There are a lot of great ways to get an excellent well rounded workout, but one of the most overlooked methods and probably one of the most relaxing is swimming. Swimming, which is one of the least impact intensive methods of exercise available, is also one of the best forms of exercise for the all around athlete. In fact, swimming is such a good workout, that the military and many sports teams are beginning to adopt pool training into their regimen of exercises.

One of the most elite military units in the United States is better known as Combat Control. These are the crazy fools that go into an area before it has been cleared for other soldiers, call in air strikes, takeover runways/airports, and essentially get the ball rolling in an area. Without their dedication, war efforts would include substantially more casualties. However, their training program isn't easy, in fact it is one of the most intense training programs of any military unit. But even with all their intense training, most people don't realize that they are expected to be able to swim non stop, without touching the bottom of the pool for 100 laps. Now, to most people this doesn't sound like that big of a deal, but for those that know, 100 laps is a lot of work, especially in an olympic sized swimming pool. The reason that they do this is because of the all around workout that they obtain in the process.

Think about swimming for a minute. When you are during the most common stroke, the breast stroke, you are using your entire arm, including your wrist in each stroke. The water itself is resistance and depending upon how hard you stroke, will determine how much resistance you have against you. Your legs will be kicking, and as with the arms, you have resistance, the harder you kick, the more resistance you will have against them as well, plus keep in mind that you are also bending your legs, so your entire leg is getting a workout. Now, since you are pulling water above your head, you are also working your shoulders, since you are rotating your hips, you are working your hips and abs, and as you turn your body to breath and stroke, you are also working your abs. Obviously, breathing moves your neck and shoulders, so you are getting a workout there as well.

Essentially there are no muscles that aren't worked in some manner by swimming. But swimming isn't just about the actual strength training aspect of it. Swimming is also a great form of cardio, especially if you are

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