Purpose
There are many reasons why people swim, from swimming as a recreational pursuit to swimming as a necessary part of a job or other activity. Some people may also be forced in to swimming involuntarily as a result of falling into water.
The largest reason for people swimming is as a recreation activity, with swimming consistently ranking as one of the physical activities people are most likely to take part in. Recreational swimming can be used for people to exercise, to relax or to rehabilitate. The support of the water, and the reduction in impact, makes swimming accessible for people who are unable to undertake activities such as running.
Swimming is primarily an aerobic exercise due to the long exercise time, requiring a constant oxygen supply to the muscles, except for short sprints where the muscles work anaerobically. As with most aerobic exercise, swimming is believed to reduce the harmful effects of stress. Swimming can also improve posture.
Read more about this topic: Human Swimming
Famous quotes containing the word purpose:
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—Elizabeth Stuart Phelps (1844–1911)
“The technologist was the final guise of the white missionary, industrialization the last gospel of a dying race and living standards a substitute for a purpose in living.”
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“Along the journey we commonly forget its goal. Almost every vocation is chosen and entered upon as a means to a purpose but is ultimately continued as a final purpose in itself. Forgetting our objectives is the most frequent stupidity in which we indulge ourselves.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)