Swimming is a unique sport. Almost everyone can deal with it, regardless of their state of health and age. Despite the fact that trips to the pool can be attributed only to the amateur level, for the most part they can be considered as a means of treating various diseases. In addition, they are an effective method of preventing ailments.
Therapeutic swimming wins over other types of aerobic training. After all, plunging into water, the body ceases to collide with air resistance. It is because of this that this procedure has such high efficiency. Water, as the external environment, resists body movements with a force 12 times greater than air. This leads to the fact that the load exerts an effect on the whole body at once.
Types of swimming
There is a certain classification of this sport. So, swimming can be on the surface of the water. In this case, it can be sports, applied, medical and game. There are also scuba diving. It includes underwater orienteering, speed views, etc.
In turn, four most popular modes of transportation are included in swimming. Among them - a crawl on the back and chest, breaststroke and butterfly (dolphin).
Consider one of the types of swimming - therapeutic.
What it is?
Therapeutic swimming is one of the forms of exercise therapy. Its peculiarity lies in the simultaneous effect on the human body of water and movements (often active, but sometimes passive).
During medical swimming exercises, the muscles of the body work in unusual conditions for them. It is the aquatic environment that is the most important component that affects the patient. What is the reason for this effect? The fact is that water has a significantly higher density compared to air. This leads to the development by man of new mechanisms of movement. In addition, great efforts are needed to overcome the resistance of a denser medium than air.
Influencing factors
Of great importance to achieve the desired effect during medical swimming is the temperature of the water. This indicator is used in various spa treatments. Making a variety of movements, the patient is able to tolerate a decrease in water temperature. Such procedures contribute to the creation of a hardening effect. If swimming for therapeutic purposes is carried out in warm water, the temperature of which approaches the temperature of the human body, then it reduces reflex excitability and muscle spasticity, and also helps to reduce pain symptoms.
In this case, the chemical effect of a new environment for humans is of no small importance. This is especially noticeable when conducting classes on therapeutic swimming in a pool filled with sea or mineral water. That is why, for the differentiated and correct application of this healing technique, it will be necessary to take into account the influence of all the above factors on the human body as a whole, as well as on its individual systems and organs.
Indications
A person’s body in water becomes much lighter due to its buoyancy. This leads to a decrease in the load on the musculoskeletal system and all its constituent elements. Due to this specificity, therapeutic swimming can bring significant benefits to the spine, as well as to heal the person as a whole.
A swimmer’s body in water experiences even pressure on the skin. The massaging effect of the environment helps to increase metabolism, activate the vital functions of the body, increase the heart rate, as well as improve pulmonary ventilation. That is why therapeutic swimming is so useful for children suffering from somatic diseases.
Doctors recommend contact with water and babies. Judging by the reviews of parents, going to the pool is beneficial for any child.
There are conditions in which infant swimming is recommended for children as a therapeutic measure. Among them are the following:
- muscle hypertonicity;
- cerebral palsy;
- muscle lethargy;
- torticollis;
- low birth weight;
- congenital musculoskeletal defects;
- joint diseases.
Judging by the reviews of doctors and parents, therapeutic swimming for infants significantly improves the condition of children with similar diagnoses.
Beneficial effect on the spine
Therapeutic swimming is most successfully used to eliminate spinal deformity and posture disorders, as well as for various degrees and types of scoliosis, kyphosis and lordosis. Doctors use it as one of the elements of complex therapy.
During swimming, the spine naturally unloads and the asymmetry in the intervertebral muscles is eliminated. This allows you to create conditions for recovery. It is expressed in the normal growth of the vertebral bodies. When a person is in the water, he develops all muscle groups. Moreover, this action occurs regardless of which method was chosen for swimming.
While moving in water, the upper body is actively being worked out. These are shoulders, chest and arms. At the same time, the abdominals, back and legs work. As a result, the body seems to be dressed in a corset of muscles, which allows you to align your posture and straighten your shoulders.
It is worth noting that sharp muscle building in swimmers does not occur. They become not voluminous, but elastic.
