Diane Williams is an aqua aerobics instructor with quite a resume. She has lived in Alkhobar for 13 years now and was one of the first to introduce aqua aerobics to the community here. From 1991 to 2000 she had her own business, giving lessons in various compounds. For the past three years she has been working at the health club of the Carlton Hotel in Alkhobar.
What is aqua aerobics and how is it different from general aerobics?
Diane explained that aqua aerobics are exercises you do in the swimming pool - you don't have to be able to swim to do it - and it differs from aerobics in movement and effect.
"In water you get 12 times more resistance than in air, so it's twelve times more effective. However, in water you weigh 90 percent less, therefore you feel no impact on the joints and bones, which is much easier on the body and does not hurt the knees and other joints. You can also work muscles in both directions," she said.
Williams said that results varied depending on how hard people are willing to work. "But in aqua aerobics you get results more quickly."
Saudi women have become increasingly health conscious in the last three years. "When I first started teaching aqua aerobics in Alkhobar in 1991, very few had even heard of it. My entire class was made up of expatriate women. But now, I have more Saudi women participating, even though most of them still don't know what aqua aerobics is.
"The center at the Carlton Hotel has become really busy, though we do not advertise and women find out by word of mouth."
Aqua aerobics classes are broken into components. "We start with warm-ups, general stretching, 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercises, and muscular strength and endurance."
Women who come to these classes go from not knowing much to having a lot of fun. "It's always a pleasure for me to watch the women brand new to the concept of aqua aerobics find out that exercise does not have to be a mundane routine. I do the exercises to music and make it fun for everyone. And everyone feels good seeing that they are losing inches and becoming stronger too. These women always keep coming back, so to me that is an indication that they are happy with the results," Williams said.
Working out in water is extremely beneficial for the body. Women who have arthritis and back problems and are unable to do regular exercises can get great workouts with aqua aerobics . "Also, I stress to my class that exercise is not about going to a smaller dress size or looking thin. Sometimes you can look great but not be healthy. Exercise is about becoming stronger and being physically healthy."
One thing the women quickly discover is that Williams is a stickler for punctuality. "In the beginning some women would come to my classes late. But they found out that they were not allowed to join, since you have to go through the warm ups and the whole regime. You can't just join in the middle. Very soon, everyone came on time."
Doesn't the instructor get burnt out from all that exercising?
"I maintain a balance, knowing my strengths and limitations. But you can't instruct unless you have a passion for it."
And Diane Williams certainly has a passion for it. She started off by attending aqua aerobics classes in Calgary, Canada almost six days a week. "The manager of the health club where I worked out told me, why don't you get certified and come and teach here, since you are always here anyway. And that is what I did - I took a course and passed an exam to become a certified trainer."
Aqua aerobics, she says, is very reasonably priced in Saudi Arabia and certainly not more expensive than regular aerobics.
A fun workout in the pool is perhaps what many woman need. Strength, endurance and weight loss just follow.
