Aquatic Walking Benefits
Walking in water helps women with peripheral artery disease (PAD).
Water exercise is a great alternative to treadmill or outdoor walking for people who experience discomfort when training on land.
Findings from a new randomized clinical trial showed that aquatic training can reduce arterial stiffness and increase exercise tolerance, cardiorespiratory capacity and muscular strength in women with PAD. Moreover, adherence to the 12-week program was high among the 72 female participants. More research is warranted.
The study is available in the Journal of Applied Physiology (2019; doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00209.2019).
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA, is an internationally acknowledged integrative health and mindfulness specialist, best-selling author of 16 fitness and wellness books translated into multiple languages and sold worldwide, award-winning health journalist, contributing editor to Fitness Journal, media spokesperson, and IDEA's 2008 Fitness Instructor of the Year. She's a 25-year industry veteran and former health and fitness educator at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, who has served on multiple industry committees and co-authored trade books and manuals for ACE, ACSM and YMCA of the USA. She has appeared on TV worldwide and was a featured trainer on America's Next Top Model.