Swimming Goals
The therapeutic value of swimming is quite large. It has long been used in medicine, being one of the methods of physiotherapy used in many diseases of the spine.
Using therapeutic swimming, the following goals are achieved:
- increases the tone of muscle tissue of the back and other parts of the body;
- the processes of regeneration of nerve fibers and blood vessels are activated;
- intervertebral distance increases, which reduces pressure on the spinal roots and intervertebral discs;
- headaches, dizziness, numbness of the extremities are prevented;
- stabilizes the general well-being of a person.
It is worth noting that most of their time people spend in an upright position. Moreover, their body weight has a compressive effect on all elements of the spine. Being in the water, the patient completely unloads the back and significantly reduces the restrictions that occur during the movement of the spine.
Key recommendations
Specialists have developed certain rules, compliance with which will allow classes to bring a positive effect. Otherwise, a person may aggravate his health.
- Medical swimming lessons are recommended in the pool, where the water temperature is constantly regulated. Its values should be in the range from 28 to 30 degrees. Gradually, the temperature regime is reduced to 23 degrees.
- In open water, classes are not recommended. The fact is that in this case, the load on the spine and muscles will increase significantly due to waves. All this can lead to adverse effects on the body. In addition, in open waters it is impossible to observe the necessary temperature conditions. Due to too low values of this indicator, the musculoskeletal system has a negative effect (inflammatory processes can progress).
- Before starting medical swimming, you need to warm up. This will increase blood flow and warm muscles and tissues.
- In the process of swimming, a person needs to breathe correctly, taking a deep breath, followed by a quick exhale. Such breathing will improve lung ventilation, normalize blood circulation, reduce fatigue and streamline range of motion.
- The technique and style of swimming should be agreed with the instructor. The fact is that breaststroke, crawl, etc. may not be suitable in a particular case. The technique is determined depending on the indications for therapeutic swimming. For example, to eliminate hyperkyphosis, it is best to swim on your stomach. If the treatment procedure is designed to align the bends of the spine in the chest area, swimming should be prescribed on the back.
- The maximum effect can be achieved during classes at least 2-3 times during the week. Moreover, they should all be carried out under the supervision of a physiotherapist and trainer. The duration of classes should not be less than 40 minutes.
Contraindications
Like most treatment methods, swimming has certain contraindications. Do not prescribe it in cases where there are:
- acute stage of spinal disease;
- high sensitivity of the body to pain;
- viral or bacterial infection of the body;
- carbuncles, boils, ulcers and other purulent lesions of the skin;
- burns;
- foci of fungal skin diseases;
- arrhythmia, heart failure, myocardial infarction, hypertension and other pathologies of the vascular system and heart;
- glomerulonephritis and renal failure;
- oncology;
- impaired motor functions due to injuries and diseases of the brain, which are severe;
- epilepsy and tendency to cramps;
- 3rd semester of pregnancy;
- period of breastfeeding;
- high degree obesity.
Organization of classes
Currently, a sample therapeutic swimming program has been developed. In its application, the degree of illness of a person and the individual characteristics of his body are taken into account. Nevertheless, all classes necessarily include the implementation of exercises first on land and then in water.
Their time of 90 minutes is distributed as follows:
- 35 minutes - classes on land;
- 10 minutes - shower;
- 45 minutes - classes in the water.
During classes on land, general developmental, corrective and preparatory exercises are carried out, leading the patient to swimming treatment. Given the fact that the list of pathologies of the musculoskeletal system is quite extensive, individual complexes are drawn up for such gymnastics. In this case, physical exercises most effectively eliminate impaired motor functions and strengthen the skills of proper posture.
Classes in water create conditions for unloading the spine and significant muscle relaxation. Various exercises are also performed here. For their use, a shallow place in the pool is used. Patients should stand chest-deep in water and perform various movements with their legs and arms, tilts and turns of the body, etc.
A special type of exercise is swimming. It can be free or with an imitation of one of the sports styles.
Scoliosis treatment
To eliminate this disease during the performance of water exercises, a breaststroke sports style is used. It is performed on the chest with an extended pause of sliding. This allows the spine to stretch as much as possible, and the muscles of the body to statically strain.
