Many people enjoy their tried-and-true fitness routines. They set up a schedule of exercise that works for them: strengthening one day, cardiovascular another, flexibility the next, and so on. But what happens when you reach a fitness plateau, meaning you don’t see improvements in your fitness anymore?
An effective way of working through a fitness plateau is to try a new form of exercise. Instead of doing the same routine week after week, you can keep your mind and body engaged by changing up your workout. One trending form of exercise that will add some variety to your exercise routine is floating fitness.
What Is Floating Fitness?
Floating fitness is a water-based form of exercise. Maybe you remember the water aerobics trend from years past. Floating fitness is similar to water aerobics in that it takes a land-based exercise routine and brings it to the water. However, rather than taking place in the water like water aerobics, floating fitness takes place on top of the water—that’s why “floating” is emphasized in its name.
If you’ve gone to a seaside or lakeside resort or if you’ve stayed at an inland resort with a large pool, you might have noticed people exercising on floating mats on the water. Maybe you were wondering what it was all about. Keep reading to learn more.
What Equipment Do You Need?
To participate in floating fitness, you will need a mat. The mat floats on top of the water, and all the exercises take place on it. There are several versions of these mats available for purchase, but you could use a generic paddleboard, inflatable raft, or foam float. Keep in mind that mats customized for floating exercise will make completing your workout easier because these mats are sized and shaped appropriately to provide optimal flotation as you exercise. Some of them also feature handles or straps that can be used during exercise routines.
What Are the Benefits of Floating Fitness?
When participating in floating fitness, you can benefit from many types of exercise. For example, exercises focused on flexibility are popular. Specialized flexibility exercises such as yoga or Pilates can be performed on the water, but it’s also possible to complete a more general stretching routine by doing seated toe touches, seated side bends, and more.
You can also do strengthening exercises, which could include crunches or planks to build abdominal strength. You can also build leg strength with lunges or squats, and arm strength by performing bicep curls with floating weights.
Perhaps most notably, floating fitness is great for improving stability. This is because your every move on top of the mat requires you to activate your core muscles to keep your balance. If not, you’ll find yourself getting wet when you fall into the water! For this reason, if you don’t know how to swim, floating fitness might not be the best workout for you.
Where Can I Try It?
Floating fitness is trending these days, so many private aquatic centers have added it to their offerings. YMCAs are also a great place to find floating fitness. In the warmer months, floating fitness is commonly offered by personal trainers in bodies of water such as ponds, lakes, or even bays and harbors.
How Can I Be Sure My Instructor Is Knowledgeable?
When starting any new fitness regimen, it’s important to look for a knowledgeable instructor. Because the exercises performed in floating fitness are the same as those performed on land, you can look for an instructor who holds certification as a personal trainer. This will mean the instructor has gone through the necessary accreditation to ensure proper training techniques are used.
However, because floating fitness happens on the water, you might want to look for an instructor who has water-based training. The Aquatic Exercise Association (AEA) offers an Aquatic Fitness Professional Certification, which could be beneficial. Also, if you’re attending classes in a location without a lifeguard on duty, you should consider looking for an instructor who holds a lifeguard certification. Several organizations offer this certification, including the American Red Cross and the American Lifeguard Association, to name just a few.
Why Not Try Something New? There’s little to lose with trying floating fitness. If you sign up for a class at a private aquatic center or a YMCA, you won’t need to invest in any equipment, so why not try it? You might find it provides the boost you need to get you over your fitness plateau.