Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

Former Member — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:05:03 GMT

Weight lifting (when done properly) can improve shoulder stability thus reducing the chance for injury.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

__steve__ — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 09:16:51 GMT

Most of my permanent injuries (broken bones not included) are from road and mountain bike racing/rides from over 15 years ago. However, recently one of few non-injured parts of my body (right shoulder) has started to ache:bitching:. I cannot pinpoint if the cause is related to swimming, weight lifting, other activities (i.e., work, yard work, etc), or a combination of these, but I do favor my right arm while swimming and feel it's partly from overexertion throughout my 2 year swimming history.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

Former Member — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 15:04:01 GMT

I have to say strength training. I torn tendon in my shoulder joint,then left it injuried for about 6 months. Totally trashing my shoulder joint,now I am careful with everything so I can save my shoulder to swim. My orthopedic surgeon blames swimming for increasing the disease in my joint,but the smell of chlorine and the feel of the water when you jump in , keep me swimming.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

Former Member — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 08:46:16 GMT

???? Not sure I get the point of these dumbbell bashing posts. As with all things, if you don't know how to properly use somthing, leave it alone. But... If you want to identify strength differences between arms? Use dumbbells. If you want to create a blance between right and left side strength. use dumbbells. If you want to recruit more stabilizer muscles during your lifts? Use dumbbells. If you want to be able to attack muscle groups from differing angles to create more overall strength? Use dumbbells. If you don't know how to properly use dumbbells, stick to the machines. Spot on, Paul. I've been using dumbbells and cables a lot lately. So much more freedom of movement than barbells (and machines!) which means less joint stress.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

Former Member — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 07:57:04 GMT

???? Not sure I get the point of these dumbbell bashing posts. As with all things, if you don't know how to properly use somthing, leave it alone. But... If you want to identify strength differences between arms? Use dumbbells. If you want to create a blance between right and left side strength. use dumbbells. If you want to recruit more stabilizer muscles during your lifts? Use dumbbells. If you want to be able to attack muscle groups from differing angles to create more overall strength? Use dumbbells. If you don't know how to properly use dumbbells, stick to the machines. Well put. In my experience in gyms, people (okay, men) seem to put on too much weight too fast with dumb bells. I think its because you can bail-out on them by dropping them to your sides with that "too cool sound." No fear of the bar leads to over-confidence and injury. (IMHO)

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

That Guy — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 05:47:56 GMT

???? Not sure I get the point of these dumbbell bashing posts. As with all things, if you don't know how to properly use somthing, leave it alone. But... If you want to identify strength differences between arms? Use dumbbells. If you want to create a blance between right and left side strength. use dumbbells. If you want to recruit more stabilizer muscles during your lifts? Use dumbbells. If you want to be able to attack muscle groups from differing angles to create more overall strength? Use dumbbells. If you don't know how to properly use dumbbells, stick to the machines. I agree on all points! The comedy comes from the people who don't follow your last recommendation. My favorite stereotype is the white-haired man with 50-pound dumbbells who thinks he is doing standing bicep curls. He straightens his knees and thrusts his pelvis with each repetition so that his biceps are lifting far less weight than it would appear. But he doesn't know that. As far as he knows, he's as strong as he was when he was in the service.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

pendaluft — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 05:08:49 GMT

Put me in the pro dumbbell group!! 1. Good for balancing your muscles and involving all those little stabilizers. 2. Safer than barbells and they take up less room. 3. More satisfying than machines (you are actually moving real weight) 4. Looks good in the mirror while lifting (no comedy I assure you) 5. I have had and seen more injuries from machines -- with less results 6. Better range of motion than machines What's not to love?

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

pwolf66 — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 03:40:15 GMT

Yes, but the comedy value of watching other people use dumbbells mandates that they be kept around. ???? Not sure I get the point of these dumbbell bashing posts. As with all things, if you don't know how to properly use somthing, leave it alone. But... If you want to identify strength differences between arms? Use dumbbells. If you want to create a blance between right and left side strength. use dumbbells. If you want to recruit more stabilizer muscles during your lifts? Use dumbbells. If you want to be able to attack muscle groups from differing angles to create more overall strength? Use dumbbells. If you don't know how to properly use dumbbells, stick to the machines.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

That Guy — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 03:32:50 GMT

One might dare say that dumb bells are the Sarah Palin of exercise--attractive to some in a weird way, but ultimately a horrible, horrible mistake to get involved with. Yes, but the comedy value of watching other people use dumbbells mandates that they be kept around.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

jim thornton — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 11:02:36 GMT

If this were a presidential election, I think we would all be forced to agree: swimming enjoys an overwhelming relative safety record compared to that disastrous activity, weight/dryland training, which would be an abject laughing stock were it not so potentially dangerous. One might dare say that dumb bells are the Sarah Palin of exercise--attractive to some in a weird way, but ultimately a horrible, horrible mistake to get involved with. Finally, we forumites have managed to identify a subject with absolutely no controversy! And they said it could not be done! Ha! I retort. Ha! Ha! Which, alas, probably means that this will be the last posting on my poll, everything that can possibly be said on the topic having now been said!

