Explore a deep-water workout that is ideal for smaller pools or deep ends. All of the exercise activities in this video are performed near or with the pool wall. This water workout mixes up high intensity cardio with focused segments of upper and lower body strength.
This 45-minute deep-water circuit format features 6 tri-circuits. Each 5-minute tri-circuit includes 1) 60-seconds of upper body 2) 3-minutes of HIIT/cardio 3) 45-seconds of lower body. The exercises can be performed with or without the use of pool wall. Most of the exercise can also be modified for shallow water.
DEEP CARDIOTONE WORKOUT: AT A GLANCE
The Anatomy of a Tri-Circuit
This workout features 6 tri-circuits. Each 5-minute tri-circuit includes
60 seconds – Unilateral isolated upper body movement
3 minutes – Cardio drills featuring two exercises performed twice for 30 seconds at a higher intensity followed by 15 seconds of a recovery/flexibility move.
#1) :30/:15 #2) :30/:15 #1) :30/:15 #2) :30/:15
45 Seconds – Lower body movement
Wall or no wall?
The Deep CardioTone workout was designed to use the wall as a target and as a point of stability. However, it is important to note that the entire workout (except the stretch) can be performed without the wall. The inspiration for this workout was for my own personal exercise in the pool. Holding on to the wall while performing the unilateral upper body movement allowed me to stabilize and force more power into the working arm. With that said, NOT holding on to the wall when doing unilateral arm work forced me to use my core more in order to stabilize the movement. Additionally, the wall provided a target in the cardio segments and as a supportive aide for the lower body exercises. However, ALL of the exercises in this workout can be performed away from the wall. The final stretch is the exception because it was designed specifically for the wall.
Shallow workout?
The pool at my condo has a nice big deep end and my personal preference when exercising in the water is to be in the deep. For this reason, the CardioTone format was designed and filmed as a deep-water workout, but almost all of the exercises can be performed in shallow water with minimal modification if preferred.
Mix & Match
Workouts that follow a precise timing template such as this one make it easy to swap moves in and out as time goes on. In other words, you can substitute some new moves during the timed blocks once you start feeling bored with the workout.
Equipment?
Flotation belts are required for deep-water workouts. Not only are they a necessary safety requirement, but also they enable better core engagement by keeping the body vertically aligned and thus freeing up the arms to exercise as oppose to simply sculling for alignment. The need for flotation is less when holding on to a wall – but for safety reasons a belt should still be worn. Additionally, please avoid exercising alone in the pool.
Webbed gloves may be used in this workout. Personally I love using web gloves in deep-water workouts because they give me more upward propulsion. People with more dense or muscular body types would benefit from upward propulsion is deep water. If the gloves hamper holding on to the wall you may choose to go without.
Enjoy Deep CardioTone! The pool wall can make an excellent piece of fitness equipment! Let us know what you think of this workout by posting a comment below or under the video?