The Workout: Jump In! The Water is Just Fine

For many of us, the Fourth of July weekend means hitting the beach or pool, relaxing in a chaise lounge and reading a book. But have you ever thought about putting down the book and jumping in the water for a little swim workout?

Swimming is great cross training and an excellent all-over exercise. It's a low-impact activity that is widely considered to be one of the best full-body workouts you can get. What's more, if you swim at a high level of intensity, it can be an impressive calorie burner.

I have to confess, though, that I hate swimming. To begin with, I don't like getting in cold water. Some people are able to dive right in; I'm not one of them. I torture myself by sinking in an inch at a time. It can take me all morning just to get in the pool. And then once I start swimming, I get bored quickly. Back and forth, back and forth: It's almost as tedious as running on a treadmill.

Fortunately, I recently discovered waterproof iPod cases and headphones. Having a little music makes swimming laps vastly more enjoyable. If you're interested in bringing your tunes in the pool, check out online retailers such as H2O Audio. 

Still, assuming you can overcome the cold water and have music to combat boredom, how do you know what kind of workout to do?

Katie Morse, a triathlete, personal trainer and founder of The Regimen, an online fitness training program, suggests trying an interval swim workout.

“For example,” Morse said, “after a 10-minute easy warm-up, start doing some intervals: swim at your maximum effort for 25 yards (or the length of the pool), and recover with a 30-60 second rest. Then go as hard as you can again. Do about 10-20 of these sets.

"Afterward, spend 10 minutes cooling down. On a different day, try doing a more steady endurance workout, such as swimming 10-15 sets of 100 yards each, with five-second rest periods in between,” she added.

Morse suggested surfing on over to swimplan.com, which offers free swim workouts, to get more ideas.

Morse pointed out that using accessories like fins, kickboards and pull-buoys can help vary your routine. Not only are they fun, but these tools can help you improve your form. But the most important thing, she added, is to just get in the water.

“Swimming is excellent cross training, so if you have access to a pool, take advantage of it. It's great for injury prevention, overall toning, and strengthening the core,” Morse said.

And who doesn't want a stronger core?

The best part, however, is that when you get out of the water, you can dive into that book knowing your workout is done.