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

fritznh — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 10:24:58 GMT

I managed to get nine stitches hitting my heel on the wall about two years ago. The nice thing about Masters swimming is that we had three doctors in the pool, one of whom was a podiatrist who bandaged me up and sent me on my way to the emergency room. Despite this, I did vote for weight training causing more injuries per unit time than swimming simply because I swim more. But I've found that a combination of weights, swimming and other activities (like Yoga or biking) mixes things up enough to avoid most injuries. As an aging athlete, if I hit one muscle group too much and don't allow any recovery time, I'm much more likely to hurt myself.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

Former Member — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 15:36:40 GMT

Ooooh, I've done that! On my one and only foray into the 50 free, in a college dual meet. For me it was back in HS... i was anchoring the 200 fr relay at a dual meet and i dove in 3/4 of a length behind the leader. Ended up touching the guy out for the win but at the expense of the elbow :afraid:

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

Chris Stevenson — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 04:33:25 GMT

Once I also did a hard finish during a race and hyperextended an elbow :badday:. Ooooh, I've done that! On my one and only foray into the 50 free, in a college dual meet. There can be no surer sign that is was an ill-fated attempt; I slunk back to my mid-D events...though I did have an awesome start, smoking those wimpy sprinters off the blocks... I've also broken my hand on a backstroke finish. And I've had one single bad-shoulder time (I know, lucky me) from using paddles that were too large on a backstroke set (again, college age). Now I only use paddles on freestyle. Doing pullups and similar exercises aggravates my tendency to have "golf elbow." And I once had terrible tennis elbow that was largely due to weight training, I think. But mostly weight training has also been injury-free for me. Knock on wood. I'll probably throw out my back next time I swim or do dryland.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

mjtyson — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 01:44:14 GMT

By the way, Mr. Tyson, I am glad you are swimming now that your boxing career is over. Who said my boxing career was over? ;)

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

Former Member — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 13:44:20 GMT

I've never had a weight lifting related injury, but I've had plenty of swimming injuries. Mostly limited to muscle pulls or on rare occasion strains, and both usually are from "oversprinting". Kindof like throwing your shoulder out. Once I also did a hard finish during a race and hyperextended an elbow :badday:. I never had an injury or muscle pull of any kind from weight lifting, only muscle soreness, which is to be expected.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

orca1946 — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 11:53:43 GMT

The pool is where they send people that are hurt ! In the pool I know when to back off. It's in the gym that I push too much !

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

pendaluft — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 10:17:56 GMT

A few years ago I would have answered weight lifting for sure -- Since my non-triumphant return to swimming, however, I have had shoulder and elbow pains galore. Weight lifting seems to help. So for the past 2 years, I think I have to vote swimming (sorry swimming, you are still my favorite). I do think there should be a option for air-conditioner carrying -- I guess it is dry land-- the worse injury I have had in many years came from trying to install an air conditioner at my parents house.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

isobel — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 09:23:03 GMT

This is quasi-related to weights. My air conditioner weighs, I don't know, 700 pounds? I don't do anything but push it with my core (yeah, right) from the closet where I keep it over about 30 feet to my window. Then I precariously balance it on the ledge, letting the window hold it in place, while I fumble for various nails that no longer need to be hammered into place since they just slide in. As in the window holds the air conditioner in. Heck! It blocks my sunlight and my evening breeze! I hate having it in the window. So what I did yesterday was the wet T-shirt treatment: stand under the shower and drench myself. Then stand in front of the fan. This works but drips. My life is just full of dilemmas. Also, when my friend and I were hauling the air conditioner up the steep third flight of steps, my friend thought we were done (she was facing forward; her back was to me) so she let go. Ha! I wasn't about to watch $250 go bouncing down those stairs. So I caught it! Ouch! I turned and used the wall as my brace and caught it and held on to it for dear dinero. It really hurt my hip but that $250 did not go bouncing down the stairs. So let me think: was this my left side/left shoulder (the shoulder that is now kaput and lifting 5# weights to the back (I's) and 3# weights to the side and front (T's) and maybe shouldn't be? Ah, so it was. Don't lift air conditioners to get in swim shape, is the moral of this story. Don't have friends toss them to you like medicine balls.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

