I saw this article online and it really dampen my spirit since swimming is my favorite sport and I am trying to loose weight at the same time. Any comment??
SWIMMING IS NOT GOOD FOR WEIGHT LOSS
If you want to lose weight, lower cholesterol, or help to control diabetes, swimming is better than nothing, but not that much better (1).
A recent report from the University of Colorado shows that obese people who start a supervised swimming program do not lower their fasting blood sugar, insulin, total cholesterol, good HDL cholesterol and bad LDL cholesterol levels. They also did not lose weight or redistribute their body fat (2).
These results are different from people who start land-based sports such as running, aerobic dancing, racquetball and cycling. When you exercise on land, your body is surrounded by air which insulates you, causing your body to retain heat and your body temperature to rise for up to 18 hours after you finish exercising. Increased body temperature speeds up your metabolism and helps you to lose weight and lower cholesterol. On the other hand, when you swim, your body is surrounded by water which is an excellent conductor of heat away from your body, preventing your body temperature from rising. If you want to lose weight by swimming, the best way is to do it is by using a swimming machine on dry land.
I'm Dr. Gabe Mirkin on Fitness.
1) H Tanaka, DR Bassett, ET Howley. Effects of swim training on body weight, carbohydrate
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Former Member
We've been over this many times. No one can deny the fact that swimming burns calories. And that's what weight loss is about. It's a game of burning more calories than you consume.
One thing I've noticed at the pool. Swimmers who train in intervals look ten times better than those who do endless laps with an emphasis on freestyle/front crawl. Sometimes, when I see someone entering the pool, I can tell how they're going to swim. Lean people usually prefer intervals. Heavier, less muscular people with a gut, usually prefer a more continuous style with less intensity, and always swim freestyle. Their buoyancy comes in handy.
I'm starting to think that if you perform intervals, including intervals of sprints, followed by cool-down periods, you'll burn more fat, and build more muscle than by just going up and down the pool.
Right now, I'm cutting back on swimming due to time constraints in my life. Here's my current 3-day a week workout:
Day one: 30-min cardio
Day two: Swim one mile
Day three: 20-min cardio and one-hour weights
I have to admit, I look and feel better doing this workout. But I'll start hitting the pool twice a week by next year, when my job gives me more time.
We've been over this many times. No one can deny the fact that swimming burns calories. And that's what weight loss is about. It's a game of burning more calories than you consume.
One thing I've noticed at the pool. Swimmers who train in intervals look ten times better than those who do endless laps with an emphasis on freestyle/front crawl. Sometimes, when I see someone entering the pool, I can tell how they're going to swim. Lean people usually prefer intervals. Heavier, less muscular people with a gut, usually prefer a more continuous style with less intensity, and always swim freestyle. Their buoyancy comes in handy.
I'm starting to think that if you perform intervals, including intervals of sprints, followed by cool-down periods, you'll burn more fat, and build more muscle than by just going up and down the pool.
Right now, I'm cutting back on swimming due to time constraints in my life. Here's my current 3-day a week workout:
Day one: 30-min cardio
Day two: Swim one mile
Day three: 20-min cardio and one-hour weights
I have to admit, I look and feel better doing this workout. But I'll start hitting the pool twice a week by next year, when my job gives me more time.
