The effectiveness of cooling down using the Water Walker

[Abstract] Cooling down after exercise is considered to be crucial to recovering from fatigue and to ensuring venous return. Activities like walking or stretching are normally used to cool down. In addition, aquatic exercise is recommended because it is effective at increasing venous return and reducing strain on joints such as the knees as a result of the effects of buoyancy in water and water pressure. Thus, the aim of the current study was to examine the effectiveness of cooling down by walking in water, using the Water Walker (the Water Walker & Spa, or WWS), after exercise. Subjects were a typical male and female adult. Exercise involved running on a treadmill at a speed of 6-8 km/h to reach a target heart rate calculated as 75% HRreserve based on the resting heart rate. After running, subjects cooled down by walking for 15 min either in the WWS or on the treadmill, and subjects then rested in a seated position for 15 min. The lactate level and heart rate were measured 4 times: at rest, immediately after exercise, after walking, and after resting in a seated position. Heart rate was about the same immediately after exercise. Heart rate was lower when cooling down for 15 min by walking in the WWS. Walking in the WWS or on the treadmill resulted in similar lactate levels. These findings revealed that walking on land or in the WWS helps to cool down and lower the lactate level. Moreover, findings revealed that heart rate decreases more in the WWS than on land. In addition to cooling down, being subjected to water pressure helped to ensure venous return to the heart and presumably contributed to high and low levels of lactate in the liver.