workout for size?

RE: workout for size?

Former Member — Sun, 26 Feb 2006 15:38:00 GMT

at the risk of starting another flame war... when I first started back swimming I was also doing deep water aerobics every other day. Why they called it aerobic I don't know... anyway, the majority of the workout was with styrofoam dumbbells or barbells. The density of the styrofoam determined how 'heavy' the 'weights' were The ones we had ranged from a couple of pounds up to 20lbs. During the time I was doing the deep water workouts I noticed a increase in my muscle mass and muscle definition. And, keep in mind that I'm a middle aged woman, so muscle definition is not an easy thing to accomplish. If you just can't get out of the water to do weight training, search the web for deep water exercises. You will find exercises that work the upper body, arms, abs and legs. Don't scoff at wearing a float belt. Not having to constantly keep your balance allows you to isolate the muscles you are working on. You can increase the difficulty with weights on your ankles and wrists, but make sure you can stay afloat with the weights. We had one man in our deep water class that used so many weights that if he let go of the styrofoam dumbell/barbell by accident he would sink... it happenned twice and pulling an adult male off the bottom of a 12ft deep pool didn't make the lifeguard too happy. After the second time, we were not allowed to wear any weights what so ever in water over our shoulders. Lainey

RE: workout for size?

Former Member — Sat, 25 Feb 2006 17:10:33 GMT

Originally posted by craigbrigantine Weight training would help you add size better than any swimming routine... so why not put 30 minutes 3x a week into a proper compound movement weightlifting routine? That would be ideal but he's looking for a swim workout to accomplish his goal.

RE: workout for size?

Former Member — Sat, 25 Feb 2006 17:03:15 GMT

Weight training would help you add size better than any swimming routine... so why not put 30 minutes 3x a week into a proper compound movement weightlifting routine?

RE: workout for size?

Former Member — Sat, 25 Feb 2006 10:52:55 GMT

I understand, but he is not going to add much muscle (if any) just swimming. MrDave, I recommend you reconsider weightraining. It won't take much more time and you might enjoy it.

RE: workout for size?

Former Member — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 15:34:24 GMT

Atrophy/Hypertrophy. Good points JazzHands. I think that swimmers tend not to develop large muscles partly because their bodies are never given a chance to grow back, and grow larger, the damaged tissue.

RE: workout for size?

Former Member — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 15:23:16 GMT

I'm actually trying the same thing right now, but I've been going for less than a month so I can't say I know exactly what to do. I think it helps a lot to sprint with fins and paddles, but not on consecutive days. You gain muscle during recovery, not during training. More important than how you train is how you eat. You need a healthy diet that is very high in protein. Aim for one gram per day per pound of body weight. You can get that pretty easily by drinking a lot of milk and eating a lot of meat. I recommend skim milk and lean meat, because they won't fill you up as much with fat. Drink water constantly, and make sure you are getting all of the vitamins you need. A variety of fresh fruits and vegetables will help you there, as will a daily multivitamin pill. The great thing about building muscle from swimming is that it will make you a lot faster in the water. That's my goal, and I'm already seeing a difference.

RE: workout for size?

Former Member — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 13:21:56 GMT

My guess would be lots of sprinting.