During breaststroke, the shoulder girdle is perpendicular to the movement and parallel to the surface of the water. With this style, spinal mobility and rotational movements of the body, which are extremely undesirable in scoliosis, are minimized. Nevertheless, swimming training with such a disease begins with a rabbit. The fact is that this style is much closer to walking. In addition, it is useful to use with flat feet.
Be sure to take into account in the development of therapeutic swimming programs the degree of scoliosis. At stages 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the disease, they should be different. The fact is that to eliminate the pathology at each of its stages, a certain condition will be required.
So, with a disease of the 1st degree, only symmetric movements are used. Their implementation is possible with a breaststroke on the chest with an extended pause of sliding. In addition, it is proposed to overcome high-speed sections with functional state control. For the development of leg muscles, a crawl on the chest is recommended.
In the presence of scoliosis of 2 and 3 degrees, the task of correction of deformity includes the need to perform asymmetric initial positions. To do this, the patient is invited to master the technique of breaststroke on the chest, which will remove the load from the concave part of the arc of the spine.
If scoliosis has reached 4 degrees, then the primary task of therapeutic swimming is to improve the general condition of the patient while eliminating dysfunction in the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. To do this, the starting position must be absolutely symmetrical. Under strict control, such a patient should undergo short speed segments.
Judging by the reviews of patients, their course of therapeutic swimming can significantly improve the condition of the spine and posture.
Osteochondrosis Treatment
The elimination of this pathology should be carried out with the adoption of comprehensive measures. In addition to therapeutic swimming with osteochondrosis, it is necessary to carry out massage, special gymnastics, orthopedic measures, passive exercises offered by manual therapy, and taking medications.
At the first stage, for medical rehabilitation of such patients, considerable attention is paid to visiting the pool. Therapeutic swimming is necessary to stretch the spine, as well as to increase its mobility. In this case, three groups of special physical exercises are used. Among them:
- pulling movements at the pool side;
- free movement of the body;
- swimming movements and gliding in the water.
Judging by the reviews of patients, therapeutic swimming can be beneficial only if the physical exercises are correctly selected and then adequately performed (with a gradual increase in load and optimal duration of the procedures).
Spinal hernia treatment
The patient's condition with this disease can also be improved with regular classes in the pool. The technique of therapeutic swimming with a hernia of the spine is selected based on the characteristics of those pathological processes that occur in the human body. For instance:
- With a flattened bend of the ridge in the sternum, the patient needs to swim only on his back. Otherwise, the condition of the spine can deteriorate significantly.
- If the back is too arched back, swimming on it is contraindicated. Indeed, in this case, the load on the muscles of the shoulder girdle will be produced. This will result in even more rounded backs.
- With weak immunity or with the elderly patient, movements with a large amplitude are unacceptable.
In the pool, patients with a hernia not only swim, but also perform exercises. Their effectiveness is due to the lack of probability of injury, since part of the load is transmitted to the water column.
Therapeutic swimming with a hernia is certainly dosed. For example, the movement on the back should not be more than 400 m, and with a rabbit on the chest - more than 200 m. At the end of classes, the patient needs to relax the muscles. To do this, it is recommended to perform sliding in water from 2 to 4 times.
An increase in the load with a hernia of the spine should occur gradually, as it adapts to classes.
The water temperature in the pool where therapeutic swimming with this category of patients is carried out should be in the range of 25-28 degrees. At the initial stage, the training time should not exceed 30-45 minutes. After a three-month treatment course, classes are held from 45 to 90 minutes. The program for patients with spinal hernia is designed for 6 months. Its implementation is necessarily carried out under the supervision of a swimming instructor.
Special literature
How to conduct medical swimming lessons? For the correct preparation of a set of exercises, it is recommended to use special literature. One of these publications is a textbook edited by N. Zh. Bulgakova “Improving, curative and adaptive swimming”.
This work reveals the features of conducting classes in the pool. In addition, the book introduces its readers to the basic principles of training, classification of loads. Here you can find out the features of therapeutic and adaptive swimming, including when teaching him disabled people of various categories.