Water exercise is a great way to lose or maintain your weight and improve your overall health. The resistance the water brings to this exercise builds muscle, and swimming is an aerobic exercise that improves your heart health.
There are many styles of swimming. Each comes with its own set of skills and level of difficulty. You may be wondering how many calories swimming burns; here are some factors that go into that answer. In addition to the swimming style, you must look at your swimming pace. This is similar to walking. It's a great exercise, but how quickly you cover a distance determines the calories you lose. Here's a look at what you need to know.
Average Amount of Calories Burned During Swimming
A person who weighs around 140 pounds can burn around 233 calories per hour for casual swimming. If you swim at a moderate speed, you'll burn around 520 calories each hour. Someone who can swim the butterfly stroke for an hour burns over 800 calories. A person who weighs more than 140 pounds will burn more calories each hour, while someone who weighs less will burn less.
When you're first starting out swimming for exercise and calorie burn, you need to begin at a pace you feel comfortable with and maintain it. Swimming also builds muscle, so you don't want to deal with muscle strain due to increased speed or time spent swimming. You should listen to your body and build up speed, endurance, and difficulty level over time.
Is Swimming a Good Way to Burn Calories?
Swimming is a good way to burn calories. With access to an indoor pool or a membership at the YMCA of Central Kentucky, you can swim throughout the year, and the water is always a comfortable temperature. Walking, running, rowing, and biking will help you burn calories and muscle in your legs, but swimming burns more calories and helps you build muscle throughout your arms, legs, back, and core.
Because you're swimming in water and not pounding the pavement, swimming is easier on your joints and ligaments. You won't experience the same types of injuries that you would with other ways of burning calories. You can use swimming to meet your goals of burning calories while improving your heart health and building muscle throughout your body.
What Swimming Methods Burn the Most Calories?
The butterfly stroke is the clear winner when it comes to burning calories. With this style, you can burn up to 450 calories in half an hour. However, it's also one of the hardest and most physically demanding to learn. Freestyle swimming comes in next and burns as much as 300 calories per half an hour, and it's great for toning. Burning around 250 calories every half an hour, the backstroke is a great option. If you spend your day sitting in a chair at work, this form of swimming can help with hip movement and flexibility.
Sign up for a Membership at the YMCA of Central Kentucky Today
At the YMCA of Central Kentucky, we're ready to partner with you to help you reach your wellness goals. We have indoor pools so you can swim in comfort year-round, and our team can also teach you to swim or improve the skills you already have. Join us today.
