Key Health Benefits of Snorkeling
Something about being on the tropical island of Maui makes you want to be outside and in tune with your health! One of the best things about vacationing in Hawaii is that spending time in the sunshine and snorkeling has health benefits!
Maui is home to beautiful sandy beaches, palm trees and many of the best snorkel spots in Hawaii. What makes the snorkeling so great in Maui is that many locations are easily accessible from shore or just a short boat ride! The consistent, warm weather in Maui also makes snorkeling one of the healthiest activities to do on vacation. West Maui’s average temperature is 80 degrees and the water near Lahaina, Maui and Lanai is between 70-80 degrees depending on the time of year! Exercising in warmer climates and water helps relax your muscles as it reduces soreness. Aside from the temperature, there are many other health benefits to snorkeling!
If you’re still not convinced you can have fun exercising on vacation, check out our top five reasons snorkeling is good exercise!
#1 Health Benefits of Snorkeling : Snorkeling is Low Impact Exercise!
Snorkeling is a form of low impact exercise that provides a great workout for your body without putting excessive strain on your joints. Similar to swimming, snorkeling allows you to move freely in the water while the buoyancy supports your body, reducing the impact on your joints. This makes it an ideal exercise for individuals with injuries or joint pain, as well as those looking to prevent injuries. By rotating between high impact exercises like running or jumping rope and low impact activities like snorkeling, you can give your body a break while still staying active and maintaining your fitness levels.
Benefits of Low Impact Exercise
Low impact exercise, such as snorkeling, offers numerous benefits for your body. It helps improve cardiovascular health by increasing your heart rate and strengthening the heart muscle. This, in turn, reduces the risk of heart-related problems such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Snorkeling also works out your entire body, engaging major muscle groups like the quads, hamstrings, calves, core, and shoulders. By promoting overall strength and endurance, snorkeling contributes to toning and trimming your body. Additionally, snorkeling burns approximately 300 calories per hour, making it an effective activity for weight management.
#2 Health Benefits of Snorkeling : Snorkeling Improves Lung Health!
Snorkeling not only provides a refreshing experience but also helps improve your lung health. Breathing through a snorkel tube requires you to regulate your breath and engage in controlled breathing. This exercise enhances the capacity and efficiency of your lungs, increasing their ability to hold oxygen. Strengthening your lungs through regular snorkeling promotes better respiratory function, aids in oxygen circulation throughout your body, and supports overall lung health. By expanding your lung capacity, snorkeling can be beneficial for individuals with respiratory conditions or those looking to enhance their athletic performance.
Benefits of Improved Lung Health
Improved lung health brings various advantages to your overall well-being. When your lungs are healthy and efficient, they can better recover from illnesses and respiratory issues. Increased oxygen intake improves your body’s ability to heal, repair, and strengthen itself. Furthermore, enhanced respiratory function contributes to better endurance during physical activities, allowing you to engage in more demanding exercises with ease. By focusing on controlled breathing while snorkeling, you can also experience a sense of relaxation and calmness, which can have a positive impact on your mental well-being.
#3 Health Benefits of Snorkeling : Snorkeling is Excellent Cardio!
Snorkeling offers an excellent cardiovascular workout that benefits your heart and overall fitness. While snorkeling, your heart rate increases as your body works harder to propel itself through the water. This cardiovascular exercise strengthens your heart muscle, making it more efficient and resilient. By regularly engaging in snorkeling, you can reduce the risk of heart-related conditions such as heart disease, heart failure, and high blood pressure. Additionally, snorkeling increases circulation, ensuring that oxygen is delivered to every part of your body. This promotes healing, repair, and overall body function.
How Can Good Cardiovascular Health Improve Your Health and Overall Fitness?
A healthy cardiovascular system plays a crucial role in your overall well-being. Improved cardiovascular health enhances your endurance, allowing you to engage in physical activities for longer periods without feeling fatigued. It also boosts your energy levels, making your day-to-day tasks more manageable. A stronger heart can pump blood more effectively, delivering oxygen to your muscles and organs efficiently. This increased oxygen supply supports muscle growth, improves recovery time, and enhances athletic performance. Moreover, good cardiovascular health positively impacts your mental well-being by reducing stress, boosting mood, and promoting better cognitive function.
