Original Paper.

Physical Education and Sport, 51, 11 - 14, 2007

DOI: 10.2478/v10030-007-0016-9

Effects of aqua-aerobic on the emotional states of

Authors’ contributions: women
A Study design
B Data collection Ewa Piotrowska-Całka A – C E F, Monika Guszkowska A C – F
C Statistical analysis
D Data interpretation
E Literature search Academy of Physical Education, Warsaw, Poland
F Manuscript preparation
G Funds collection

Summary
Study aim: To determine the immediate and distant effects of practicing aqua-aerobic on
state anxiety and mood states in women as compared with the control ones.
Material and methods: Two groups of women aged 30 – 62 years were studied: sedentary
controls (n = 18) and practicing aqua-aerobic (n = 20) throughout two mesocycles lasting
12 weeks each and separated by one-week intermission. Two questionnaires were admin-
istered: STAI (trait and state, the latter just before and after every aqua-aerobic session,
repeated 4 times) and POMS (3 times).
Results: Aqua-aerobic sessions significantly reduced state anxiety throughout both meso-
cycles except the first week. Moreover, participation in aqua-aerobic training steadily re-
duced negative mood states as compared with the initial values or with sedentary subjects.
Conclusions: Aqua-aerobic activities may improve the general feeling of middle-age
women.

Key words Aqua-aerobic – Mood states – Anxiety – Women

Introduction endurance irrespectively of water depth. Two modes of

Beneficial psycho-emotional effects of motor exer-
cises, especially on the so-called mood states, were re-
ported by many authors [1-3,11,13], such effects being
the result of both single and long-lasting exercises. Di-
verse variables (anxiety, depression, mood, general
feeling, self-esteem, etc.) were studied as affected by
various forms of motor activity, mainly the aerobic ones,
in relation to gender and age. It was demonstrated that
highest emotional benefits were associated with non-
competitive endurance exercises of moderate intensity,
rhythmical and co-ordinated [4,19]. Positive effects of
various forms of aerobic were observed in women and
pertained to tension, anger, vigour and embarrassment
[15]. Similar effects were also induced by yoga sessions
[5] or swimming, both in men and women [3].
In recent years, aqua-aerobic (AE) has been classi-
fied as physical activity improving the psycho-physical
well-being. Aqua-aerobic is usually exercised in vertical
position. It stimulates the cardiorespiratory system by
increasing the oxygen demand and by maintaining it for
longer time, as well as by shaping muscle strength and
exercises are used: shallow water training (SWT), when
the feet touch the bottom of the pool and water level does
not exceed shoulder, and deep water training (DWT) when
the body is immersed up to the shoulders or neck and
the feet do not rest on the bottom. In that latter mode the
body is unloaded, especially the spine and lower ex-
tremity joints.
Exercising in water enables performing a wide vari-
ety of activities irrespectively of gender, age, physical
fitness level or even the ability to swim, and these factors
contribute to the successful popularity of aqua-fitness.
Aqua-aerobic was reported to improve the general feel-
ing and self-appraisal irrespectively of age [1,17], but
otherwise the reports on exercising in water on mood
states are scarce. Sanders and Griffin [16] applied the
Profile of Mood States (POMS) to evaluate the effects of
single sessions of water exercises on the emotional states
of female participants and compared the results with
those produced by aerobic and yoga sessions. Those who
trained aqua-aerobic had lowest pre-exercise level of
negative moods, especially of anger and tension, and were
generally more relaxed than other groups; moreover,

Prof. Monika Guszkowska, Department of Psychology, Academy of Physical Education, Marymoncka 34,
Author’s address 00-968 Warsaw, Poland mguszkowska@wp.pl
12 E. Piotrowska-Całka, M. Guszkowska

