Find Your Zen: Come Swim with Steve Wallen Swim School!
The countless physical benefits of swimming lessons are well known, and a quick Google search on this topic will confirm that swimming is a fantastic way to maintain physical health from infancy to our final years. However, did you know that swimming also provides several benefits for mental health? Getting into the water year-round is the perfect way to manage your overall health better.
Swimming for mental health…
Consider how beneficial it is to care for yourself by taking even just 30 minutes to swim some laps. You are fully immersed in the water, with nothing to hear but your own rhythmic breathing, nothing to see but water flowing around you. What could be more relaxing? It’s almost like shutting out your busy world for some much-needed peace. Unlike many other forms of exercise and ways to keep fit, swimming allows for moments of solitude; no talking, no waiting for equipment, just you and the water flowing over you.
Water as healthcare…
In fact, the Wall Street Journal recently reported that participating in water activities such as swimming or surfing can help us enter a “flow state” where we become fully immersed in what we’re doing. This calms our mind’s internal state, which is often absorbed by rumination and worry. Such a flow state is vital for mental well-being.
Further, Seena Mathews, Ph.D., states, “Regular swimming has been shown to improve memory, cognitive function, immune response and mood. Swimming may also help repair damage from stress and forge new neural connections in the brain.” While further research is needed to understand precisely how swimming does this, we can all reap the physical and mental benefits of swimming right now!
Try this at your next swim session…
Swimming allows for a full range of exercise intensity. For some, gut-busting sprints are a fantastic way to reduce stress and get away from intrusive thoughts. For others, a gentle swim or a simple float allows for mental tranquility. Your best bet is to combine these two methods; a fast-paced swim will be great for your physical health as well as cause the release of feel-good endorphins! In addition, some quality “me time” just stretching and floating in the water will allow you to decompress from life. Another method for finding your zen in the water is bobbing or rhythmic breathing.
As you know, focused breathing is foundational for practices such as yoga and pilates. In addition, many find that anxiety and stress can be reduced through focused breathing. While in the water, apply rhythmically focused breathing to your swim session. Just stand or float and focus for several minutes on breathing out into the water and against its resistance, then rise and inhale. Calming, relaxing, and all the good feelings!
Set yourself up for swimming success! Take lessons to build your skills and stroke repertoire, and have an expert weigh in on your technique. Pack a swim bag and place it in your car so your swim time is always at your fingertips. Your swim bag should contain the essentials: quick dry suit and towel, water bottle, hair and body wash, moisturizer… and that’s it! Swimming can be a solitary sport, which might be just what you need. However, consider joining a master’s swim club to keep you on track with your sessions and to discover a new social group. No matter how you work swimming into your day, know that you are making a fantastic choice for your health!