#4 Health Benefits of Snorkeling : Snorkeling benefits Mental Health!
Studies show that spending time in nature for as little as 10 minutes has shown to reduce anxiety and depression! They even named time in nature for mental health, it’s called ecotherapy! By helping reduce stress, anger and anxiety, snorkeling in nature can have a positive effect on blood pressure, heart rate and tension in our muscles! The distraction of seeing nature, tropical blue waters, colorful fish, peaceful sea turtles and other marine creatures can be a great way to take our mind off our current worries and remember that rest and peace are priorities.
How Can Good Mental Health Affect Your Life?
Maintaining good mental health is essential for overall well-being and quality of life. Positive mental health allows you to cope with stress more effectively, make better decisions, and maintain healthier relationships. It can also enhance your productivity and performance in various aspects of life, including work and personal endeavors. When your mind is in a balanced and calm state, you are better equipped to handle challenges, overcome obstacles, and find joy in everyday experiences. Snorkeling provides a unique opportunity to connect with nature, which has been shown to have significant benefits for mental health, including reduced anxiety and depression.
Best Places to Snorkel in Maui
Now that you are convinced (or at least intrigued) by snorkeling as an exercise, check out our list of the best places to snorkel in Maui and give snorkeling a try!
Our number one spot for Maui snorkeling tours is the island of Lanai! Lanai is a small island of the West Coast of Maui and it is a part of Maui County! Lanai has very little coastal development which has protected it’s reefs and the marine animals there. It’s about a 20 minute boat from Lahaina Harbor, Maui to the closest snorkel spot on Lanai!
Lanai has over a dozen snorkel spots to choose from, many of the best located on the East and South sides of the island, due to wind and current! There are three types of reef systems you can snorkel near Lanai: Cumulative Reef, Pinnacle Reef and Aggregate Reef. Each of these styles of reef system look different and host a variety of Maui’s marine animals.
Some of our favorite Lanai snorkel spots are Club Lanai, Manele Bay, Sweetheart Rock, Armchair, Buddha Bay, Shark Fin, Dinosaur, Lighthouse to name a few! Captains will select the best snorkel spot for that day depending on the ocean’s current, swell (waves), water clarity (has it been raining or waves causing murky water?) and the level of snorkelers onboard.
Best Snorkel in Maui
Our Express and Extended Maui Snorkel Tours snorkel Lanai where you can see green sea turtles, tropical fish and sometimes octopus or eagle rays! There are some tropical fish on Lanai that can not be found anywhere else in the world, outside of Hawaii !
Traveling from Maui to Lanai for snorkeling we often encounter the resident dolphin pods that live in the Maui Nui Basin! Most often we see spinner dolphins! They can travel in pods up to 300 animals, making them easier to spot than the smaller pods of bottlenose dolphins which we encounter as well! On special occasions we see spotted dolphins, false killer or melon headed whales and have had quite a few encounters with the world’s largest fish species, whale sharks!
Humpback whales migrate to Hawaii every winter to mate and give birth! We see them in the winter and include whale watching in our Maui snorkel tours from December- April! Humpback whales are protected in Hawaii so swimming or snorkeling with whales is not permitted.
We also follow regulations which do not allow us to approach a whale closer than 100 yards. The whales have the freedom to approach us though, making the close whale encounters even more special as it is all the whales’ doing!
Snorkeling Lanai from Maui can only be done by boat as it is 8 miles away from the closest spot! Our Maui to Lanai Snorkel Tours are offered as group or private charters!
Our group charters are small groups on rafting vessels so every seat is a front row seat and the low to water style vessel is perfect for closer marine animal encounters like dolphins! If you want to snorkel with just your own family, you can charter the boat for the duration you choose and plan a custom Maui snorkel adventure for your ohana!
Learn more about our Lanai snorkel tours and watch a recent video of our favorite Maui snorkel trip today!