Lifting with sore arms

_EndGame_

OK, so when i started out with my "journey" <<< hate saying "journey" but I couldn't think of an alternative word (it's late) I used to lift weights near enough every night at the gym, or do my arm curls at home. Since I started, I have took up swimming, and I swim 5 times a week, for at least an hour each time (usually aim to get 10 miles covered in a week) and my arms ache on a night when I'm done.

So my question is, should I lift, even though my arms are sore? I don't want to tear or rip my muscle (whatever it is that happens when you overdo it) or will my arms be getting a good enough work out from the swimming?

rgugs13

I think it depends what you want from your workouts. If you really want to bulk up on muscle, you'll probably want to do some weight training. Swimming is an excellent workout, but you probably won't get ripped just swimming. The two workouts train the muscles differently. Swimming is great cardio since the human body has to work hard to get through the water, but not great for building huge amounts of muscle because it isn't weight-bearing.

Lifting every night sounds like you are overdoing it a little. If you want to gain muscles, you have to strain muscles. This causes micro tears, and you increase muscle mass as they repair. If you overdo it, the muscle can't repair itself before the next workout and can stall muscle gain and make you really really sore. I was a competitive swimmer and weightlifter during high school, and was able to do both with great success. I also had my fair share of overdoing it!

Try cutting weight lifting down to 3 days a week on nonconsecutive days. This will give your muscles time to heal between sessions. If you are just lifting randomly, look into organized weight lifting programs. I'm just starting Chalean Extreme. I don't know much about the other programs out there. You could do quite a bit heavier lifting since you have access to a gym.

What strokes are you swimming? Each stroke has it's benefits, and you will get more out of your swim workouts changing it up. You should also practice different drills. There is a ton of information online. Technique drills are also very important. If you've never had stroke training, you could really learn a lot. I swam competitively from age 5-18, and I'd still go to stroke workshops at the drop of a hat. If you are doing freestyle, and your arms are burning after every workout, it leads me to think you are kicking improperly. Your leg muscles are the strongest in your body, and you will get a lot further kicking with your whole leg. Keep your legs straight and kick from the hip instead of your knees. You can get a kick board for pretty cheap to practice just legs and give your arms a rest on days they are really sore. If your legs are sore from squats you can get a little floaty to put between your knees to support good posture for practicing just your arms. I posted some interesting links below you might be interested in. You can also find a huge amount of information online by Googling weightlifting and swimming.

http://www.mensfitness.com/training/training-advice-from-michael-phelps

http://www.stumptuous.com/weight-training-for-swimming

http://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/lane9/news/25727.asp

Rachel

_EndGame_

I think it depends what you want from your workouts. If you really want to bulk up on muscle, you'll probably want to do some weight training. Swimming is an excellent workout, but you probably won't get ripped just swimming. The two workouts train the muscles differently. Swimming is great cardio since the human body has to work hard to get through the water, but not great for building huge amounts of muscle because it isn't weight-bearing.

Lifting every night sounds like you are overdoing it a little. If you want to gain muscles, you have to strain muscles. This causes micro tears, and you increase muscle mass as they repair. If you overdo it, the muscle can't repair itself before the next workout and can stall muscle gain and make you really really sore. I was a competitive swimmer and weightlifter during high school, and was able to do both with great success. I also had my fair share of overdoing it!

Try cutting weight lifting down to 3 days a week on nonconsecutive days. This will give your muscles time to heal between sessions. If you are just lifting randomly, look into organized weight lifting programs. I'm just starting Chalean Extreme. I don't know much about the other programs out there. You could do quite a bit heavier lifting since you have access to a gym.

What strokes are you swimming? Each stroke has it's benefits, and you will get more out of your swim workouts changing it up. You should also practice different drills. There is a ton of information online. Technique drills are also very important. If you've never had stroke training, you could really learn a lot. I swam competitively from age 5-18, and I'd still go to stroke workshops at the drop of a hat. If you are doing freestyle, and your arms are burning after every workout, it leads me to think you are kicking improperly. Your leg muscles are the strongest in your body, and you will get a lot further kicking with your whole leg. Keep your legs straight and kick from the hip instead of your knees. You can get a kick board for pretty cheap to practice just legs and give your arms a rest on days they are really sore. If your legs are sore from squats you can get a little floaty to put between your knees to support good posture for practicing just your arms. I posted some interesting links below you might be interested in. You can also find a huge amount of information online by Googling weightlifting and swimming.

http://www.mensfitness.com/training/training-advice-from-michael-phelps

http://www.stumptuous.com/weight-training-for-swimming

http://www.swimmingworldmagazine.com/lane9/news/25727.asp

Rachel

Rachel - thanks for that! I'll deffo check them links out.

I swim (mainly) the breast stroke, I do freestyle (front crawl) occasionally when the pool is near enough empty, as I seem to thrash about a lot, and I'm very concious of how I look whilst doing it! ( I can't see what I look like whilst I'm doing it, lol)

Someone told me to ease down on the lifting every night, so I'm going to change it up to 4 times a week (I don't swim on weekends)

Thanks for the advice!