As winter approaches, water fitness fans have gone indoors for classes. Such gyms as Miramont Lifestyle Fitness in Fort Collins offer cardio and core workouts, and we recently dived in for the facility’s back-to-back Deep Power and Hydro Pilates sessions.
Who it’s for: The hour-long deep-water workout attracts a mostly female, 40-plus crowd. But don’t kid yourself; the moves will challenge any fit 20-something.
What it’s like: Wearing a flotation belt and leg shapers to add resistance in the water, participants start in the shallow end of the mineral salt pool and swim or bob to the deep end. This may sound like a fairly simple task, but the flotation belt and leg shapers slow you down.
“The water adds 12 times more resistance than a land exercise,” says Irene Weinmann, aquatics manager. “When you add the leg shapers, the resistance doubles.”
Once all the participants are jogging in place in the deep end of the pool, instructor Debbie Knobel leads warm-up exercises that include jumping jacks; strides, movements that resemble the splits in water; and air jacks – jumps that spring you out of the water.
After warm-ups, Knobel directs the first set of intervals from outside the pool, instructing the class to do a slow jog, run at double speed in the water, jog in long strides and jump “hurdles.” Unlike the cardio activities, which include several of these same moves, the intervals are done while moving from one side of the pool to the other. Sounds simple, right?
Wrong: Once 12 people start moving in one direction, they get the water to move with them in that same direction, so trying to turn around and head the other way is tough.
After 20 minutes of interval training, Knobel slows the pace by having students do a series of underwater stretches, which include slow jogs and stretches for the biceps and triceps. After a few minutes of stretching, students work their way into the shallow end of the pool for the next class.
Hydro Pilates
Who it’s for: Those interested in expanding their exercise routine with a bit of water works.
What it’s like: The focus is on breathing and posture. Instructor Carisa Kemp prepares students for the core-oriented workout ahead by having them jog in place, squat in the water with one leg placed above the knee and do side bends.
Students next grab bands that attach to the ankle with Velcro. One of the easier exercises, the knee extension, uses the core to maintain posture as students inhale while lifting a knee waist-high in the water, extend their leg with a slight bend in their knee and exhale as they push the knee behind them.
Next come abduction lifts, which begin with the student standing with both legs together, holding the strap in the left hand as the right leg moves away from the body and crosses over the left leg.
“This is a very short movement, so don’t try to over do it,” Kemp says.
After students have adjusted to maintaining posture and moving in the water, Kemp walks around the pool, demonstrating how to perform the clock, a movement that requires students to stand with their feet together while the right crosses over the left ankle and then moves all the way to the side of the body and behind the front of the body in a clockwise motion. Resistance is added by wrapping, and thus shortening, the band around the hand.
Class ends with gentle stretching, which includes squatting in the water with your hands out in front of you and transitioning into stretches that resemble the “warrior” position in yoga, with the legs spread far apart while you reach for the wall.
Muscles worked: The 90-minute water workout at Deep Power and Hydro Pilates classes worked the entire body, especially the abdominals. We worked muscles in our arms and legs that hadn’t been pushed for a while, too.
The morning after: We were warned that our arms and legs might be sore, but we woke up the next day feeling refreshed.
Advice: If you are new to class, plan to arrive at least 10 minutes early so that you have the time to get dressed and strap on equipment.
At the end of the Deep Power class, hurry to the shallow end so you can find a spot where the warm water jets into the pool. You won’t be moving as much, so your body tends to get cold quicker.
You do not have to know how to swim to take part in these classes, because most of the workout comes from keeping your ears above water while wearing a flotation belt.
Details: DEEP POWER is held at 7:30 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. HYDRO PILATES follows at 8:30 a.m. on Monday and Wednesday. There is a $29 drop-in charge for people who are not members of Miramont Lifestyle Fitness. Information: Irene Weinmann at 970-672-4255 or
