Swimming Exercises

Swimming is a great exercise that a person can undertake, to keep his body in shape and stay healthy. However, one should remember that to do swimming, you need to be fit and flexible. It is an exercise that requires both muscular strength and endurance. There are several training routines and tips for swimming. For instance, a simple exercise routine daily can make your body fit and flexible for the workout. Training with weights 2-3 times a week will provide good results, if you concentrate on developing muscle strength with high endurance capabilities. Distribute your training regime in two sessions with concentration on upper body in the first session and the lower body in the other session. There should always be sufficient rest given to the body between different sessions. Here are few swimming training exercises that can be used to make one fit to dive in water.

 

This exercise is the mechanical equivalent to pulling through the water action in front crawl. For this particular exercise you need a high pulley machine with a simple handle grip. Kneel down on your knee to the side of the machine. Take your hand near to the pulley and grab the handle with hands high and slightly out to your side. Make sure that your back is straight, shoulders are wide and your chin tucked in before starting the exercise. Pull the handle down and lower your arm across your body in a rational movement until your hand is next to the opposite hip. Smoothly return the bar to the starting position and continue. Perform sets of 5 to 8 for maximum strength. Try and keep your posture solid throughout the movement.

 

This exercise involves opposite movement to that of the front pull and is quiet useful for promoting a balanced strength about the shoulder joint. Front pull trains the internal rotator cuff muscles and the rear pull trains the external muscles. For this exercise you need a low pulley machine and not a high pulley machine. To perform the exercises stand to the side of the machine and grasp the machine with opposite hand. Stand with your hand by the inside hip and fix a slight bend in the elbow. Pull the handle up and away from your body, rotating the arm up and out. Repeat 5-6 sets for maximum strength and 12-15 for strength endurance.

 

Stand facing the low pulley machine with the ankle strap attached to one leg. Lift this leg up the floor taking up the slack of the cable while balancing on the other leg. Pull the cable back dynamically by extending the leg backwards until you feel that you need to lean forward.

 

This exercise involves dynamic extension of the ankle, knee and hip joints and it trains the calf, quadriceps muscles to improve vertical jump performance. The point in using a barbell to add weight to the squat is to help you generate peak power. Stand with the barbell across the back of your shoulders to perform the exercise. Squat down bending at the hips and knees, making sure that the weight goes down through the back half of your foot. After reaching the half squat position, drive up dramatically, rapidly extend your legs so that you leave the floor briefly. Absorb the landing with soft knees, and then go smoothly into the squat again. Continue the process for 5 repetitions.