For those of you who swim...

modernmom
modernmom Posts: 1 Member
edited September 22 in Fitness and Exercise
what's your advice on getting started? Do I count laps? Or count time in the pool?

Does one stroke burn more calories than others? I need to jump-start my cardio, but I have a bum-knee at the moment, so swimming seems to be the most logical choice.

Replies

  • Ge0rgiana
    Ge0rgiana Posts: 1,649 Member
    I have no fantastic strategy. I simply try to stay moving the entire time I'm in the pool, and I time it. I then log it as "Swimming, General". If I decide I'm going to do laps the whole time, I time it and log it as laps and whatever effort level I thought I was doing.

    I, too, have a bum knee. I wish I could swim more. Just getting too cold. The backbone of my exercise routine is walking.
  • elainecroft
    elainecroft Posts: 595 Member
    I'm not a swimming expert by any means, but I can tell you what works for me. I'll get really into swimming for a month or two at a time, and then not swim for a while and have to get back into it. For me it takes a couple of days of practice to get used to the water. So I will set myself a time goal and see how many laps I can do. Then I'll evaluate how tired I am to see if I should be swimming faster/longer. I just log my exercise using swimming-moderate I think and inputting the time.

    I also like to do a combination of sprint laps and sustained swims using different strokes- for example I'll do 5 laps of freestyle and then a 2 lap sprint of backstroke. If you are up for it (and there aren't a lot of people in the pool to annoy!), you can interject laps of the butterfly throughout your workout to get your heart rate up!
  • khillman77
    khillman77 Posts: 66
    try water aerobics also
  • jujecarp
    jujecarp Posts: 7 Member
    Try treading water. I make sure that I can't touch where I am at and just tread water for the entire time I am in the pool and it burns quite a few calories. I started doing this right after my leg surgery and it has really helped me!!
  • AdventureVia
    AdventureVia Posts: 84 Member
    I've been a swim coach and teacher for over 12 years now and I would love to help you out!

    Swimming is a great great cardio exercise BUT, and this is a big BUT, swimming for weight loss doesn't work. You have to add other exercises. I just want you to be aware of that. You will improve your whole cardio system by swimming and you build muscle but swimming stimulates the appetite in ways that other exercises don't. So what's the answer? Swim to hearts content, watch the intake when you get out though and add a lot of low-impact water running and water aerobics into the mix to complete the regiment. Then do strength training on land if you can. There is plenty of research out there on this stuff and professional swimmers have caught a lot of heat over the years for not being as svelte as runners.

    If you want specific stroke technique help, let me know. I will be glad to give you some pointers in that direction.

    Here's a link to one of the many articles about why swimming doesn't work for weight loss. Like I mentioned though swimming in addition to water aerobics and other low impact water exercise (like pool yoga) you can build a great regiment but you're going to have to fight off the hunger urges when you get out of the pool!
    http://www.thefactsaboutfitness.com/research/swimming.htm
  • synchrohobbit
    synchrohobbit Posts: 58 Member
    Swimming for weight loss WORKS. You burn more calories then you take in, you lose weight! Even if swimming, and only in very cool water, stimulates your appetite more, you are logging your food and will be aware of how much you need to eat. Swimming is almost the only way I've stayed in shape and lost weight when I want to. It is important to do any physical activity, and if you like to swim, know that it works!
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