There’s still time!
Can you swim? Can your children swim? Wayside offers swim lessons for all ages in both our indoor and outdoor pools during the summer. Register online at www.waysideinfo.com.
Youth programs
Tennis and Swim Combo, Stepping Stones and P.A.L. are Wayside’s half day and full day youth fitness programs. For more information, click here or contact Arnie Cohen for more information.
Junior Aquatic Program
This program prepares students between the ages of 11 and 14 to become lifeguards and swim instructors. Each day, students participate in an advanced-level swim lesson that is geared to improve their swimming and water safety skills.
They also participate in water and classroom activities to learn the basic skills and knowledge required to be a lifeguard and water safety instructor. Some participants may be given an opportunity to shadow one of our lead lifeguards or swim instructors.
Class incorporates components of the American Red Cross GuardStart: Lifeguarding Tomorrow program.
Session 3 Monday – Thursday July 9 – July 19 9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Session 5 Monday – Thursday Aug 6 – Aug 16 9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Cost: Members $100 Public $120
Lifeguarding (15+ years old)
American Red Cross Lifeguarding is ideal for lifeguards working at traditional pools. The course teaches professionalism, patron and facility surveillance, victim recognition, equipment-based rescues, and caring for head, neck and back injuries.
Session 4 Monday – Friday July 23 – Aug 2 9:00 a.m. – noon
Session 6 Monday – Friday Aug 20 – 24 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Cost: Members $190 Public $220
Register for all aquatic programs online at www.wayside.net (click Youth Programs) or www.wayside-info.com. Or stop by the front desk at Wayside.
Fall swim lessons
Summer is in full swing, but it’s never too early to plan for fall activities for your children. Fall Programs Information Packet should be available by August 1.
Registration for Members will begin on Tuesday August 14, starting at 10 a.m. Registration for the public will begin on Thursday August 16 at 10 a.m.
For more information, visit our front desk, or go online at www.wayside.net and click Youth Programs.
Wednesday is Family Night!
Join us for “Family Float Around the Pool Nights” scheduled each Wednesday during the summer (weather permitting).
Bring a float and float around the pool. We will also allow some of our younger swimmers who have not yet passed the swim test to use the diving board and slide if there is a parent or guardian with them.
Check the bulletin board near the Wayside outdoor café for information on our upcoming events for Family Fun Night.
Water fitness:
No ‘cream puff’ workout
By Geralyn Strella
Water Fitness classes tend to attract participants who have physical disabilities or other conditions, are rehabilitating from injury, or are starting to feel the onset of aging. As a result, the “healthy” person never considers the water as a great way to cross train and enhance their regular exercise program.
Water Fitness classes are often regarded as “the cream puff workout”. Quite to the contrary, when the core muscles are properly aligned and engaged, it can be a powerful workout indeed.
The closest comparable land exercise to Water Fitness is pilates. Most vertical water workouts depend on the strength of the participant’s core muscles, and expand out to the extremities of the body.
The core consist of about 29 muscles including the abdominals, the obliques, (stomach muscles) the iliopsoas, hip adductors,(muscles around the hips) latissimus dorsi, (muscles of the back) quadriceps, (large muscle in the legs) gluteus maximus (major muscle of the butt) and hamstrings ( found in the back of the leg) to name a few.
In addition to the obvious aerobic benefits, participants stand to improve posture, which leads to reduced lower back pain, enhanced functional ability, and better balance and coordination.
The science of water fitness
Being more viscous (thicker) than air, water adds more resistance to movement, providing many benefits to participants. Water compresses swollen joints, which can result in a greater range of motion. This leads to more efficient stretching and increased flexibility.
Hydrostatic pressure has a beneficial effect on key bodily systems and organs such as the vascular and respiratory systems (heart and lungs). In the water, a person may achieve an aerobic workout (increased heart rate) simply by using a full range of motion. On land, the same heart rate is achieved through rapid movement and higher impact exercises.
Spend some time in the water
It takes some time to master the proper movements in water to gain the most from the class. Breathing needs to be modified, and the movements are slightly adjusted so the muscles - not the joints - absorb the stress of the exercise.
It may take five to six sessions to master the proper movements in order to attain the same level of aerobic activity benefits as on land. In today’s world of immediate gratification, people want instant results; however with patience and proper technique, the results from aquatic exercise will be worth the wait.
Geralyn Strella is a certified AEA, Ai Chi, instructor, sports & rehab aqua specialist, a member or Aquatic Exercise Association (AEA) and Aqua & Therapy Rehab Institute (ATRI). She teaches Aqua Classes for Wayside & surrounding areas.
Make a splash
Wayside offers water classes mornings and evenings. Lap swimming is offered every day, too.
Good posture matters. Whether you workout on land or in water, proper posture is important. Here is an easy way to remember:
1. Lift your chest up
2. Anchor your shoulder blades down
3. Pull your belly button in
Throughout your day, keep reminding yourself to lift, anchor and pull in. An easy way to bring your head in line with the rest of your spine is to place your tongue on the roof of your mouth and swallow.
This simple technique helps keep your spine in its natural curvature and can reduce lower back pain that some individuals experience at the end of the day. Mom had it right when she said, “Sit up straight.”