Fluid Running Review

Fluid Running

Fluid Running is a system that facilitates deep water running. The program comes with everything you need to get started, including a flotation belt, waterproof headphones, four classes and an instructional video. The only extra thing that I needed to purchase was a $10 pull buoy. Everyone won’t need that, but I needed it. There are also additional classes that you can purchase.

The introductory class is 45 minutes long. It is a real class, but the moves are broken down a little more so you can get the hang of it. My first time out, I liked it, but I was really awkward. I didn’t get the strokes down initially. It was harder than I anticipated to get comfortable with the movements. As I did it more, I got better. I did the intro class a few times, before moving on. Here is the data about the time I spent in each zone some heart rate during one of the intro classes. As miracles would have it, my wrist heart rate monitor actually worked throughout the entire class. Most of the time, my wrist heart rate monitor is trash in the water.

Zone 5 Maximum 2%

Zone 4 Threshold 11%

Zone 3 Aerobic 52%

Zone 2 Easy 25%

Zone 1 Warm-up 7%

The percentages are from raw numbers. You can’t interpret heart rate data from activities done in water the same as heart rate data from activities done on land. Your heart rate will be lower in water and your heart rate goes down very quickly in water.. The bottom line is, even during the introductory class, I got my heart rate going.

I haven’t done any land running at all for a almost a month, and I have been doing Fluid running 5-6 days a week. I feel like I’ve done enough classes to really know what I’m talking about as far as using the system. My overall opinion is extremely favorable. I wish that I had discovered it months, if not years ago and used it my previous training. I would have lost a lot less fitness when I had to stop running on land.

Pros:

🔹It’s fun to spend time in the pool.

🔹 It’s a great, zero impact, cardio workout. I don't have a lot of heartrate data, because, despite trying, I can't find a heart rate monitor that works well underwater, but the limited data that I have supports that this is an aerobic workout.

🔹The instructor is awesome with excellent cuing.

🔹 I have a lot wrong with my knees. You can see specifics about that in a previous post. The workouts are pain free, for me. I mean that I feel zero pain!

🔹 I truly believe that you can replace a land, running workout with a water run. The movements are similar to running and my heart rate is similar to an easy run.

Food for Thought:

1️⃣ I workout at my local YMCA. There is a pool that is perfect for doing this workout, but no-one has seen anything like this before. It took a couple of weeks for people to stop staring at me, asking me questions and making comments. People are nice about it, but you definitely can't fly under the radar doing this at a pool. This isn't really a problem for me. I am used to being the unicorn in the room, but it if no-one is doing this, at your pool, people are going to be curious.

2️⃣ At some point, you may want to upgrade your equipment. Don’t get me wrong. The equipment that came with the program is a bargain and will do the job. The headphones that come with the system work for what you need them to do, but their Bluetooth range is limited. You can't swim across the pool without loosing the Bluetooth connection. I don't need headphones for swimming, so it's not an issue for me, but someone who does swim laps might want to invest in headphones that can do double duty. I did upgrade my belt. A $10 pull buoy in concert with the belt that came with the program worked fine for me, but I really wanted to ditch the buoy so I bought a different belt. It just depends on how floaty your body is whether you’ll need a buoy or not. Everyone does not need a buoy.

Cons: 

🔹The workouts are pricey.

🔹If you workout at the Y, like me, constantly making reservations to use the pool is inconvenient.

🔹The music is forgettable. There will be no songs that you know. Music motivates me. I wish that the music was better. By better, I mean anything that has ever been played on any radio station over the last 50 years. This is really my only gripe with Fluid Running.

Pro Tips:

1️⃣ If you are a gal, I recommend wearing a one piece. Even better yet, I’d say go for a long sleeve once-piece. If you wear a bikini, you might not like the feel of the belt against your skin, and the the tan lines will be plain weird, if you swim outside. I actually bought a swimming unitard which I love.

2️⃣ If you are traveling to a pool, a 5-gallon bucket is the easiest thing to use to carry your equipment.

3️⃣ I drive home wet in a swim parka. It is so much easier than changing. Swim parkas are pricey, but you can get a lightly used one off of Posh for half price.

If you are thinking about adding deep water running to your training, I would highly recommend Fluid running over just doing it on your own with some free you tube videos. You will need some instruction as to actually do the moves correctly, and it is much easier to maintain intensity with the benefit of cuing.