Am I too fat to go swimming?

at my fattest, I put on a bikini and swam at the beach. I also took surfing lessons. Which someone video taped and put on a blog to humiliate me (and the others).

And even when I was fat, it felt good to be on the beach, it was amazing to surf, and I loved it.

OK, so something I've not done since I was like 13 or something, is swimming. I used to love swimming as a kid, but as the years went by, and the weight piled on, it's something I never ever dreamt of doing, until now.

I signed up to a gym today, have the induction on Thursday evening, and the gym membership I paid for comes with unlimited access to the swimming baths, and it got me thinking - Am I too fat to go swimming?

I know I shouldn't care what other people think, and yes, other people probably don't care about me being there, they're too busy doing their thing to concern themselves over the "fat guy" but I can't help feeling self conscious about it.

Anybody else out there had/have the same problem? Anybody else face their fear of the going swimming?

Simply, no. Go enjoy yourself in the water-- it feels great.

please don't be the guy that swims with a t-shirt on. even if you get one of those aqua t-shirts. also, no water aerobics unless you are over the age of 65.

no comfortable wearing speedos? thats cool. neither am i. i prefer to wear jammers, which are tight swim wear that go down your thighs. still not comfortable? wear boardshorts over them.

swim. swim a lot. take a class, and get your form checked out and improved upon. unless of course you swam competitively once, and know what your swimming form should look and feel like. the problem with swimming is that often times people are out of breath, and they erroneously believe that their exertion is a result of the exercise, and not from oxygen deprivation. on top of that, they're moving inefficiently through the water and using up a lot of energy.

google some beginner swimming work outs. there is one called couch to 1650, which gets you to the point where you are swimming 1650 yards in a session. fyi, 25 yards is one length of a pool, 50 is one back and forth, or lap.

pro tip: print out your work out on regular paper. take it to the pool with you. place it, print side up, ever so gently in the water and lift it back up, careful that it doesn't fold over on itself. place it print side up on a kickboard. bam. now you have your work out at the end of the lane for a quick reference.

HELLO, awesome info! Love the pro tip.

This is really timely - I JUST went for my first lap swim yesterday - I weigh 260 atm. I was incredibly anxious about it, to the point where I had to go to the pool sans suit first to see what kind of people were swimming and talk to the desk clerk about how busy it would be. I hit the medium speed lane because the slow speed lane is mostly walkers - it was wide, probably five or six of us (big enough for three abreast) and there was a diagram showing the flow of movement. I didn't WANT to do it because I was self conscious but I did it and did 750M. I recommend arm stretches before you go in (I ALWAYS learn the stretching lesson the hard way!) and after. There were bodies of all shapes and sizes there, all speeds of swimmers. In fact, the BEST SWIMMER IN THE WHOLE PLACE was a girl much larger than me. She was a beautiful swimmer, hardly put up a splash, just put he head down and went to work, cut through the water like a hot knife in butter. I was really impressed and inspired and I definitely aspire to be a calm, quiet swimmer like she is (I haven't swam much in a while so I felt like my movements were pretty frantic).

Go you!!:)

So proud of you!
Isn't it amazing how good it feels?

I have learnt to never judge someone's fitness ability on their weight, because people will always surprise you. Congrats on your first swim too!

I think you are right about the t-shirt, I would have thought it would draw more attention and also some pools will not let you in wearing them. Once you are in the water, you will only see your head anyway!

you can take your towel to the poolside and leave it near the stairs if that helps. I swim regularly, and love it. I swam because you can put in as much effort as you like, and no one will notice how red and puffy your face is!!! Anyone who thinks/criticizes people for trying to be healthy and get fitter can go take a long walk off a short plank!

it doesn't matter what you look like, every one of those people who you think might be looking has insecurities of their own. once you have been a couple of times, you will realize that the other people there swimming just come in, do their lengths and then go home. Its actually a really nice place to clear your head, just swimming up and down, you get into a little "zone". I must say however, it is best to go on an "adults only" session, or a "lane swimming" session, otherwise you end up having to swim round a bunch of kids having a carry on! I also try go when its quiet, I hate it when the pool is too busy. You could phone and ask when is quiet, and when the different sessions are. Maybe go with a friend, courage in numbers and all that!!!

remember what dory says... Just keep swimming!!!

Thanks for posting this, its great to read all the encouraging replies. I was considering going swimming too, and was experiencing the same anxieties as yourself and after reading this I've decided to go for it - why the hell not!! I was a water baby growing up, I even got some swimming medals in school, so I'm not going to let my fears hold me back any longer from doing something that I used to love so much.

Let me know how you get on. I'm off to buy a swimsuit - eek! :happy:

please don't be the guy that swims with a t-shirt on. even if you get one of those aqua t-shirts. also, no water aerobics unless you are over the age of 65.

I go to interval water aerobics & have seen younger ppl who come a time or two,then quit.They say it's too hard,makes them short of breath.....whatever.You might be surprised at some of the older ppl who spend 2 hrs in the pool,5 days a week. After 1 hr aerobics aerobics,they do water volley ball or laps.

Don't be so quick to put down older ppl.After all,you probably plan on being one of them,if you are lucky.

Someone mentioned using their HRM in the swimming baths, I have a Polar FT4 HRM, would that work in water? Don't think I have the user manual anymore!

I started swimming in the city pool six weeks ago and I love it! I'm the slowest swimmer under 60 and I still have to stop and gasp for breath every lap or two but I'm getting better. And none of the other swimmers care that I'm slow, they just swim around me if I'm sharing a lane with someone, so don't worry about what other people think. I'm already seeing changes in my measurements.

You can definitely use your FT4 for swimming, just be sure not to push the buttons while it is under water. The manual also recommends washing the strap every time you swim in a pool with high chlorine levels.

You can look at a copy of the manual online here: http://www.polar.com/e_manuals/FT4/Polar_FT4_user_manual_English/manual.pdf

Happy swimming!

Do whatever you want. Anyone who says anything to you is a *kitten*.