Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

__steve__ — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 12:43:34 GMT

Hands down, swimming is the best way to achieve fitness.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 08:05:47 GMT

Hands down, swimming is the best way to achieve fitness. Undoubtedly! But doing a bit of others is also good and helps for general fitness…

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:31:38 GMT

The reason swimmer's "can't lose weight" it because of their diet. Any form of exercise uses calories. For every 3500 calories burned more than you take in, you burn a pound of fat. With that said, runners, bicyclists etc. exercise in a warm environment. When they exercise their body temperature raises. Swimmers swim in a controlled environment, and have a lower body temperature while exercising. When you exercise your body has a hunger mechanism, to replace the fuel you've spent working out - calories. For runners and bicyclists their hunger mechanism is blunted because of the higher body temperature. Swimmers don't get quite that same benefit. Check this chart: www.brianmac.co.uk/fatcent.htm near the very bottom. Personally I'm losing weight just fine. I am 6'4" and weighed 185 pounds in high school. In high school I bicycled 35-50 miles 5 days a week and swam 2500-5000 yards a day 5 days a week (depending if we had 2-a-days or not). Three weeks ago I weighed 227.5 pounds after not swimming or bicycling for several years. Now, watching my diet and swimming 5,000 yards roughly 6 days a week I am down to 222.5 pounds. The secret? Burn more calories than you take in, it takes discipline.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:11:42 GMT

My personal history is that I can lose a LOT of weight when swimming with a good combination of workout frequency/duration/intensity AND if I am very careful about my diet (solids AND liquids). That is true with my cycling also, can't speak to other activities. Exercising so I am tired seems to have the strongest correlation to losing weight. It definitely blunts my appetite for several hours -- I get too tired to eat! and the foods I want are "healthier", not junk food that would be more appealing when in a sedentary lifestyle.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:03:55 GMT

Bone density I am not worried about. Calcium is the cure for that, though I am just interested in how swimming will help strengthen a knee, which it does as swimming relies a lot on the knee. But when I say strengthen a knee, that means every part of the knee including the bone though. I will look at other activities for that too.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 12:14:34 GMT

Someone below said various heart monitors etc don't work well in the pool, but is there still a way to monitor the distance I have swum and my heartrate in the pool? Distance is easy, count laps. You can take your heart rate the old fashioned way, count the number of heart beats for 10 seconds and multiply by 6. Or even better, don't multiply by 6, just memorize your target heart rates divided by six. For example, if your target is aerobic, and aerobic for you is 120 beats/minute, then you want your 10 second heart rate to be 20+. Your original questions have been answered in detail but I didn't notice anyone mentioning bones. If you are worried about osteoporosis at all, you need to add some weight bearing activities to your swimming. Swimming does not maintain bone density, but adding something as simple as walking the dogs will.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 06:32:16 GMT

There was a recent study published by Stephen Blair and colleagues that found swimming in men was associated with lower all-cause mortality than being sedentary or walking for exercise. I believe that study by Steven Blair is described here uscnews.sc.edu/.../02022009-HLTH029.html "Swimming cuts men’s risk of dying by about 50 percent compared with running, walking and not exercising, according to a study by Dr. Steven Blair" and published in IJARE, 2(2), May 2008 hk.humankinetics.com/.../bissues.cfm It appears he talked about in a keynote at a conference www.nspf.com/.../BlairKeynote.html That organization (NSPF) apparently helped fund the research, the results of which are again described in nspf.com/.../PR_Blair.pdf "Dr. Blair also found that regular swimmers had a higher cardiorespiratory fitness than walkers and sedentary people." I have not read the full study and my instinct is that the results are too good to be true, but he seems to have excellent credentials. The release indicates the study involved 40,000 athletes and spanned 32 years. But, if mortality difference were true to that extent, I think it would generally have been recognized before any study was done. Without seeing the details, I'd offer these concerns... Are these comparisons (e.g., swimmers vs runners) valid for weekend athletes, health/fitness athletes (non-competitive, 3 workouts a week), and/or competitive athletes, or does it blend them all together (in which case, are the mixtures per sport similar)? How does the study handle the situation of athletes that may quit their sport due to injury or disability/illness? Is there a (unintended) bias due to swimming or walking being prescribed by doctors for health, injury or weight issues? Or a bias due to financial differences (affecting health care options, etc.) in the populations for the different activities? (Please note, I am neither a physician nor trained in public health.)

