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
Former Member
Originally posted by Fritz
I'm in the former swimmer that gained weight category. When I got back in the water 5 years ago, I weighed just over 200 pounds. I pretty quickly got down to around 165 and I've managed to keep in the 165-175 pound range.
I'm almost like you, though I started out around 215 or so. Now three years later I dropped down to 176 as of yesterday. Actually I've been loosing too much weight I think as I keep getting smaller. About the only real diet change I made was to stop drinkng beer, and now to cut back on the sweets. I don't eat many fruits/veggies even though I should and eat a ton of carbs.
There is no way that swimming will not help you lose weight, unless you are just floating around in the pool. They really should come study the people who really do swim to find out how many calories we use in a normal workout.
My experience is very much like Fritz's. I went from 185 to 170, with considerable redistribution of weight from fat to muscle. My diet actually got worse, as I use my swimming to regain the beer-a-day habit that I had to give up, and I am less restrictive of snacks than I used to be.
My workouts are relatively intense, interval workouts, about 4-5/wk and 15,000+ yds/wk. My heart rate regularly gets above 180/min, and I am 45 years old. Lap swimming is a sure way to increase appetite.
I guess this should come as no surprise to us. After all, so many of us have complained in one fashion or other about those people who occupy the pool without exercising ... water arobs who don't work up a sweat probably don't lose much weight and it appears from my pool and all our posts that they outnumber the harder exercising contingent 10 or 20 to one.
if you look at a 220lb wrestler and then lookat a 200lb out of shape person ,excersise is not only for weight loss it is for toning the body too,too many people think success is losing pounds,can be true but try changing the pounds to muscle and toned muscle and see the difference.A few years ago i lost 60lbs down to 170 lbs, i looked sick!!i'm 6ft,i now weigh 200lb appx(don't get weighed that much now!!)my shape is more healthy and my swimming stamina is really good thanks to stick-to-it-iveness at the pool
The theory that swimming does not lead to weight loss is popular. However, many of the studies that claim to show this do not really use swim training but leisurely swimming. It would be interesting to review the study this article references and see what sort of swimming the participants did. I'm sure it was nothing close to any of the workouts posted on this site.
It would also be interesting to see a study that started with out of shape former swimmers and returned them to regular, high level training. The results would probably show changes as many of the posters in this thread have noted. The number of calories burned in a workout is much different for 3000 yards with intervals and a 500 swim in 30 minutes.
I do a little of both, some days intervals, other days long continuous swims. I agree intervals seem to boast fitness, but doing them day after day is not a good thing.
As far as resistant training, yes, I think EVERYONE needs to add some form of resistant training. That is key to keeping weight off. Build the muscle to burn the calories. I think swimming leans out those muscles and makes them look nicer!
Don't show that article to the 35 pounds I've lost or my present cholesterol test results. I only made very minor diet changes ... 1) less fat and 2) nothing but water for 2 hours before bed. That with swimming 3 or 4 times a week, 1 hour apeice, lowered my bad cholesterol and raised the good very nicely in the first year and by the end of year two I had dropped a total of 30 pounds also. My weight is now just fine (I might like to drop another 5 or so). ... that is to say I didn't have MAJOR overweight issues.
My massage therapist says my muscle tone is really good. I'm 43 and don't do any other exercise aside from life (house and yard work, bike with my 6 year old, walk to and from the car).
Keep up the swimming everyone!!!!
That article is a load of crap. If people weren't stuffing Krispie Kremes in their mouth, then they would loose weight.
And that water temperature stuff is a load too.
How many times have you seen the same people at the gym, busitng their butts religiously, only to never make a physical change? We all see it all of the time. It's because their diets stink!
That doctor that wrote that article is a quack job.
:rolleyes:
Originally posted by belly_hippie
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
I can tell you that swimming alone might help you lose some weight, along with some dieting. But it will not give you the restance to have good firm muscle. As we get older ,we lose our musclarty. Yes swimming is very good cardio, but swimming should not be the only form of excerise. there should be a good portion of restance excerise. I personaly use swimming for cardio, free hand and weights . For restance. And a senible diet.:cool: ;)
