If you teach aquatic fitness classes, you probably already know that almost all the moves you instruct are base move variations. 100 Water Exercises is an aquatic fitness video that showcases 20 variations for each of the following base moves, jogs, kicks, skis, jacks and tucks/jumps.
Base Move Inspiration
Anyone who subscribes to Fitmotivation or has been to workshops or conference sessions with me knows that I have been preaching the base move mantra for well over 15 years. The original inspiration for 100 Water Exercises was The Change Game, a popular video that I filmed in 2018. In this class format, I included 10 variations of four base moves: skis, jacks, kicks & jogs. Once the variations were introduced, it was game, on and we mixed and matched the 40 moves for a fun and challenging cardio workout. This was a very popular video at the time with instructors. My original plan was to do a reboot of The Change Game, but once I started practicing in the pool, I went in a different direction. Instead, I envisioned a series of videos utilizing the 100 water exercises. This was more inline with an aquatic fitness video series I did for instructors in 2015, shortly after Fitmotivation was launched. There were five videos in the Aqua Free series, each reinventing base moves with a different variational technique, including tempo, arm patterns, impact level and travel.
Aquatic Fitness Video-at-a-Glance
This 55-minute class format features five cardio segments and a final stretch. The five exercise segments are as follows 1) 20 Jog Variations, 2) 20 Kick Variations, 3) 20 Ski Variations, 4) 20 Jack Variations and 5) 20 Tuck/Jump Variations. The segments are 10 minutes long, with each of the 20 exercises performed for 30 seconds. Your class members will enjoy 50 minutes of non-stop water aerobics. Obviously, instructors can change the timing of the exercises to meet their needs, or just cherry pick from the list of 100 exercises.
Below, I talk more about the video and then read on to better understand why base moves are effective and what other videos are planned for the 100 water exercises.
Base Moves for Water Exercise
Why have I obsessed over base moves for the past 15 years? The reality is that base moves make up 95% (possibly 100%) of the exercises we teach in every class, as well as the exercises you see in every Fitmotivation video. Base moves are the foundation or the clay that we work with. However, we don’t just teach jacks, skis, jogs, kicks, jumps and tucks. Instead, we create endless variations of these base moves. The point here is that these base moves are the foundation of any results-driven aquatic fitness class. Base moves are purposeful, and the muscle actions can be clearly identified. It’s honestly a waste of time to try and invent new moves. Chances are any move you invent is likely a “descendant” of a base move.
How do we Reinvent Base Moves?
For instructors, one of the most important skillsets they can possess is the ability to create endless variations of base moves. This is done by:
- Changing the arm pattern to target different muscles
- Changing range of motion to alter intensity and resistance
- Changing from unilateral to bilateral movement
- Changing tempo from slower to faster, and combining tempos
- Changing from stationary to traveling
- Changing the directional focus and adding turns
- Changing impact levels in shallow water
Honestly, using these variations, you could easily come up with 50 variations for each base move. We did 20 in this video.
The ability to create these endless variations will ensure that you always have lots of fresh moves to add into your classes.
100 Water Exercises Video Series
As mentioned above, my vision for 100 Water Exercises was to evolve it into a series.
Below are the planned upcoming videos.
Total Body Cardio Express: This 25-minute video reorganizes the 100 exercises in five different segments, this time targeting Cardio, Agility, Lower Body, Upper Body & Core with 5-minute segments. This is a cardio BLAST because the moves are only performed for 15 seconds each. This express video serves to remind instructors that sometimes you just need to reorder exercises and change the duration to completely change the outcome.
The Combo Factory: This 45-minute water aerobic workout works off the 100 list by combining the moves into a fun and acrobatic tour of fast-paced two-move combos.
The HIIT Factory: Still in the planning stages, this video will work off the 100 list and organize the moves into a variety of HIIT formats.
Given that this has evolved into a series, I would highly recommend getting your class members familiar with the 100 Water Exercises video first, before tackling the other three workouts.
Interested in The Change Game video and the Aqua Free video series? All my videos are located on my instructor bio page.
