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NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Water workouts may trump land-based exercise for people with chronic lung disease and other health problems, according to a small study.

Australian researchers found that exercising in a pool boosted physical endurance and energy levels in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, and physical complaints such as obesity or back pain.

"Participants in the water-based exercise training group reported an improvement in many functional aspects of their daily life such as improved stamina and ability to complete tasks such as walking long distances when shopping," said Renae McNamara, a physical therapist at The Prince of Wales Hospital in Randwick.

"They reported less fatigue, as well as less breathlessness when completing activities of daily living such as showering and dressing," she told Reuters Health by email.

COPD includes various lung diseases that cause breathlessness, such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. About 65 million people have moderate to severe COPD, according to the World Health Organization.

There are drugs to quell symptoms of the disease, and exercise is recognized to improve the breathing problems and fatigue associated with the condition.

But many drop out of training programs, which can be particularly strenuous for people who also have other health issues. The new study, published in the European Respiratory Journal, is the first to test the benefits of exercise in this group of patients, McNamara said.

They enrolled 53 patients in the study, assigning them randomly to workouts in a hydrotherapy pool, gym-based training or standard medical care without exercise. The exercise programs include three weekly one-hour sessions over two months and 45 patients completed the study.

Whether they worked out on land or in water, patients were able walk faster after the training than when they just got usual care. But those who exercised in the pool reported less fatigue than the gym trainers and also developed more physical endurance.

On a test wherein they had to walk as far as they could at a constant speed, patients who'd exercised in water outpaced those trained in a gym by 228 meters (748 feet). Researchers consider a difference of 203 meters important.

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Water exercise boosts endurance in COPD

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Home » Exercise Programs » Water exercise boosts endurance in COPD