All photos taken courtesy of Herongate Leisure centre Hungerford
Exercise programs written by Victoria Kerr Davies
Photography Cayford Media
Maintain good posture and stand up tall throughout all these exercises.
Exercises to be performed slowly, smoothly and evenly with control.
Warm up by Walking backwards and forwards across the pool hands out of water.
Then repeat the walking with your hands on a float pushing down to feel your core working.
Standing facing pool side with hands on the side (with good posture). As core strength improves, stand without support.
Alternate knee bend towards chest and straighten.
Add woggle or float under foot to increase challenge
Bend alternate knee up backwards towards your bottom and back down
Alternately take straight leg out sideways and back in.
Alternately take straight leg out behind you.
Hip Hitching- Stand and shorten leg by lifting it a few inches off the floor
Stand with your hip and knee at 90 degrees. Now take the knee out and back in.
Add woggle or float under foot to increase challenge.
Now standing in shallow water
Squats – Do squats not holding on
Single leg squats.
Add hands on float to increase work
Run on the spot lifting alternate knee to touch opposite elbow
Stand with both hands on top of a float then push it down under the water and then slowly back up.
With one hand on the float press it down under the water then pass it across in front of your body from left and right.
Hold the float upright between your hands, now rotate left and right.
Hold float between hands against the water and push forward and pull back.
Progress to stride standing with either leg forward and then to standing on one leg.
Holding water bottles in both hands and keeping your shoulders down perform the following.
1. Arms circling both ways
2. Straight arms together take down and back past hips
3. Alternate arms forward and back
4. Straight arms take apart and together
Progress the above exercises by
A. Stride standing either leg forward
B. Single leg standing
In the corner of the pool holding the edges of the pool with a woggle under you if needed.
Bend alternate knee up and down like bicycling in the water
Sitting on woggle: as if on a swing. If confident to do so. Keep tall.
A. Balance, arms still and bring arms in to body as balance improves.
B. Lift alternate hand up out of water
D. Repeat above sequence with eyes closed
E. Cycling
Lying on woggle:
If confident to do so.
Take both knees up towards your chest and back out straight
Then swim if able with
A. arms only, float between legs,
B. legs only holding float out in front, try not to roll.
Or walk to finish.
Go forwards, backwards and sideways, hands out of the water or placed on a float.