Contributing blogger Troy Meyers is a certified personal trainer and sports conditioner with more than 10 years of experience. He owns Atlanta-based JockBoyLocker.com and contributes to the site’s Lockerroom Blog.

With the arrival of warmer weather, gay pool parties are sure to follow.

To get in shape for putting that new square cut on display, try the water. Yes, that pool you’ll spend the summer walking around while holding a cocktail can be the secret to your fitness success.

Swimming is one of the best activities you can perform for overall physical fitness. It’s an exercise involving almost all of your major muscle groups.

The standard crawl stroke uses the neck, shoulder, chest, back, triceps and biceps of the upper body; the abdominal, lower back and obliques of the midsection; and the gluteal, quadriceps, hamstrings and calf muscles of the legs.

Swimming is also an excellent exercise for conditioning your cardiovascular system. Although you won’t go as far in a 20-minute swim as you will during 20 minutes of walking, running or cycling, the cardiovascular benefits are essentially the same.

Swimming also seems to enhance joint flexibility, especially in the neck, shoulders, hips and midsection. Much of this is due to the repetitive twisting movements as your body turns from side to side during the crawl stroke.

You certainly don’t need to be Michael Phelps to get the benefits of working out in the pool. But his lean and toned physique could certainly be a motivator.

Want to learn more about swimming? {encode=”[email protected]” title=”Email me”} to help plan your swimming workout.

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