SUDBURY, Ontario - If the benefits of swimming regularly for fun, fitness and friendship aren’t already familiar, see:

aquasphereusa article
or,
swimming.about.com article
or,
lifescript article

But who needs a website to talk about how great swimming is for overall conditioning, for developing a spectacularly efficient cardiovascular system, or for enjoying the sensuality of being in the water?

Still, joining a group – like a Master’s swim club - is more likely to ensure someone will stay active, according to sports psychologist Dr. Robert Schinke, a former world class equestrian rider whose clients include elite hockey players and boxers. (See this article) He is currently conducting research with First Nations athletes and teaching in Laurentian University’s sports psychology program.

Getting into a fit lifestyle is about changing habits, he says. Changing that lifestyle by yourself “is hard to do without appropriate resources, meaning family who are engaged and supportive and a group to draw you and hold you accountable.”

Conducting a study in the mid-90s at the Royal Glenora Club in Edmonton, Schinke followed the training of middle-aged men and women. It wasn’t the actual physical workout that inspired them; it was the proverbial cup of coffee afterwards.

“Exercise is not innately enjoyable unless you’re used to it,” he says.

Sore muscles aren’t fun, he adds, but to sit down after a workout, “shoot the breeze and have a cup of coffee and a snack, and get caught up with people of your own age and like mind is something people can relate to. The exercise is conduit to socializing.”

Another study he worked with at the University of Alberta in Edmonton followed a veterans’ group. The participants were successful staying active because they liked the atmosphere, Schinke says.

But for all the fun at the pool, the level of support from your mate is a major factor in your success, he says.

Many in Schinke’s study cited different challenges including their spouses’ demands. Schinke recalls how some spouses still wanted to eat a high fat diet while their partners were trying to lose weight.

“Their priority wasn’t a priority for the partner. So the social support is not just about the people they go to work out with. It’s also important to get out the door. It’s got to be at both ends. If that happens then they are very likely to give it a shot and stay engaged.”

For Schinke there has to be a connection between home and gym. While it’s one thing to say “it doesn’t matter, I’m going to work out anyway, it’s another thing to maintain that drive,” he says.

For people in their 40s, it is easier to work in a buddy system.

A non-athletic person who joins a group to work out usually has a catalyst or is aware they have a problem: high blood pressure, for example, he says. The soon-to-be athletic person contemplates the problems and issues for a while, then, “typically around New Year’s, it’s ‘I’m going out and joining a club,’” he says.

Without coping strategies, time management or a social support system, it’s a challenge to maintain the effort, he says.