—Five suggestions for upgrading your backyard retreat with cool amenities

Considering making over your backyard with an amenity or two to complement your swimming pool and elevate your outdoor-living experience?

Various high-end options can create an upscale outdoor environment retreat around your pool and boost opportunities for entertaining friends and family.

—Understanding how diving boards, platforms, and flexible jump boards each provide unique benefits

Note: This is the second article in a two-part series on diving boards. For part 1, “Swimming Pool Diving Boards: Consider Safety, Usage, and Backyard Size,” click here.

After considering the important issues of diving safety, board usage, backyard size, and maximizing your family’s recreation, you’ve decided to include a diving board with your new swimming pool.

—Comparing earplug materials and choices to achieve the best fit and most effective protection

Guest blog: Alex Pop, Say What Hearing

You protect your eyes when swimming by wearing goggles, so why not protect your ears with earplugs?

If you spend much time in a swimming pool or the ocean, your best bet is to use earplugs to guard against swimmer’s ear, surfer’s ear, and other ear infections. This guide will help you will find the right pair of earplugs to fit your ears and your swimming needs.

—Prepare in advance for a smooth experience in the swimming pool

A backyard swimming pool can provide an endless source of relaxation and enjoyment—especially for those who learned to be comfortable in the water early in life.

—Check out these muscle-building options designed for using in the water

By Guest Expert Matt Dustin, BS Exercise Science, Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist

Tired of boring workouts at the gym? It might be time to consider some aquatic fitness. 

A swimming pool is an ideal environment for exercise, and resistance training in water can be a great alternative to stale routines with the same old gym equipment. Plus you get to keep cool in the water and skip getting sweaty.

—How working out in in heated H20 can enhance your fitness and overall health 

By Guest Expert: Matt Dustin, BS Exercise Science, Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist

When the temperature drops outside, thoughts of going for a run or making a trip to the gym in the cold can be unappealing, to say the least.

Rather than break your good regimen, consider taking your workout to the closest hot tub, inground spa—or a heated whirlpool or hydrotherapy pool that may be available at your gym or housing complex.

Whether at home or at a public facility, the warm bubbling water is ideal for both exercise and hydrotherapy—even when it’s cold outside.

—Buying tips for choosing the best unit for your backyard

Once found only in restaurants to make outdoor dining more pleasant for their patrons, patio space heaters have expanded to private backyards, helping warm homeowners across the country.

This trend has come about for a good reason: By extending the months possible to enjoy a pool and patio area, outdoor heaters maximize opportunities to take advantage of your exterior living space.