Aquatic fitness is exercise done in water, usually in a swimming pool. Water supports your body and pushes back on every move. Add real water weight and aquatic fitness becomes strength training too. Here is what it is, why people love it, and exercises to try.

Want the full picture? Our Aquatic Fitness Guide goes deeper. This post is the quick, friendly version to help you get started.

What is aquatic fitness?

Aquatic fitness is any workout you do in the water. It can be walking laps in the shallow end, a water aerobics class, or a full strength workout in your backyard pool.

What makes it special is the water itself. It holds you up, so moves feel gentler on your body. And it pushes back every time you move, so you're always working.

Most pool workouts stop at cardio. Add real water weight, and aquatic fitness becomes strength training too.

Benefits of aquatic fitness

The water supports your body, so you can move with less pounding than on land. That's one reason so many people love training in the pool.

It's great cardio. Moving through water gets your heart rate up and keeps you moving.

With the right gear, it builds strength, too. And it's portable. AquaBLAST is low tech and travels easily, so you can keep training at hotel pools, gyms and anywhere you go.

Types of water resistance

Buoyancy. Foam and plastic floats push up, and you work to push them down. They give great cardio, but they lack the load bearing needed for strength training.

Drag. This is the push you feel from moving through water. The faster you go, the more you feel. For a closer look, read Water Weight vs. Drag Resistance.

Water weight. AquaBLAST is a bag you fill with pool water. Below the surface it is weightless, so it's easy to get into position before each lift. When you lift it above the water, gravity kicks in and you feel every pound you put in.

Even underwater, a full bag is a 45 or 55 pound mass you have to push, pull and control through the water. So you get water weight and drag together. It's unlike anything else out there.

AquaBLAST can even give you buoyancy resistance for moves like mountain climbers and planks. Fill the bag 1/4 full, or about 10 pounds. The air inside makes the bag difficult to push below the water. Hold both handles. If you are centered above the bag, your weight will push the bag underwater with a lot of upward buoyant force, but you can get into a great mountain climber or plank position in any level of water.

Aquatic fitness exercises

Here are a few moves to try with AquaBLAST. Keep the bag low in the water for lighter work, or lift it higher above the surface for more.

• Squat to overhead press. Squat down with your knees bent and position AquaBLAST horizontally at the waterline. Use the bag's buoyant force to get an assisted lift as the bag rises above the waterline. It gets increasingly heavier as gravity kicks in. Then press it overhead. For less weight, empty some water from the bag and replace it with air, as described below.
• Push and pull. Push the bag away through the water, then pull it back. You feel the mass and the drag together.
• Mountain climbers and planks. Fill the bag 1/4 full, or about 10 pounds. The air inside makes the bag difficult to push below the water. Hold both handles. If you are centered above the bag, your weight will push the bag underwater with a lot of upward buoyant force, but you can get into a great mountain climber or plank position in any level of water.
• Step-ups. Completely fill the bag with water. It will be slightly buoyant, but you can still push it down to the pool floor and hold it there with your foot. Then do step-ups, log rolls and balance exercises. Try it in deeper water, 4 to 5 feet, at first, and work your way into shallower water for more challenge.
• Aqua kickboxing. Every bag includes a kickboxing harness, so you can punch and kick for a cardio burst between strength sets. Add the optional AquaBLAST Suction Tether to create a portable aqua kickboxing platform in 3 to 5 feet of water for low-impact punching, kicking and pushing exercises.

For full routines, visit our AquaBLAST Workouts page. Every bag also comes with waterproof Workout Cards you can keep poolside.

How to start

Water weighs about 8 pounds per gallon, so you choose your load by how much water you add, from about 10 pounds up to about 55 pounds. The empty bag weighs about 3 pounds.

AquaBLAST has two basic setups. Completely filled with water, it's your underwater bag for step-ups, kettlebells, bowling and more, and you can take it from below the water to above it. With an air and water combination, the bag becomes more buoyant the more air you add, which limits the types of exercises you can do. Most underwater exercises won't work, but it opens up others. At 1/2 to 1/3 full, try the wave machine, chest roll and push-pull. On the wave machine you get buoyant resistance, drag and weight all in one. At 1/4 full, or about 10 pounds, the bag floats tipped to one side. That's great for most above-water lifting and for buoyancy resistance exercises like mountain climbers and planks.

To make the bag lighter, replace water with air. Open the zipper and squeeze the sides of the bag or tip it to drain some water. Then slightly lift the bag up to the waterline by the finger pull with one hand and pull the zipper closed with the other. That traps air inside. For more air, open the air valve and blow some in.

As you get stronger, add water. The AquaBLAST 20 Liter holds up to about 45 pounds, and the AquaBLAST 25 Liter holds up to about 55 pounds.

AquaBLAST works best in water 3½ to 5 feet deep, but our deep water warriors can use it at any water level. Remove the buoyant foam ring and fill the bag with water, and it sinks to the bottom of the pool for retrieval exercises in lifesaving training.

Want to kickbox? The ClingFish Effect suction tether is a separate optional add-on that can hold up to 50 pounds of force. It easily holds the bag in place to create a kickboxing platform in 3 to 5 feet of water.

I invented and patented AquaBLAST after a softball shoulder injury, when foam and plastic pool gear gave me cardio but not the real weight I needed to rebuild muscle. Curious how it stacks up? See Best Pool Exercise Equipment for Strength Training, or check our FAQ. AquaBLAST is sold at aquablastfit.com and amazon.com/aquablast.

FAQ

What is aquatic fitness?
Exercise done in water, usually in a swimming pool. Add real water weight, and it becomes strength training too.

What are the benefits of aquatic fitness?
Water supports your body and pushes back on every move, so you get great cardio. With real water weight, you build strength too, in a pool you can find almost anywhere.

What equipment do I need?
Foam and plastic devices are fine for cardio. For strength, you need real load. AquaBLAST gives you water weight from about 10 pounds up to about 55 pounds.

Strength in Water.