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 12:47:50 GMT

What I want from swimming is an exercise which will work my entire body (This seems to be it). I am in the uk and as such have no masters program. My ability is average, I just haven't had much practise in treading water so can't go in a pool with depth taller than my height. I did have the breathing/head tilting routine perfected but lack of practise has meant I am rusty and this is always what is holding me back. I remember the theory, just need to practise (got time to swim regularly, had a career commitment to handle over the last few months). Someone below said various heart monitors etc don't work well in the pool, but is there still a way to monitor the distance I have swum and my heartrate in the pool? Thanks

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Sat, 23 May 2009 16:30:18 GMT

Most people who swim fail to lose weight. Similarly, most people who diet fail to lose weight. Your results may differ.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Sat, 23 May 2009 07:47:14 GMT

Hi Blade, Join a Masters training program...do it! Tell the trainers about your knee AND tell you doc/pt about the training. I have found nothing but encouragement from the others in the program, including the trainers. Swimming (the way they will train you) is GREAT for the heart. My BP and my resting heart rate, weight and waist size are all down since I started swimming, and that is good for my heart. The lower bp will put less strain on your heart and the lower resting heart rate will cause your heart to not work as much during normal activities. Lower BP also equates to less turbulence. Areas of high turbulence (within the arteries) are more subject to clots. Swimming will strengthen virtually all of your leg muscles (some more than others) but do consult the trainer and your doc 1st. When you flex, extend or otherwise move your leg in water, your knee is subject to whatever effects that water wants to have on your lower leg. That water is usually moving, you are rotating and inertia has a field day, applying twisting forces on your joints that we normally wouldn't bother to notice. Trust me don't play with it, consult first. Regarding the comments on swimming and weight loss.... I started swimming (daily) in mid March. I now eat like a horse, every day. In that time I have lost 28lbs and several inches off of my waist, all from swimming. Will splashing around in the pool for 30 minutes a day do much? Probably not. Join/stick to a program and if you are overweight, you will lose. If you are not overweight, you will get into/maintain shape.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

orca1946 — Sat, 23 May 2009 07:11:35 GMT

Swimming & running seem to be the sports that can go into old agee, with swimmers winning in the long time event of life!

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Fri, 22 May 2009 16:35:45 GMT

I hear people all the time say that you can't lose weight swimming. I think that's a myth. Just because some people didn't lose weight it doesn't mean it's a general conclusion. Among others, I find that swimming regularly seems to have improved my balance: when I'm standing in a moving train without holding a handle, I can balance more easily than before. I wonder if this is indeed due to swimming :confused:

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Fri, 22 May 2009 16:30:32 GMT

I had one knee dislocation and completely tore my ACL/PCL/LCL with peroneal nerve stretching/bruising, ripped lateral arcuate ligament complex from bone, etc. It was a hyperextension injury - the knee was easily hyperextending 45 degrees after injury with zero resistance. I had repair surgery then a later ACL reconstruction when the repair failed. I was off work for 6 weeks recuperating and in a lot of pain from the nerve damage (no painkillers). For 3 months I felt like a zombie, unable to sleep more than an hour or two a night. I was in physical therapy for about 5 months (~12 hrs/week). After the injury I was medically retired from all gravity-bearing activities to preserve my knee as much as possible. I was told I would still need a total knee replacement after 10 years. Swimming is wonderful as an overall fitness activity. My orthopedist loves it. I began swimming as soon as I was off crutches; I joined a Masters team as soon as I was released from PT. During my first entire year I had to wear a leg brace but I had a sports brace that I was able to wear in the pool. During that year I perfected the one-legged flip turn and push-off. All was good except breaststroke. I also continued with rehab exercises and weight lifting to strengthen my legs. Soon after my reconstruction I was cleared to do racing starts "taking it easy". I had to adapt my open turns and backstroke starts to accommodate for knee stiffness. I wore fins as the workout directed, but I didn't kick so hard as to cause joint pain. As time went by, I was able to ditch the leg brace and increase the force I used on starts/turns/push-offs. Breaststroke was still a weak spot - it was painful and I was very stiff, so I limited it to swimming IM in meets or timed swims. I had some slips walking on a wet pool deck which tore some knee scar tissue resulting in 6 weeks of pain but with the end result of increased flexibility. I had an MRI and the orthopedist showed me how bad the joint looks with a bone spur the size of my pinkie finger, fused tibia/fibula, and smaller spurs riddling the joint. This past year I took up cycling on a "real" bike, not a stationary bike. It has been superb for increasing my leg strength. My knee is now in its best condition since I tore it up. It also complements swim training very nicely. With the increased strength and flexibility my breaststroke is better, although I still limit it to avoid knee pain. I would have had a lot more trouble cycling without the fitness I had built up swimming. I'm slow and I don't get much power out of the bad knee, but it is non-weight bearing and the good leg can compensate. Swimming is something I can do when my legs don't want to ride, when weather is bad, etc. I am also able to swim more days/week than I could handle on a bike. My injury was in 1991 so I've gotten 18 years without having to replace the knee and I hope to continue much longer without surgery. Walk slowly like a grandma on the pool deck and be very careful of slips/falls. Swimming is an excellent activity to improve cv fitness and allow you to work your legs as little or as much as you can. Best of luck with your knee.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Fri, 22 May 2009 15:37:06 GMT

