Jan 28, 2002 (St. Louis Post-Dispatch) - Because being in water decreases body weight by 90 percent, we can reach a fuller range of motion while feeling like gazelles.

My brother nicknamed me "water wafer" when I was a kid. I like water to drink, bathe in, cruise on, stroll beside and as a spiritual libation. I was not the kid who swam until her lips turned blue. I don't submerge my head and have never skied behind a boat.

Ah, but it's never too late for discovery. Recently, I joined "Twinges in the Hinges" - a catchy name for low-impact water aerobics class. Two mornings a week I slip into a pool at the St. Peters Rec- Plex with a dozen other women. We don't care about cellulite, stretch marks or appearing naked-faced. We appreciate being upright, relatively healthy and getting wet without goose bumps.

Our instructor is Sharon Cadle of St. Peters. Cadle, 45, is tightly muscled, relentlessly upbeat and has all the earmarks of a stand-up comedian. As we jump, stretch and walk through the resistant density of the water, we are tightening our "glutes," stretching our hamstrings and firming our arm flaps. She guarantees that hinge- twingers have no trouble getting out of bed in the morning. We exercise to tunes that evoke memories, such as "Rockin' Robin," "Alley Kat" and "Johnny B. Goode." Each is programmed to give off a certain number of beats per minute for water exercise. As she demonstrates, Cadle sings, tells stories about her adventures as a traveling military wife, informs us and throws in a joke or two. She hollers cheerful greetings to the lifeguard, the pool manager, the trash-removal attendant and the class in the pool next to us.

One of Cadle's stories was about the guy who left the men's locker room sans bathing suit. It was as much a shock to him as to those in the pool, she mused. At the half-hour, we get three laps floating around the peninsula-style area attached to the main Rec-Plex pool. We bob on S tyrofoam dumbbells that fit snugly under our arms and delightful modern toys they call noodles, also made of Styrofoam. After the float, we stand and sit on our noodles as we exercise. We use the weights under water.

Cadle explains that four important components of water are used as a therapy to decrease pain and for rehabilitation: They are buoyancy, resistance, drag and turbulence. Water washes away tension and soothes the body. It helps improve joint flexibility and movement. The force of compression on the joints is decreased, making it possible to reach a fuller range of motion. The reason we feel like gazelles is because water decreases body weight by 90 percent.

"Water exerts pressure on internal organs, and it helps the arteries move the blood back into the heart," she explained. "It's wonderful for the lungs even when you just sit in the water."

Cadle reassures us that we are working because every exercise in the water is 12 times harder than in the air because of the water's density. I've seen people arrive for these classes using canes, walkers and neck and leg braces. The exercises are especially beneficial, Cadle said, for those who suffer from arthritis or fibromyalgia (a painful disorder of the muscles) and those with circulation problems.

Cadle's youngest student, Sue, is in her 20s. Sue suffers from arthritis. Another woman, Emma, was in the pool on her 90th birthday. John keeps coming back even though his rheumatoid arthritis is so painful that his wife must help him eat and dress.

Often it's the laughter and camaraderie that inspires them to return. Cadle says that is just as beneficial as weight lifting.

"Yet I've never had people come into my class thinking we're playing games. We just work differently," she explained.

For me, it's exercise the way it should be: 99 percent joy, 1 percent work.