All types of swimming strokes work the chest.
However, the breaststroke works particularly on this area, especially the pectoral chest muscles.
The breaststroke also helps hone the trapezius muscles of the back, which extend from the neck to the mid-back region.
Swimming using the front crawl stroke, commonly known as freestyle form, serves as an excellent upper-body workout, as it hits arm muscles including the deltoids, triceps and biceps.
The front crawl also works the shoulder area, including the latissimus dorsi which runs from the underarm down the side of the back and trapezius muscles.
Core Muscles
Swimming tones and strengthens the core abdominal muscles, which help swimmers to balance their body in water.
This calorie-burning exercise also melts away up to 100 calories every 10 minutes, making abs more sculpted and visible.
The backstroke and butterfly tone the stomach muscles.
Lower Body Muscles
The front crawl strengthens many leg muscles, including the upper leg quadriceps and hamstrings and the gluteal muscles of the buttock and thigh.
In the lower-leg area, this type of stroke benefits the calves.
The breaststroke works these muscle groups as well, but it demands more from the thigh's adductor and abductor muscles.
Backstroke swimming helps stretch the hip flexors.
Benefits of Swimming
1 Improve Cholesterol There are two types of cholesterol. The good cholesterol, known as HDL, and the bad cholesterol known as LDL. Because swimming is an aerobic exercise it can help get your cholesterol levels balanced lowering therisk of dying from heart disease by 3.5 percent.
2 Better Heart Health Swimming strengthens the heart as it enlarges the organ to makes it more efficient at pumping blood throughout the body. It also helps combat the body’s inflammatory response, which reduces the risk of heart disease.
3 More Flexibility Swimming makes all the muscles in the body work at the same time. Swimming requires a broad range of motion which means your joints and ligaments stay flexible.
4 Stronger Lungs The nature of breathing in swimming is timed and precise. Moreover, taking in air is limited in volume and frequency. This promotes greater lung capacity and a consistent intake of oxygen.
5 Good Posture In today’s day and age, a lot of our time is spent in front of the computer and this causes us to have a slouched posture with hunched shoulders. As swimming strengthens the level of core stability with regards to the back and shoulder region, it helps to maintain a better posture.
National Swimming Club (NSC)