I think swimming can be as good for your heart as anything except perhaps cross country skiing and endurance (elite) cycling. But it could also probably be similar to walking. It depends on your level of effort. If you putz around on a kickboard with fins it may do little for you. If you swim intervals and make yourself breathe hard swimming will definitely improve your fitness. Runners and cyclists often use heart rate monitors to gauge their effort. But swimmers don't because the chest strap and transmitters just don't work so well in the pool. But if your heart rate is 150 in swimming - I'm pretty confident your cardiovascular benefit is the same as if your were running at 150 beats/min. I read in a Swimming magazine article that swimming tends to produce slightly lower heart rates than running or cycling for equivalent perceived effort. That is due to the constant cooling effect of water.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Fri, 22 May 2009 06:03:31 GMT

Oh - your actual questions ... How good is swimming for the heart? I know it forces my heart to work, but is it good to keep it in shape? Definitely. Even if you are completely unconditioned, you can get in great shape given that you have sufficient duration/intensity/frequency. Is swimming good for strengthening a knee? To some extent. It is very kind on bad knees but may require supplementary exercise (weights, bike). I assume I would have to do quite a lot of swimming to make up for the lack of other exercise. How many hours a week would I have to put in (assuming I swim constant lengths with some rest in between - or as far as I can, but not just standing in the pool). "Fitness" depends on your goals. For cardio fitness probably 1000 yards nonstop 3x/week will provide bare minimum fitness. That won't do much for your knees. I highly recommend a Masters team with 4x/week structured workouts 1 to 1-1/2 hours. You will have a much higher level of fitness and improved strength with interval training and variety in the sets than if you just stick to nonstop lap swimming, and the time will pass by quickly. BTW change your mindset from "have to do" to "want to do"... :) Getting back into swimming was one of the best things I've done even though it was due to bad circumstances.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

aztimm — Fri, 22 May 2009 01:49:44 GMT

I think it all depends on the time, intensity, and how often you swim. Sure, compared with doing nothing at all, I'm certain you'll notice some changes. Once your body adjusts to the new exercise, at least for me, it seemed to compensate. Compared with running during a similar timeframe, I get much more bang for my buck running than swimming. After only swimming for about 8 years, I wasn't really getting anywhere...improving swimming and my weight+waist had turned for the worse. I was at 190-195# with a 34" waist. After just 3 months of running 3x/week (about 1 to 1-1/2 hours each), I dropped 20#, and my waist went down to a 30". Not only that, but my swimming also improved. Certainly in an overall fitness plan, that includes diet, various aerobic+strength exercise, and stretching, swimming does have a place.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

gobears — Fri, 22 May 2009 01:44:47 GMT

I think that's a myth. Just because some people didn't lose weight it doesn't mean it's a general conclusion. Among others, I find that swimming regularly seems to have improved my balance: when I'm standing in a moving train without holding a handle, I can balance more easily than before. I wonder if this is indeed due to swimming :confused: Core strength. Think you get that from swimming pretty easily from dolphin kicking, flipturns, etc... I find the same thing true for myself.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

