If you’ve been swimming for most of your life, and now are over 60, you’ll know that this amazing exercise is one of the best ways to maintain fitness, health, and joy. If you’ve only just taken up swimming, congratulations, you’ve found one of the best ways to get your heart pumping for the over 60s. Either way, we’ve pulled together some of our best swimming workouts for over 60 year olds, which are tailored for this age group. Our workouts will help you build strength, improve cardiovascular fitness, protect joints, and enjoy every splash.
Swimming Workouts For Over 60
Water supports much of our body weight, so there’s less stress on hips, knees, spine and joints. For those with arthritis or chronic pain, that’s excellent news. Swimming also raises the heart rate in a gentle but effective way. It helps improve circulation, strengthen the heart and reduce risks of heart disease or stroke.#
When we swim or do water exercises, every major muscle group works. That includes the upper body, lower body and core muscles. Water resistance will give your strength training without needing to use heavy weights.
Working in water will help you maintain a great range of motion in your joints. Plus, doing leg lifts, flutter kicks, or even walking in the pool can help with stability.
Did you know that spending time in water, being in nature or in a public pool can reduce stress, ease anxiety and improve your mood? Regularly swimming can also help you sleep better.
Swimming is often the best fitness option for over 60s. It’s effective, safe and flexible.
What to Consider Before You Begin
There are a few factors to be aware of to make the most of swimming workouts when you are over 60
Fitness level & medical conditions
If you have heart issues, joint problems, arthritis, or any chronic condition, it’s wise to speak to you’re doctor first.
Strength training off or in the water
You can use resistance training, water weights, pull buoys, hand paddles, and weight-bearing exercise on land. Strength is a crucial part of maintaining muscle gain and avoiding frailty as you get older.
Form and technique
Any stroke will do. Front crawl (freestyle stroke), backstroke, breaststroke and even side stroke. Doing them well is more valuable than pushing hard. If you are a bit rusty, why not get a swimming lesson or a swimming coach?
Warm up & rest
Start each session with a warm-up, include rest time in between harder sets and cool down afterwards. Doing a warm up will give your body time to get used to the exercise and means you are less likely to get injured.
Gear & modifications
Tools like a kick board, pull buoy, pool noodle, hand paddles, or water weights will allow you to add resistance and support. You can also mix it up by using the shallow end and the deeper water, depending on your ability and strength.
Pool Workout Routine for Over 60
Here’s a pool workout routine that balances aerobic work, strength, flexibility, and rest. You should build up gradually. You can modify this workout depending on the length of the pool, whether it’s 25 m, 25 yd, or larger.
We’re assuming a fitness level where you can swim or move in water for 10-20 minutes without too much fatigue. If not, start slower.
Your Warm Up (10 minutes)
Spend the first 5 minutes water walking or aqua jogging in the shallow end or deeper water using a flotation belt. You’ll find that this works your lower body muscles and warms up your core.
Then follow this with 5 minutes of an easy stroke. You can freestyle/front crawl, backstroke or breaststroke at a comfortable pace. If you can, try to focus on your form and breathing, not speed.
Main Set (20-25 minutes)
We’ll use interval training here: alternating harder efforts with rest or easier movement.
Freestyle/front crawl for 4 × 50 metres at moderate pace, then a 30-60 seconds rest on the wall or side of the pool.
Kick board work (flutter kicks) for 4 × 25 m with kick board (legs only), then a 30-second rest.
Pull buoy + hand paddles for 3 × 50 m, focusing on upper body strength and stroke efficiency. Then rest for 45 seconds until you get your breath back.
Backstroke or breaststroke for 3 × 50 m easy/mixed pace followed by a 45-60 seconds rest.
Sprint or maximum effort burst for 2 × 25 m at higher effort with full recovery. Make sure you rest enough to catch your breath. This may be 60-90 seconds.
If that seems too much, reduce the number of reps or distance, or increase rest. It’s a simple way to get cardiovascular workout, strength, and technique in one go.
Strength & Resistance Training in Water (10 minutes)
After the main swim set, you could add some water resistance and strength work.
Standing leg lifts: hold onto the lane line or pool wall; lift one leg forward, then sideways, alternating. (2 sets of 10-12 each leg).
Arm circles with water weights or water dumbbells: forward and backward, small and medium circles (2 × 15-20 seconds).
Pool wall push-offs / standing water push-ups: hands on the edge of the pool, push away and return. (2 × 10).
Core work: float or hold a pull buoy between thighs, do flutter kicks or gentle bicycle motion in the water, or tread in deeper water. (2 × 20-30 seconds).
Cool Down and Stretching (5-10 minutes)
We suggest taking a gentle swim for around 5 minutes. You can also try water walking or aqua jogging to bring your heart rate down. You should also stretch using the wall or side of the pool. Try calf raises, hamstring stretches, shoulder stretch and side bends. That should cover all the major muscles.
How Often Should I Swim?
We recommend 2-4 sessions per week, depending on quickly your body recovers from the last swim workout. Try two full workouts as above, plus one lighter session of water walking / water aerobics, or just an easy swim.
You can track your progress over time. You may find you can increase the distance, decrease the rest time, or increase the resistance using hand paddles or water weights.
Use your heart rate to guide the intensity. For example, aim for a moderate cardiovascular workout. You should be able to talk but not sing during the main sets.
Modifications & Tools to Help
To make the workouts more effective, accessible, and safe, you could use some tools to help.
Use a pool noodle for buoyancy or support. A pool noodle can also be great for core work or balance.
A kick board helps isolate legs to build your lower-body strength.
If you want to isolate your arms/upper body, why not try a pull buoy? This will allow you to focus on pull strength and stroke technique.
Hand paddles can increase resistance in your upper body. Be mindful not to strain your shoulders.
Water weights or aqua dumbbells can be added to increase the intensity of your strength training.
Try going to the deep end. In the shallow end, you can stand, do leg swings, calf raises, etc, but in deeper water, it is harder and you’ll need to float.
What Happens in the Body When You Swim
Let’s share some of what we know from published studies and our experience about how these workouts help with ageing bodies.
Swimming and water workout routines help you maintain or increase muscle strength and mass. Even when you lose some muscle naturally as you age, water resistance helps slow that down or reverse it.
Swimming improves cardiovascular fitness and heart health. Regular swimmers have lower blood pressure, improved cholesterol and better circulation.
Because of the buoyancy, swimming is one of the best ways to exercise if you have joint pain, arthritis, or bone issues. It reduces stress on joints.
Swimming will also help with balance and reduce the risk of falling, which is something very important for older adults.
You’ll also find that spending time in the water is good for your mental health. Swimming reduces stress, helps you sleep, and improves your mood.
Tips to Stay Safe & Enjoy It
Always start with a warm-up. Don’t jump immediately into pushing yourself straight away. Always listen to your body. If there’s pain (not just usual discomfort), stop or change what you are doing.
Use rest periods rather than pushing through fatigue. Rest is part of the workout.
Hydrate! Even though it’s water, you will still lose fluids.
Swim with a buddy or in a supervised pool, especially with deeper water or if balance is an issue.
Keep sessions fun. You can change up your strokes, do drills, play with gadgets or interval games.
We truly believe that swimming workouts are not just good for older adults; they can be transformative. They are perfect as they combine cardiovascular health, muscle strength, flexibility, balance, and mental well-being into one package.
You’ll find that it’s a full-body workout in a low-stress environment. Treat swimming as a gift. You can use swimming as a way to stay strong, independent, happy, and active for many years to come.