Aquatic Exercise Leader Performance Standards

An Aquatic Exercise Leader designs and implements a safe and effective group aquatic exercise class for apparently healthy participants.

Performance Standards

Aquatic Exercise Leader Performance Standards build on the Foundations in Physical Activity and Exercise Prerequisite Knowledge Base.

Health-Related Benefits of Physical Activity

Performance Standard

The Aquatic Exercise Leader describes the benefits of aquatic exercise.

Competencies

  1. Defines aquatic exercise
  2. Explains the current trends and factors that influence the popularity of aquatic exercise
  3. Describes the benefits of aquatic exercise, including weight management, aerobic capacity, and stress

Leadership and Communication

Performance Standard #1

The Aquatic Exercise Leader demonstrates and identifies qualities, strategies, and skills of effective leadership.

Competencies

  1. Employs professional qualities of leadership and leadership strategies in the delivery of aquatic exercise sessions to encourage program adherence
  2. Exhibits effective motivation techniques to encourage program adherence
  3. Understand the difference between student-centered and teacher-centered instruction

Performance Standard #2

The Aquatic Exercise Leader demonstrates a variety of effective communication techniques.

Competencies

  1. Effectively utilizes both verbal and visual cueing
  2. Describes how to enhance verbal and visual cueing to improve exercise technique of participants
  3. Effectively applies techniques of giving and receiving feedback with participants
  4. Utilizes techniques to reduce voice injury

Performance Standard #3

The Aquatic Exercise Leader demonstrates knowledge of group dynamics.

Competencies

  1. Creates a supportive, participant-centred environment
  2. Identifies and minimizes challenges in leading exercise sessions within the pool environment
  3. Monitors the stages of group development and takes specific actions to improve group dynamics.
  4. Identifies behaviour modification strategies for motivating individuals based on the Transtheoretical Model of Behaviour Change (Stages of Change Theory)

Exercise Analysis

Performance Standard

The Aquatic Exercise Leader selects safe and appropriate exercises for the goals and objectives of an aquatic exercise class.

Competencies

  1. Apply the process of movement analysis to adapt exercises to individual abilities
  2. Demonstrates ways to execute the exercise selections 
    1. Explains the intended and actual purpose of a given exercise, analyzes its potential risks, and provides modifications (progression, regression, alternative)
  3. Defends exercise selection for appropriate use
  4. Identifies common exercise modifications
  5. Explain contraindicated exercises for given individual abilities and limitations
  6. Explains the importance of proper body alignment, posture, and core stabilization in injury prevention
  7. Identifies errors in technique and provides corrections

Program Planning

Performance Standard #1

The Aquatic Exercise Leader designs an effective program using established methods and training principles. The Aquatic Exercise Leader evaluates programs using measurable outcomes to ensure effective and appropriate programming.

Competencies

  1. Identifies the steps in class design
  2. Explain the importance of a given class component to fitness of participants
  3. Explain the purpose of a given component of fitness to wellness
  4. Effective application of exercise principles including FITT, specificity, progressive overload, periodization and ceiling effect
  5. Applies the properties of water and the principles of conditioning to a variety of aquatic exercise programs
  6. Identifies and differentiates methods to monitor exercise intensity
  7. Implements ways to evaluate the effectiveness of class design
  8. Implement functional fitness skills within the class setting to support ADL’s
  9. Describes use of a variety of training methods and types (ex. circuit training, sport-specific, interval/HIIT)

Performance Standard #2

 The Aquatic Exercise Leader selects music appropriate for both the class format and audience.

Competencies

  1. Lists reasons for using music in an aquatic exercise setting
  2. Identifies music appropriate for different class formats, styles, and pace
  3. Identifies safe music and microphone volumes
  4. Describes music copyright laws

Performance Standard #3

The Aquatic Exercise Leader demonstrates how to use equipment to enhance training for various participants and class types, ensuring that it is both safe and effective.

Competencies

  1. Describes the purpose of different pieces of aquatic exercise equipment
  2. Describes the advantages and disadvantages of using a piece of equipment
  3. Identifies when it is or is not appropriate to use equipment
  4. Designs appropriate exercises and alternatives using various pieces of equipment

Professional Practice & Risk Management

Performance Standard 1

The Aquatic Exercise Leader demonstrates knowledge of professional conduct in an aquatic exercise setting.

Competencies

  1. Adheres to the scope of practice
  2. Acts in accordance to the code of conduct
  3. Acts as an informed resource to colleagues and participants
  4. Understands the role of maintaining accreditation to continued professionalism
  5. Understands the role of continued education to continued professionalism

Performance Standard 2

The Aquatic Exercise Leader designs and conducts classes in such a way as to minimize and manage risk.

Competencies

  1. Utilizes pre-screening strategies for safe program delivery for participants and their participation in physical activity (e.g., PAR-Q+, ePARmed-X+)
  2. Use of space effectivity to account for safety issues and needs of participants with visual, hearing, proprioception or cognitive impairments
  3. Familiar with Emergency Action Plan requirements, including safety issues related to but not limited to floor surfaces, proper footwear, lighting, acoustics, telephone, ventilation, and accessibility to water, washrooms, facility emergency procedures and exits
  4. Aware of how facility type, size, location, etc. impacts aquatic exercise programming

Applied Principles of Water                       

Performance Standard #1

The Aquatic Fitness Leader describes how the aquatic environment influences the body during an aquatic exercise class.

Competencies

  1. Describes the physiological responses to variations in air and water temperatures and the implications for class design
  2. Explains the body's ability to thermoregulate and the implications for exercising in the water
  3. Explains the different physiological and psychological responses to exercise in either hot or cold water environments
  4. Explains why aquatic heart rates may be lower than land-based heart rates for the same exercise

Performance Standard #2

The Aquatic Exercise Leader describes and demonstrates an understanding of the physical properties of water.

Competencies

  1. Defines and explains terms and principles relating to movement in water: buoyancy (assisted, supported, resisted); viscosity, gravity; water resistances drag forces; propulsion; turbulence; inertia; acceleration/deceleration; action/reaction; leverage; Archimedes’ principle; hydrostatic pressure; stability; muscular contraction return; and speed of movement