I swim 4 days a week, but I’m having sinus surgery in a few weeks that will require I stop for a while. I’ve been doing some research and decided treading water would be a good alternative for me once I’m cleared to be active but before I can swim again. I mentioned this to someone on my master’s team and they scoffed and said I can’t get a good cardiovascular workout that way and should just get into running (I hate running - my knees especially hate running lol). When I tread water, I go at a very hard pace and feel like it’s a good workout. I’m curious to others’ opinions on the effectiveness of treading.
Grayson said:
Get an aqua belt, which gives you some buoyancy, and run in deep water.
I’ve never tried an aqua belt. I’ll definitely look into that. Thank you!
Grayson said:
Get an aqua belt, which gives you some buoyancy, and run in deep water.
I’ve never tried an aqua belt. I’ll definitely look into that. Thank you!
This is what I did when I had knee problems and it worked great for me. I still do it when my injury is acting up. A belt and some water weights will help you increase the intensity of the workout.
Add difficulty, keeping your elbows out of the water or adding weights. Weighted treading water is pretty intense.
Barrett said:
Add difficulty, keeping your elbows out of the water or adding weights. Weighted treading water is pretty intense.
Yeah, I’m baffled some people here say you won’t get a workout. I get that it’s not sprinting down a pool, but actively treading for 20+ min is HARD.
Barrett said:
Add difficulty, keeping your elbows out of the water or adding weights. Weighted treading water is pretty intense.
For water polo, we’d fill one of those 5-gallon water cooler jugs, hold it over our head and tread until it emptied.
@Luchivya
That’s about 40 lbs to start? Wow!
My mouth would be underwater to start. Some guys were much stronger than me haha.
Barrett said:
Add difficulty, keeping your elbows out of the water or adding weights. Weighted treading water is pretty intense.
Thanks for the tip!!
Jade said:
Anything that gets your heart rate up is a cardiovascular workout.
Totally second this.
This may be unrelated, but you should look up “Egg Beater Kick.” Water polo players use it, and it’s adjustable in difficulty based on how you use your hands. Very effective for lower body conditioning.
@Farrell
Oh yes! We do a lot of egg beater drills. Often while holding a weight overhead. 
They are a great workout!
Tanner said:
@Farrell
Oh yes! We do a lot of egg beater drills. Often while holding a weight overhead.
THEY ARE SO HARD!!!
Water running is a form of treading water. Although it can be mind-numbingly repetitive, it is an excellent workout. Many runners use it when they’re injured. Joan Benoit famously used water running to keep fit when recovering from surgery just before the 1984 Olympics. She won gold in the women’s marathon!
@Quincy
I don’t have much brain anyway, so this is perfect!
@Quincy
Thanks! I’ll give that a try!
Can you do kickboard stuff?
Jonah said:
Can you do kickboard stuff?
I’ll have to try and see if I can do it and keep my face dry.
Jonah said:
Can you do kickboard stuff?
I’ll have to try and see if I can do it and keep my face dry.
Maybe one of those little nose clips can help, if not too painful. Just throwing out ideas.
Treading water isn’t very intense if you’re a good swimmer, but vertical kicking is quite the workout. My masters group regularly does vertical kick sets, and by the end, if you’ve done it right, it was a ton of work. Try this: keep your chin out of the water and gradually lift your arms out for increased difficulty.