Swimming - because gravity is cruel!

Seattle_Maui

Okay, before I hear, "I'm too fat to swim in public..." I want to explain I have been swimming over a year now, and I am a heavyweight at over 300 pounds.

Swimming laps has been the best way for me to tone up, get my cardio, and be able to tune out the world & focus on myself. I swim five days a week for 90 minutes, doing laps in a 50 meter pool. My usual is between 2500 and 3000 meters, so if I can do it, anyone should be able to. Just start swimming & work on your endurance.

Some things I use that help me swim: I swim with a waterproof MP3 player - keeps me company, motivates me (tempo), and keeps the water out of my ears -- great $30 investment (just do your research!) I also swim with a mask and snorkel. May sound weird, but helps me breathe more deeply, and I do not have to lift my head to the side -- helps my stokes be more fluid.

I ruptured my Achilles tendon some time back, and frankly, swimming has been the best low impact exercise I have found. I still work with resistance bands, but beyond walking, I don't do much else for cardio. My goal is to lose enough weight to lessen the pain in my lower leg, so I can be more active.

If all you can do is a couple laps before you need a breather, that's fine! I started swimming only 50 meters a day, now I am working toward my goal of 5000 meters.

Brenda : )~

stanvoodoo

WTG Girl! Keep it up and you will be in the 2's very soon and I'm gonna go with you, just another 17 lbs for me!

Keep it up!

Heather75

Swimming is amazing exercise! I won't stand for anyone denigrating my buddy gravity, though...

denacutrone

wtg! you have an awesome attitude! :flowerforyou: keep up the great work!

bethdris

That is great!! Swimming is so good for you, and its something you can do solo and enjoy the peace and quiet of it. When we belonged to the gym I used to swim 3x a week and loved it. I swam a mile and thought I was going to die, but it really was refreshing afterwards. Keep up the good work!!

JillyCornwall

Fantastic, well done, so motivating.....I love to swim..yes its a great exercise..and yes I see many on here say they won't get in the pool UNTIL they lose weight..you have shown that to be rubbish, power to you.

sanddollar

Wow, that is very inspiring!! Especially since I just out of the pool for the first time since trying to be healthier! Thanks for sharing your journey!!!

donicagalek

What about those of us that are too furry to swim in public? X-D

I couldn't help it. Well done! You're braver than I am.

meggiemaye

Whoo! This is an awesome thread. I also swim every single day at the gym. May I ask what kind of waterproof mp3/earphones you use? I didn't even know they existed!

infosynth

Congratulations Brenda! Swimming is an excellent choice for increasing your lung capacity and cardiovascular conditioning with little to no impact on your joints. And you're doing FANTASTIC at 2500-3000 meters in 90 mins! You should be very proud of your progress and dedication.

Joints aside, one of the biggest benefits of swimming is that, for most of the strokes, you're forced to breathe rhythmically, which is very good exercise for your lungs. Because you're using a snorkel, that will be a bit more challenging.

Try synchronizing your breaths with your arm movements. You might have to pay closer attention to the rhythm because you're using a mask and can breathe "whenever." As your cardio improves, you can lengthen the time between breaths as well as the distance you're swimming in the same amount of time.

If you get bored with the "crawl" (also called freestyle or "free" for short), try backstroke. You won't need the snorkel for that and you won't have to raise your head up or to the side. Look for something on the ceiling to help you stay centered in the lane, and use the 5 meter flags and/or lane line markings to gauge your distance from the wall. After a while, you'll know how many strokes it takes for you to swim the last 5 meters, and the wall will be right where you expect it to be.

Something you can do very easily with your mask and snorkel is practice kicking. This will help increase the strength and flexibility of your ankles and legs. Try it two ways: (1) with your arms straight out in front of you to "steer" or (2) with your arms relaxed at your sides, steering by moving your upper body where you want to go. (You can also use a kickboard that you hold in your arms, but it might be uncomfortable for your neck.) You can breathe rhythmically by counting "in-in-in-in, out-out-out-out" or whatever works for you. However, if the kick bothers your Achilles injury, stop.

Keep us up to date on your progress!

javamonster

I agree, swimming is such awesome exercise! And I'd also like to hear about the waterproof MP3 player! It would be amazing to listen to tunes while I swim, I didn't know such a thing existed! Really impressive how you've built up your endurance like that. :-)

KaeChelle

Thanks for sharing! Maybe I should start swimming. I have an damaged joint in my foot that causes me pain and the last few weeks my knee has been hurting too. I do water aerobics on occasion, but never just swimming laps. I'm not quite the weight you are, but not far from it, so thanks for the inspiration. It's great that you enjoy it so much. I can't imagine swimming for 90 minutes at a time! Wow, I am impressed!