot to tackle or wrap your grey matter around when it comes to water workouts or more commonly known as water aerobics. There’s posture, vocabulary, movements, repetitions and speeds, all the while dealing with the buoyancy issue versus gravity issue. It can be a lot to put together to create a meaningful water routine. Plus there’s what your own body can accept and master, as not all bodies move the same and definitely have different needs due to different issues.

But don’t let me discourage you. Let me educate and inspire you by starting with water workout terms. What will be useful to you is if you print these water workout terms out and laminate the page so you can have them near the water. Tomorrow I will post Part II which will be about water workout movements, so you can have a two-sided instructional sheet.

WATER WORKOUT/AEROBIC TERMS TO KNOW & USE

• Alignment: Refers to a straight posture, or “ears-to-shoulder, and shoulder-to-hip” all lined up with tailbone pointed to bottom of pool. Think also of a book being balanced on your head and a cape flowing off your shoulders. Abdominal (or stomach muscles) pulled in and up, as well as contracted (as if you are preparing to be punched in the gut). Sometimes I refer to your body position as being “hands on a clock” (ie. at six o’clock, you’d be standing tall with both your legs meeting directly below you; at 3 o-clock, you’d be close to a 90-degree angle with your legs stuck out in front). Better alignment translates to being in a better position to work the correct muscles and therefore your number one concern throughout your workout.

• Buoyancy: How well you are able to float and/or control a “moving” workout without compromising alignment. In either deep or shallow waters, you want the water level to be chest to shoulders deep. If you struggle to achieve buoyancy, you want to put on a flotation device.

• Core: Refers to your torso, as well as hips and chest (sometimes upper legs and shoulders). Core therefore encompasses a number of muscles: abs (upper, lower, and side); gluteus maximus (or butt); pectorals (chest); deltoids (shoulders); quads (front upper legs); hamstrings (back upper legs); and hip muscles (hip flexors; hip abductors; and the psoasis which wraps around your pelvis). Water aerobics helps develop a strong core, and a strong core gives you a strong back. A strong core also gives you a “sense of stability” in the water as you deal with the buoyancy issue.

• Full Range-of-Motion: Refers to your biggest and deepest movements at your slowest speed. Done during a warm-up or cool down. Purpose is to actively stretch the muscles and joints.

• Muscle-Building: Movements done at a slightly smaller but still wide or challenging extension. Purpose is to squeeze, push or pull against the water with leg and/or arm movements. Think of yourself in a weight room with water being your “weight” — water is 830 times thicker than air with a 3-D resistance.

• Cardio: Movements done at muscle-building range or extension, but done with as much intensity as possible. Meaning a huge increase in the number of movements and performed much faster so you sweat and/or breath quicker. Purpose it to get the heart rate up. Work to your “perceived exertion,” which is a fancy term for when you are so out of breath you cannot hold a conversation. An instructor can be the driving force, but you are the master of your own intensity!

• Pulse or Sprint: Take a movement and make it go fast while still achieving a challenging extension. Purpose is for cardio.

• Repetitions: The number of times you do a movement. “Reps” of 10-12 movements are most entertaining and engaging. For example, the mind wanders when tasked to perform 100 sit-ups or crunches in the water. You’re more apt to complete the 100 if you break the crunches down into 8 different positions or movements and do each 10-12 times.

• Modification: This is when you take a movement and slightly change the position to either suit your body needs and/or change up the routine. This also refers to alternating a movement (ie. doing on leg at a time).