aqua-aerobic sessions induced significantly higher in- on the anxiety status. Cumulative effects of aqua-aerobic
creases of positive moods and decreases of the negative training were determined by administering Polish ver-
ones compared with aerobic or yoga sessions. In another sion of the McNair’s et al. Profile of Mood States (POMS)
study, Knecht [12] noted significant post-exercise de- questionnaire [7], to measure the negative mood states,
creases of state anxiety throughout 10 weeks of aqua- on Weeks 1, 6 and 12 of both mesocycles. POMS ques-
aerobic training (single sessions), the pre-exercise levels tionnaires were administered to control subjects in the
being, however, rather constant. same manner and at the same time intervals as in the
The aim of the study was to determine the immedi- aqua-aerobic group. Student’s t-test for dependent or
ate and distant effects of practicing aqua-aerobic on independent data was used in data analysis, the level of
state anxiety and mood states in women as compared p≤0.05 being considered significant.
with the control ones.
Results
Material and Methods
Immediate and distant effects of aqua-aerobic exercises
Two groups of women aged 30 – 62 years were stud- The exercise-induced changes in state anxiety de-
ied: sedentary controls (SC; n = 19) and practicing aqua- termined on Weeks 1, 6, 8 and 12 of the first and second
aerobic (AA; n = 19) at the swimming school of the mesocycles are presented in Fig. 1.
Academy of Physical Education. The deep water train-
ing (DWT) was applied in two mesocycles (October – Score points Pre
45 Post
December and January – March) lasting 12 weeks each
40
(two sessions a week) and separated by one-week inter- * *
35
mission. Every DWT session consisted of the following
30
3 exercise units: aerobic, strength-endurance and stretch-
25
ing. Displacement equipment (foam cuffs for lower legs,
20
“noodles”, circular boards and resistance-increasing 15
equipment – fabric-rubber gloves and swimming pad- 10
dles) was used in order to increase the attractiveness and 5
intensity of activities and to help maintaining vertical 0
position. All DWT sessions were run by the same female 1 6 8 12 1 6 8 12
Weeks
instructor, certified by the American Aquatic Exercise As-
sociation (AEA) whose standards were adopt-ed in the Fig. 1. Pre- and post-exercise values (±SE) of state anxi-
design of aqua-aerobic training. The sessions, lasting 45 ety recorded in women training aqua-aerobic (n = 19)
min each, were conducted twice a week in a swimming throughout two mesocycles, 12 weeks each
pool 140 – 360 cm deep, at water temperature 27 – 28ºC.
Polish version of Spielberger’s STAI questionnaire A significant (p<0.01) reduction of state anxiety was
[18] was administered only to participants of aqua-aerobic observed following every aqua-aerobic session except
training pre- and post-exercise (up to 30 min following the first week of both mesocycles. Moreover, a reduction
the session) on Weeks 1, 6,8 and 12 of both mesocycles. of the pre-exercise state anxiety in Week 8 vs. Week 1
This served to determine the effects of single sessions was noted.

Table 1. Mean (±SD) values of mood state variables recorded in women training aqua-aerobic and in sedentary
controls; 1st mesocycle

Mood variables Aqua-aerobic group (n = 18) Control group (n = 20)

Week 1 6 12 1 6 12
Anger 10.6 ± 7.4 10.4 ± 7.5 9.6 ± 6.8 15.7 ± 8.8º 11.6 ± 8.7 14.5 ± 8.6º
Confusion 9.2 ± 4.7 7.5 ± 4.4 7.9 ± 2.9 8.5 ± 2.1 8.2 ± 2.6 9.6 ± 2.2*
Depression 14.3 ± 11.6 13.2 ± 12.8 13.5 ± 11.4 17.3 ± 6.6 15.5 ± 8.9 22.6 ± 12.5*
Fatigue 10.3 ± 7.1 9.9 ± 6.5 8.2 ± 5.0 8.4 ± 4.0 10.0 ± 3.4 11.6 ± 4.3*
Tension 12.9 ± 7.6 11.7 ± 6.9 11.6 ± 6.2 16.7 ± 5.8 15.7 ± 5.5º 16.8 ± 6.7*
Friendliness 17.7 ± 4.4 17.7 ± 5.2 17.5 ± 5.2 18.9 ± 3.8 17.5 ± 3.0 17.2 ± 6.4
Vigour 17.5 ± 4.4 17.5 ± 6.0 17.6 ± 5.5 16.7 ± 4.2 16.2 ± 4.0 17.1 ± 6.9

Different from the respective value in aqua-aerobic group: º p<0.10; * p<0.05

Aqua-aerobic and mood states 13

Mood states in exercising and in sedentary women women at the same time intervals (Tables 1 and 2). More-
Mean values of mood state variables were recorded over, negative mood state variables were combined and
in women training aqua-aerobic three times throughout presented in Fig. 2.
both mesocycles; they were also recorded in sedentary

Table 2. Mean (±SD) values of mood state variables recorded in women training aqua-aerobic and in sedentary
controls;2nd mesocycle

Mood variables Aqua-aerobic group (n = 18) Control group (n = 20)

Week 1 6 12 1 6 12
Anger 10.2 ± 7.4 10.2 ± 7.7 9.6 ± 6.9 13.3 ± 9.2 14.8 ± 10.1 13.2 ± 6.9
Confusion 8.3 ± 3.9 7.6 ± 3.8 7.4 ± 3.6 9.3 ± 3.1 9.6 ± 2.7º 9.9 ± 2.2**
Depression 14.1 ± 11.9 12.8 ± 13.1 13.5 ± 11.8 18.2 ± 11.9 19.8 ± 9.8º 17.2 ± 8.0
Fatigue 10.4 ± 7.3 10.2 ± 6.6 8.3 ± 5.1 10.2 ± 5.6 10.2 ± 5.7 10.0 ± 4.7
Tension 13.1 ± 5.6 11.7 ± 5.6 10.9 ± 5.4 16.6 ± 7.7 17.4 ± 5.6* 15.5 ± 4.6**
Friendliness @ 27.3 ± 5.8 28.4 ± 5.3 28.3 ± 7.2 26.9 ± 6.4 26.6 ± 6.1 28.8 ± 5.4
Vigour 17.6 ± 4.5 18.0 ± 5.7 17.8 ± 5.7 17.2 ± 4.6 16.2 ± 5.6 17.5 ± 4.6

