Aquajogging – A Love/Hate Relationship
As part of my break from running, I needed to find replacement cardio activities. The elliptical trainer and recumbent bike get boring after a while, so I finally decided to get over the whole “take off your shirt in public” thing and I tried swimming.
It was okay, but I also have dislocatey shoulders (I’m a physical wonder, I tell ya) and it felt awkward. Jess tweeted to ask me if I’d tried aquajogging, so I started googling to find out what she was talking about.
It’s just about what it sounds like. Run in the water. Not with your feet on the bottom, but in DEEP water, so basically you’re treading water the entire time. When I started I used a flotation belt, but after a couple of weeks I saw people doing it without so I gave that a try.
It can be hard!
While many sites focus on the running aspect, you can do it a lot of different ways. You can simulate biking, high knees, cross-country skiing, mountain climbers…and it can be easy or hard, depending on your form. I prefer to do it in a lane, but you can go around the edge of a pool, do squares, whatever keeps it interesting.
One of the best things about it is that some of the methods (particularly high knees) really work your arms, shoulders, and chest since they’re wat are keeping you afloat. With others you can speed up your legs to the point where you really get out of breath! Overall I’d say it can be a fantastic workout.
The worst part (my “hate”) is that it feels so slow compared to running. I know, I know, it all comes back to running. But when I do high knees it can take me 4-5 minutes to go 50 yards. That’s SLOW. I realize it’s more about the exercise, and the time, and getting healthy, and blah blah blah. It feels slow.
But overall, it’s a great way to get a workout in, and I love that when I do it my knees don’t hurt AT ALL. Not that day, not the next. It really is amazing what a no-impact workout can do.
Have you ever tried it? What did you like (or hate) about it?
I have a bad hip that keeps me from more standard forms of exercise, so I have been looking at the water jogging for some time. Haven’t done it – but have contemplated it.
Don’t know why I’m resisting it so much. Need to simply buck it up and get ‘er done. Especially as it sounds like the perfect exercise for me to do.
As much as I can’t wait to get back to running, I do LOVE how no-impact the aquajogging is. It’s nice being able to feel your muscles working, rather than feel your bones jarring. LOL
What’s the typical calorie burn, Bill? I’ve been doing this just from pulling my kids around and boy do my thighs burn (good burn). Just curious how long you go and what you tend to burn. I might need to do this; still haven’t found the right thing to get my groove back with, though just today I heard Jillian screaming my name.
This is lame, but I have no idea. It’s impossible for me to compare how hard it is to anything else…it feels easier than everything else, but that may be because I’m in the water so I’m staying cool. I definitely breathe hard, and sweat (yes, even in the pool…eew). But my guess is that it’s not as much as a traditional cardio workout.
I usually do a few minutes of laps, then 30-40 minutes of aquajogging, then enough laps to get me to 45-50 minutes total.
One REALLY nice thing about it, other than not hurting, is that I can do it while my daughter is doing her swim lessons. Hooray for multitasking!
Bill,
I haven’t tried aquajogging but it definitely sounds intriguing and any exercise that doesn’t break your knees is definitely a good one. I struggle or switch to a different cardio with jump rope on the 30 day shred because it feels like my knees are broken when I finish if I don’t.