DPC — Thu, 21 May 2009 09:47:59 GMT

Short answer - it is a great way to get and stay in shape if you put some effort into it. If you spend an hour basically floating around you're wasting your time. If you work your way up to 3K yards or meters in an hour and push your self a bit, you will really benefit - of course your mileage may vary. In the past 12 months I lost nearly 50 lbs, dropped 4 inches on my waist. Good for the heart - my blood pressure is down in the solid normal rage, enough to getting off my meds. My pulse rate went from 76 to 56. So good here too. As for the knee - little stress on the joints, you can work the muscle groups in the water with the right exercise program. It chould also help with flexibility and range of motion. Kicking is a great workout for the legs. And I find it a better exercise than running - because I don't feel old and creeky as i do when I ran, and I don't miss or skip workout because my knees or back feel like they are about to shatter. I say try it out and if it works, you win. Some people just don't find swimming to be their exercise - it is harder than it looks. Good luck with the knee.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

Former Member — Thu, 21 May 2009 09:26:27 GMT

With all sports you get out of it what you put in. Swimming is very good at getting the heart in shape because it is required for a full body work out. To keep it in shape there needs to be a training program set in place that works on more aerobic capacity to build more strength for the heart. I am not sure how good swimming is for stregthening the knee but I'm sure there are some in water exercises that can be done for strengthening the knee. If there are huge problems then I would suggest not pushing off the walls because that is where a lot of stress would come from. Your last question would be a hard one to answer because the more fitness you will gain will allow for you to swim faster to gain more ground in a set time period. So if you swam 100 on 3 min. for 1 hr. you would get 2000 yards/meters in but if you did it on 2 min. you are getting 3000 yards in. There needs to be an assessment of your fitness to determine how long you would swim for. Also if you are swimming sets for a workout then you might cover less yardage but get your heart stronger through less rest. It is difficult to give a set amount if there is no starting point to base it off of. Good luck with training.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

tjrpatt — Thu, 21 May 2009 08:18:44 GMT

I hear people all the time say that you can't lose weight swimming. Within the last maybe 17 months, I lost alot of my weight from swimming. But, I think that the key is to build up your yardage and always increase your intensity. Drop you pace 100s when you are comfortable. If you are just doing 80 laps with minimal effort, then I don't think that you will see the results as you would if you intensify your swimming workouts over time.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

jim thornton — Thu, 21 May 2009 05:29:06 GMT

Hi, Blade, There was a recent study published by Stephen Blair and colleagues that found swimming in men was associated with lower all-cause mortality than being sedentary or walking for exercise. This is not all that surprising. But the study also found that swimming was superior to running, and by a fairly significant amount. More research needs to be done, and Dr. Blair told me he was not willing to "go out on a limb" yet and declare that swimming is definitely better for you than running. But it appears to be at least as good, and there are theoretical reasons why it might actually be better. If you want, send me an email jamesthornton1@comcast.net and i will send you a copy of the study along with some other work done by Dr. Joel Stager on the robust health of aging masters swimmers. As far as how much to swim, the CDC recommends a half hour a day of moderate exercise. Most swimmers don't just swim straight through but rather do interval training, which increases the effort quite a bit while building in some rest to allow you to go hard again. Personally, I would recommend going to a practice for 1 hour or so, three times a week. You can always add more, but this would be an excellent base. Definitely consider trying to link up with a masters team in your area. You don't have to be good or want to compete, but you will thank yourself for joining a team. There's so much you can learn from a good coach and the fellowship of your teammates. Good luck.

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

SLOmmafan — Thu, 21 May 2009 05:28:54 GMT

Expanding on "how much" swimming you need to stay in shape - it is all really a question of intensity. If I am doing a lot of sprints and fast set repeats, I can feel like I have gotten a complete workout in 30-45 minutes. I think you will find the "average" masters team practices between 1 - 1.5 hours, and puts in around 2500 - 3500 yards/meters in that time period. Naturally improving stroke technique and getting a "feel" for the water will make swimming these long distances easier. Good luck with recovery and hope you stay in the water even after you are healed!

RE: Some questions about swimming's contribution to fitness

SLOmmafan — Thu, 21 May 2009 05:24:29 GMT

The general answer to your question is "yes" - swimming will contribute to your overall fitness level. It will increase your endurance, strength, and keep to toned. There is a lot of "back and forth" on if swimming helps with weight loss, but in general it is a great way to burn calories and if you watch your diet can contribute to weight loss as well. As far a the knee, swimming is generally easy on the bones and joints in the body. New evidence has come to light that swimming also helps strengthen bones - once thought only to happen through "impact" exercises like running, etc. That being said, certain styles of swimming (breaststroke kick in particular) can actually be hard on the knees and you also have to be award of potential shoulder problems from overuse or improper stroke.