Photo by Morgan Pace
Aqua Aerobics—Fun for AIT
tyi Angela Arnold
After five long months with a broken foot, I
was eager to start exercising again. The problem
was that my muscles were weak, and my joints
unstable.-1 needed something with little to no
impact that I would enjoy. That’s when I found
aqua aerobics. At first I thought it wouldn’t be
any more than swimming, but was I wrong. I
found a whole new “gravity elimination” expe
rience.
What It Is?
Aqua aerobics is an effective low-impact,
whole body workout. It involves using a flota
tion belt placed around the waist and stryofoam
dumbbells. If done in deep water, there is no im
pact. The key to aqua aerobics is stabilizing the
lumbar portion of the body by engaging the ab
dominal muscles, while performing a series of
movements.
Equipment
Aqua aerobics only requires three basic pieces
of equipment—the aqua jogger, dumbbells and,
of course, a swimsuit . The aqua jogger is the belt
that fits around the waist and provides buoyan
cy so that deep water activities can be per
formed. These are available at both university
pools but you can also purchase your own. The
aqua jogger aids in the stabilization of the core
of your body.
Dun^bell^, wjj^ph look similar to regular
dumbbells only are made of styrofoam, can also
be used. They provide more resistance to give
you an upper body workout. Like the aqua jog
ger, you can find the dumbbells at Gerlinger and
Leighton pools here on campus.
Who Benefits?
Anyone would benefit from aqua aerobics. It’s
low impact, and most importantly, it’s fun. The
benefits are even greater for individuals that
have some injury to a joint or arthritis pain.
I spoke with Physical Therapist Carrie Jackson
in the Sports Medicine/Physical Therapy de
partment of the Health Center about using aqua
aerobics as part of a physical therapy plan. She
said that it is great for people with ankle or low
back problems as well as for post fracture, strain,
and tendonitis. Normally the patient would start
in deep water since there is no impact and then
gradually move to the shallow end of the pool so
that there is some impact. Then land aerobics are
integrated and the aqua aerobics is used to sup
plement until fully recovered from the injury.
Typically a minor injury may take three to four
weeks of aqua alrobics while a more serious one
such as surgery or fractures could take a whole
term of therapy. In my case, I fractured a bone in
my foot, so I needed more extensive therapy. I
am still recovering from my injury, and am tran
sitioning to land activities. The aqua aerobics
therapy has allowed me to begin physical activi
ty again without fear of reinjuring my foot.
Sample Exercises ^
A typical workout starts with a warm-up, such
as knee high jogging, with or without dumbbells.
The major part of the workout consists of a se
ries of different movements. These could in
clude scooters, where you sit with your legs
tucked under and propel yourself with your
arms, or cross country where you move like you
are cross country skiing. Then there is the ab sec
tion. You can actually do sit-ups in the water.
That surprised me the most. Not only can you do
them, but also they are really effective. The end
of the workout consists of stretching.
Resources
Aqua aerobics is not only a great workout for
those of all fitness levels, but it is also fun. I en
courage you to take a class at the university or at
a local pool. It is ah alternative to the typical
land workout and provides excellent benefits. If
you have an injury and are interested in aqua as
a physical therapy, you only have to see one of
the practitioners at the Health Cevh 'r, and then
they can refer you to the Physical Therapy de
partment.
You can check out information on aqua aero
bics from:
• University Health Center’s Physical Therapy
Department 346-4401
• Sports Medicine and Wellness Center at the Stu
dent Recreation Center 346-4150
• Student Recreation Center 346-4113
*■ - m
Loving Me
t}y Lindsey Hams
I was reading my “self-help” magazine
the other day, and it wasn’t all that
helpful. I saw the culturally accepted
view of the perfect body, and count
less tips of how I could attain the
same emaciated features on my own
body. Headings like “Finally Flab-Free” and
“Weight Loss in your 20’s, 30’s, and 40’s” filled
its pages. The self-help magazine actually left
me feeling more helpless than enlightened. It
made me think about my goals for what
“healthy” should be, and the major one that
stood out in my mind was self-acceptance.
America has painful body image issues, and
everywhere we look there are more ads increas
ing our worries about our bodies. We all know
b&dies are unique, and that health is not
r^i^usl, through appearance. The human
is a miracle that runs like a magic ma
Why, then, the obsession with changing
ourselves?