Different from the respective value in aqua-aerobic group: º p<0.10; * p<0.05; ** p<0.01; @ Significantly (p<0.001) higher than
in Mesocycle 1

Discussion
Exercising
Score points Non-exercising
80
* * Aqua-aerobic sessions produce immediate effects by
70 * reducing the state anxiety like reported also elsewhere
60 [9]. Yeung [19] reported similar observations in 85% of
50 papers reviewed by him and the effects of single aqua-
40 aerobic sessions were independent of gender, age or
30 physical fitness. Such effects were most pronounced
20 following aerobic exercises of moderate intensity, such
10 as swimming, cycling, jogging, etc., lasting at least 20
0 min [9,13]. Aqua-aerobic, which is also a moderate
1 6 12
Weeks
1 6 12 aerobic exertion lasting more than 20 min and induces
positive emotional changes, may be added to that list.
Fig. 2. Mean values (±SE) of negative mood states re- Moreover, being a non-competitive activity, aqua-aerobic
corded in women training aqua-aerobic (n = 18) and in does not excessively engage ego. The results ought to be
sedentary controls (n = 20) throughout two mesocycles,
confirmed in other studies as the numbers of subjects in
12 weeks each
this study were relatively low.
* Significant (p<0.05) difference between groups
Positive emotional effects of aqua-aerobic were not
revealed following the first week of training in both
No significant time-related differences were found mesocycles, due perhaps to the somewhat stressful cir-
in individual mood variables in either group and in cumstances of the first contact with a new form of exer-
either mesocycle (Tables 1 and 2) and the same was true cise; probably the trainees needed time to get accus-
for combined negative mood states (Fig. 2). On the other tomed to the specificity of water environment and to keep
hand, significant differences were found between groups body balance. Some of them might have had to control
in Week 12 (both mesocycles) and in Week 6 (2nd meso- fear of water. The fact that state anxiety was not reduced
sycle) as shown in Tables 1 and 2, and the same was in the first week of the 2nd mesocycle may suggest that
true for combined negative mood states (Fig. 2). In all after the first mesocycle had been concluded, the sub-
cases, subjects from AA group exhibited lower levels of jects had to re-adapt upon resuming the training. This
negative states than the control ones. No differences, diminished, to some extent, the beneficial effects in-
either between groups or between weeks, were found duced by the practiced motor activities.
for positive mood variables. However, friendliness was Aqua-aerobic activities had no distant effect on mood
significantly (p<0.001) higher in the 2nd mesocycle in states, either on individual mood variables or on the
both groups throughout the study period. overall negative state. This is in contrast to other reports
14
in which distant effects of regular exercising (including
aqua-aerobic) on decreases in some negative mood vari-
ables and increases in vigour [16]. The changes usually
pertained to vigour, confusion and tension, changes in
anger being least pronounced [14]. Like mentioned above,
positive effects were produced by exercises (mainly aer-
obic) of moderate intensity, lasting at least 20 min and
performed by healthy subjects of diverse ages, as well
as patients suffering from hypertension, anxiety-related
disorders or bulimia. The lack of such effects in this
study is thus difficult to explain, especially in view of
reduced anxiety following every aqua-aerobic session,
and such effect could be expected to cumulate.
Although no longitudinal effects of aqua-aerobic
training on mood states were detected, significant be-
tween-group differences were noted for almost all nega-
tive mood variables. Since no differences were noted in
the first week of both mesocycles, those observed later
could be attributed to aqua-aerobic training.
Unlike emotions, moods may persist for weeks or
months, and are not accompanied by expression and eas-
ily identifiable cause [8]. Moods affect emotionally in-
dividual’s behaviour, develop slower and are associated
rather with steady changes in the status of the central
nervous system than with autonomic responses [6]. As
the mood may depend on numerous factors, including
e.g. season or menstrual phase, and the only one con-
trolled was participation in aqua-aerobic activities, the
uncontrolled ones might have serious impact on the mood
state of women studied. This makes also explaining the
rather striking difference in friendliness observed be-
tween mesocycles in both groups quite difficult; maybe
the between-mesocycle intermission (Christmas time)
and the related interpersonal contacts played some role.
It should be pointed out that the level of motor ac-
tivities may affect mood states. The authors of a Finnish
survey involving over 3000 participants [10] reported
that subjects engaged in regular motor activities at least
twice a week exhibited significantly less signs of de-
pression, anger and hostility than those practicing motor
activities less frequently or not at all.
In an earlier, unpublished study on women practicing
yoga, significant changes in mood states were detected
after 3 and 6 months of regular exercises but the data did
not differ from those recorded in sedentary students of
pedagogy at the same periods. The discrepancy between
that study and the here presented results could be due to
differences in modes and objectives of aqua-aerobic and
yoga trainings and/or to personality and psycho-emotional
differences between participants of those trainings. That
issue requires, of course, further studies.
Summing up, aqua-aerobic activities may improve the
general feeling of middle-age women.
E. Piotrowska-Całka, M. Guszkowska
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Received 9.11.2006
Accepted 26.02.2007