Instructing Aquatics reaches to all ages At 5 a.m. while most of the world was fast asleep, Theta Aaron continued her 18-year tradition of swimming laps.Aside from her early starting time, Aaron’s workout regiment did not seem that unusual to most, but there was more to the story. Aaron was 76years old, and she was not even the oldest member of her swimming group. Aaron was a member of a group of seven to eight women that met almost every day at theGanus Athletic Center’s pool to spend an hour of their morning taking advantage of the healthy benefits that aquatic exercise had to offer. “Swimming energizes me for the day,”Aaron said.“It is the perfect exercise for me and has added much to my life, it has kept me going both mentally and physically.” The benefits of swimming for the elderly were undeniable according to Harding’s aquatics director Dr. J.D. Yingling. “Water sports are great exercise because there’s no impact on the joints,” Yingling said. “Buoyancy supports the body and swimming works every muscle.” Swimming was also a great activity for all ages because it was a lifelong skill according to Yingling. “There are also lessons available for children as young as 9 months,” Yingling said. “The Mommy and Me Program works with parents so they can teach children the fundamentals of swimming. Swimming is great exercise, and unlike other sports, you can do it from the time you learn at a young age until your nineties.” A great example of one who continued to prove that swimming was a lifelong skill was 93-year-old Lois Lawson of Searcy. Lawson swam laps five days a week along with her husband Maurice, also 93. According to Lawson, the benefits of swimming reach far beyond that of just the physical. “I enjoy swimming for the exercise, but I also really enjoy spending time with the people I swim with,” Lawson said. “There are about eight of us in the group, and I have made a lot of friends.” Swimming programs and groups made available to the elderly were not just limited to swimming laps either. Other groups that met at the Ganus Athletic Center’s pool included water aerobics classes for the elderly and a men’s group that met daily at noon. [Tyler Neese]
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc5NA==