OK, the title is, I'll admit, a little dramatic.
I went through body composition testing today. It was as bad as I expected it to be after 16 years of inactivity:
Weight: 212lbs
Body fat 32% or 68lbs
The machine also measured my resting metabolic rate at 1820kcal/day.
I figured out that it I don't gain an ounce of muscle I have to loose 42 to 48lbs in order to get to a 12% to 15% body fat range.
Now I need a good estimate of caloric output during swimming. Last session I swam about 2000y in 90min. I need to translate that into kcal per workout so that I can figure out the rest.
Does anyone know of any articles/sources on the caloric output measurement during an activity like swimming? I know about the myriad of websites with estimating calculators. I am after actual measurement if at all possible.
I wonder if it is as simple as using a really precise scale. Since 3500 calories is 1 pound it stands to reason that you might be able to measure calories burned by simply having a really good weight comparison before and after. A scale with repeatability of 0.1lbs or better might be all you need. In this case, 0.1lbs would be about 350 calories.
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Former Member
Two personal observations that may assist
I had long periods away from swimming. Each time I returned I found my weight would drop very quickly at the start ( losing fat - water ? ) and then gradually increase, I assume as muscle mass was built up. Remember there will be a trade off in terms of losing weight but still acquiring muscle and it may be difficult to pinpoint which is predominating
Secondly , one of my swim buddies is a surgeon and she reckons a fit female master is carrying about 8 lbs of additional muscle mass - she advises us to monitor clothing fit as a measure of progress rather than the scales which can be misleading if weight is looked at in absolute terms against normal height/weight charts
Two personal observations that may assist
I had long periods away from swimming. Each time I returned I found my weight would drop very quickly at the start ( losing fat - water ? ) and then gradually increase, I assume as muscle mass was built up. Remember there will be a trade off in terms of losing weight but still acquiring muscle and it may be difficult to pinpoint which is predominating
Secondly , one of my swim buddies is a surgeon and she reckons a fit female master is carrying about 8 lbs of additional muscle mass - she advises us to monitor clothing fit as a measure of progress rather than the scales which can be misleading if weight is looked at in absolute terms against normal height/weight charts