My best friend reminds me of a person with
an ideal body image. She is not the skinniest
person I have met, nor the largest. She eats a
nutritious diet of food she enjoys, not just food
< t
Body Image Boosts
Instead of comparing your body to
that of your friends, or people on the
television, think about all the great
things you can do with your body.
Other ideas to give your body image
a boost are: *
• Look at yourselfasa whole person, notjust
a collection of body parts.
• Wear clothes that are comfortable, so your
body actually feels good.
• Do something nice for yourself especially
when you feel low (eg. take a nap or a
bath, find a nice place ou tside to relax)
• Make a top-ten list of things you like about
yourself
Stop using the mirror to find flaws
she feels are low fat. She loves her body, all of
it, even her not so tiny stomach. I asked her
why she doesn’t obsess about what her body
looks like, and her response to me was, “My
body has done so many good things for me.
How could I complain about little things that
don’t even change who I really am?” What she
said has had lasting affects on how I view my
self.
Taking steps to have a more positive body im
age can lead to a much happier and healthier life.
If you believe a negative body image is getting in
your way of optimal physical or emotional health,
the University Health Center and Counseling
Center provides services that can boost your self
image. For nutritional advice there is the Nutri
tional Analysis Program, available in the Health
Ed office, where your three day diet is compared
to the RDAs. You can also schedule a meeting
with Kristin Olmos, the Health Center’s Regis
tered Dietician, or take a visit to the lending li
brary to pick up books like, Making Peace with
Food by Susan Kano. For more information call
the Peer Health Ed Office at 346-4456.
Remember that your body is magic!
^ “The typical American nou>
consumes approximately three
hamhuryers and four orders of
french fries every week ”
-Fast Food Nation. Eric Schlosser, 2002
5,328 women in 1990 died as a
result of homicide. 60 percent of
these women were murdered by
someone they knew, half of
them by a spouse or intimate
acquaintance.
-Public Health Policy for Preventing Violence.
v' Factory farming began 20 years
ago wiping out 300,000family
farms. Now, the U.S. meat
industry thrives from just a few
top companies.
^ The beef industry is respon sible
for 85 percent of topsoil lost in
the U.S.
The average steer produces 47
pounds of manure every day.
Raisi ng a ni ma Is for food
requires more than 1/3 of all
raw materials and fossil fuels
used in the U.S.
The U.S. produces enough grain
and soybeans to cure the world
of hunger; instead we cycle it
through livestock.
1 acre of land can produce 165
pounds of beef or 20,000
pounds of potatoes.
-John Robbins. Diet for a New America
r At least 45 percent of adults
snore occasionally and 25
percent snore every niyht.
~www.stoprhesnoring.cont
t/ Medical researchers say that a
dose oflauyhter can exercise the
muscles, nerves and orga ns of
the torso. With a belly laugh
sustained far an hour you could
laugh away up to 500 calories.
-Stress magazine
*/ rrhe clitoris is the only organ
designed solely far sexua l
pleasure.
-Eve Easier, The Vagina Monologues
*/ 18 million courses of antdnotics
are prescribed for the common
cold in the U.S. per year. Too
bad colds are caused by viruses,
which are unaffected by
antibiotics.
-Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
✓ The bathroom medicine cabinet
is one of the worst places to keep
medicines. The heat and
moisture of the bathroom are
just the conditions required to
a Iter medica tion chemistry,
making them weaker and
possibly ineffective, and in
some cases, toxic. A cool dry
area away from sunlight and
children is optimal.
-The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
✓ Between three and four million
cases of cancer worldwide—
375,000 in the United States
alone—could bepre\’ented
annually through dietaty
change.
-American Institute for Cancer Research and
the World Cancer Research Fund
✓ Where to get 1200 mg calcium a
day, as National Academy of
Science Recom mends:
3 oz. Sardines 372 mg
1 c skim milk 296 mg
1 c yogurt 294 mg
1 c cooked collards 289 mg
4 oz tofu 258 mg
1 c cooked turnip greens 252 mg.
1 c spinach 200 mg
1 stalk broccoli 158 mg
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