Try aqua cycling for a gentle way to build muscle!

By pedaling underwater, you combine the advantages of endurance sports with the benefits of a good soak. And when baby starts to take up more space, aqua cycling is a perfect choice of activity.

What is it, exactly?
A physical activity often recommended by doctors to complement physical therapy that consists of pedaling on a sort of wheel-less stationary bicycle attached to the bottom of a pool. Immersed up to your chest, you gradually adjust the bicycle’s resistance and take off for a 30- or 45-minute session.

What are the benefits?
Excellent for the circulation: pedaling underwater acts like lymphatic drainage and helps stimulate venous return, thus fighting heavy legs and edema. Even better, the combined action of water resistance and the circular motion of pedaling gradually dislodges cellulite.

Good for your whole body: just like road or stationary cycling, aqua cycling is an endurance activity that improves your heart and lung capacity while stabilizing blood pressure and blood sugar.

Ideal for your vitality and morale: gently yet deeply toned, your muscles (calves, thighs, glutes, and abs) will help you feel more confident and dynamic. As for your morale, it’s obviously floating on a cloud: this kind of endurance work, gentle and stress-free, causes your body to release endorphins, the famous happiness hormones, and you’ll feel the difference immediately.

Perfect for relieving your joints: In water, your body weight is cut by three quarters, making your motions both easier and gentler. By opting for a lower weight-bearing activity, you avoid the risk of injuring your back, tendons, and joints. This type of exercise also helps combat the muscle and posture imbalances that cause mechanical pain in the hips, knees, and lumbar.

Precautions
The first is to ask your doctor’s opinion. Even though this activity is generally inadvisable only for people with heart conditions and during painful attacks of osteoarthritis, every case is unique, particularly during pregnancy.

The second is to keep it pain-free. This means exercising at your own pace, making sure the pedals are installed right and the seat adjusted to the right height, not arching your lumbar, keeping your head aligned with your back, and doing some mild stretches back at home after the session.

Where can you do it?
Ideally in a specialized center offering sessions in individual rooms, or even joint rooms to share with a friend. This private environment generally provides impeccable hygiene, offers the services of a coach to develop a customized program, and allows you to choose your hours. In some centers, you can even pedal against a backdrop of chromotherapy, with your own music, or while watching a movie. You can also practice this sport during group classes in a pool, but the available hours are limited and above all, the group dynamic forces you to keep up even if you get tired... which isn’t smart right now.