Can a Hot Tub Help You with Weight Loss?

Do you want to lose weight? It can be very easy to feel discouraged throughout your weight loss journey, especially if the techniques just don’t do the trick. While it might be tempting to give the next viral weight loss solution a try, the answer you’re looking for might just be sitting in your backyard.

That’s right, we’re talking about your hot tub. Through stress relief, low-impact exercise, and living an overall healthier lifestyle with a hot tub, you might just be able to shed excess weight and live the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of.

Health Benefits of Weight Loss

Before we take a deeper dive into the connection between healthy weight loss and spending time in a hot tub, let’s first take a closer look at the benefits of a healthy and gradual weight loss.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), evidence shows that people who gradually and steadily lose weight, which is about one to two pounds per week, tend to be more successful at keeping it off long term.[i] Healthy weight loss isn’t as simple as a fad diet or expensive weight loss program, it’s so much more than that. It’s about living a lifestyle that caters to your health, complete with a nutritious diet, regular physical activity, and healthy hobbies and extracurriculars, which could include spending time in a hot tub.

The CDC also stated that people who are overweight or obese are at an increased risk of many serious health conditions and diseases when in comparison to those with a healthy weight, including:

  • All causes of death (mortality)
  • Hypertension
  • Type 2 diabetes
  • Stroke
  • Mental illness, such as anxiety and depression
  • Body pain and difficulty with physical function
  • Coronary heart disease[ii]

Regular physical activity and moderate exercise can be extremely beneficial to your overall health. It’s especially important for those who are trying to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight to exercise regularly. Physical activity can also help reduce the risk of high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, heart attack, stroke, and several kinds of cancer.[iii]

Some of the most sought-after benefits of weight loss include improved:

  • Blood pressure
  • Blood cholesterol
  • Blood sugars[iv]
  • Energy levels
  • Physical mobility
  • General mood
  • Self-confidence

How a Hot Tub Can Aid in Weight Loss

Hot tubs can be connected to an improvement in weight loss efforts and weight maintenance in a few different ways.

Low-Impact Exercise

As mentioned above, exercise can help aid in weight loss and weight maintenance efforts. While in a hot tub, physical exercise can be just as effective. Have you ever noticed that you move slower in the water than you do on dry land? This is due to the added resistance that the water provides. This means that your body has to work harder to move in the water than it does on dry land, engaging your muscles and helping burn more calories.

Stress Relief

Hot tubs are all about stress relief. The warmth of the water combined with the gentle massage from the hydrotherapy jets is practically all it takes for a person to let all of their built-up tension go. The heat can also help to boost your circulation and the natural production of endorphins that combat feelings of stress, pain, and anxiety.

Fewer Aches and Pains

Do you avoid exercise due to physical aches and pains? You aren’t the only one. Health conditions like arthritis can limit flexibility, balance, and overall mobility, making it increasingly difficult to exercise, not to mention the pain and stiffness that comes along with it. The buoyancy of the water combined with the temperature and massage can create a comfortable environment for those who suffer from aches and pains, making it much easier to engage in low-impact exercise.

Those who are recovering from an injury or surgery may also find it easier and more comfortable to move around in a hot tub while they are still healing. This is because the buoyancy lifts the weight from the affected area, while the heat and massage of the water work together to help muscles relax and let go of built-up tension.

Disclaimer*

You should always consult with a physician before using a hot tub to treat an existing health condition or exercise.

Hot Tub Exercises to Try

Interested in some hot tub exercise? Try the following exercises during your next session!

  • Flutter kicks
  • Reverse crunches
  • Leg extensions
  • Shoulder rolls
  • Triceps dips
  • Push-ups
  • Squats
  • Lunges
  • Jumping jacks
  • Running in place
  • Torso twists
  • Bicycles

Which exercises will you try?

Navigate Your Weight Loss Journey with Sundance Spas Kitchener-Waterloo

Did you enjoy the information in this article? Take a look at the other articles on our online hot tub blog. For more information about the health benefits of hot tubs or to take a look at the wide selection of Sundance® Spas hot tubs we have for sale, visit our showroom in Kitchener. We have some of the best hot tubs, hot tub accessories, supplies, water care products, and more!

To learn more about the connection between Sundance® Spas and weight loss, watch this helpful video!

RESOURCES

[i] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | Losing Weight. Available: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/index.html. [Accessed: 2019-03-15].

[ii] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | The Health Effects of Overweight and Obesity. Available: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/effects/index.html. [Accessed: 2019-03-15].

[iii] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention | Physical Activity for a Healthy Weight. Available: https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/physical_activity/index.html/. [Accessed: 2019-03-15].

[iv] Reference for 5%: Blackburn G. (1995). Effect of degree of weight loss on health benefits. Obesity Research 3: 211S-216S. Reference for 10%: NIH, NHLBI Obesity Education Initiative. Clinical Guidelines on the Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults. Available online: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/ob_gdlns.pdf Cdc-pdf[PDF-1.25MB]External

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