jgale — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 11:17:40 GMT

I have had more minor injuries from strength training/dryland workouts (circuit classes and plyometrics) than swimming, mostly due to poor/sloppy form. I jumped into a circuit class not too long ago and let my competitive nature get the better of my by trying to keep up with a group that had been attending the same class for quite some time. (I admit that I should know better!) Tweaked my shoulder a bit doing push ups. As a charter member of the "used to be" club (as in I used to be stronger, thinner, faster, etc.), my brain remembers what my body has forgotten. I have to remember to allow a little more recovery time and to ease in to activities that I haven't done for a while.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

knelson — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:32:45 GMT

The only injury that caused me to miss training time in the last couple years was caused by doing pull-ups, so I voted for the weights/dryland option.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

jim thornton — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:28:30 GMT

I answered "weights/dry land" only because I had to stop running a few years ago because my knees are simply torn up. Cysts and missing meniscus (sp?) and now if I try to run anything longer than a mile, my right knee blows up like a puffer fish and for three days I limp. However, I've never hurt myself weight-lifting. My wife would say because I never push myself enough (she's a nut about lifting), but I would say it is because I lift safely. I lift twice a week, and mostly do "core" things. I never do any shoulders, as swimming gives me enough (TI people would say too much); I work on the muscles not stressed during FR swimming, like the biceps, but also back, triceps and my trunk. I have noticed improvements in both weight lifted and in my swimming, but the swimming increases could easily be attributed to my attention to technique. I must say that I share your philosophy here. Years ago, I asked the strength and conditioning trainer at our Y for some lifting advice to improve my swimming muscles. He told me that I get more than enough of that from swim training itself, but that what I needed to train were the muscles that swimming didn't tap. Doing so, he said, would correct imbalances and help prevent injuries from repetitive laps. I don't know if this philosophy still holds, but it seems on these forums, the diehard weight trainers amongst us endorse lifting and drylands more as a way of enhancing swimming strength per se than to correct muscle imbalances and prevent injuries. By the way, Mr. Tyson, I am glad you are swimming now that your boxing career is over.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

jim thornton — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:18:13 GMT

Hum di dum again. Wonderful to see you back! An Isobellian hum di dum is worth a thousand logorheac Thorntonian digressions. With regards to air conditioning, I am pretty sure it's a bit like pain medication. Best to start when the pain is still manageable, otherwise it can get away from you, and all the oxycontin in the world will have a hard time settling things down. I say, the next time your garret reaches 91 degrees, turn on the AC. Waiting till 93, though admirable, is too late.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

swimshark — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:35:48 GMT

Most of my injuries are from outside of swimming and weights. Most of my dry land, when done with the team, are non-weight bearing. We do jumps, jump ropes, running, etc. None of those have caused injuries. The only injury I've had from either dry land or swimming has been bursitis from doing the One Hour Postal swim in 2003 and going in to bad form near the end.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

isobel — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:16:06 GMT

Given your self-reports of injury, this statement is baffling to me. I question whether a competent physical therapist who is knowledgeable about sports-related shoulder injuries would be having you do these movements at all, let alone with these amounts of weight. I do a "T" exercise while lying face-down, lifting my arms toward the back while in external rotation, but I use only the weight of my arms for resistance. 3 extra pounds on each side would kill me. And I cannot imagine any reason I would ever try to lift a 5-pound weight up and over my head and backwards while lying on my front. It hurts just to think about it. I wondered about this myself. I had always been told to do isometrics out to the side and to the front, not weights. But I went to this PT and this is what she told me to do, and so I did it. I've gotten stronger but it is doing a number on my back and neck. As for the 5 pounds, I don't lift them up and over my head; I hold them with my arms straight back toward my feet, palms down, and lift them slightly off the floor, holding for 6 seconds, releasing, doing this 10 times (what you say you are doing I think isometrically). Hum di dum again. I think I will ditch these weight exercises and just do them isometrically. Thanks for the feedback. Digression: It is hard to find a PT who will take my insurance. That is the new reality with "health care for all" in Massachusetts. It is also hard to find specialists. All the ones who were recommended to me by my teammates would not take my insurance. But this is for another thread, that has already been posted, by Mr. Thornton. Self-employment has its drawbacks.

RE: Injury Poll: Swimming vs. Weight Lifting

mjtyson — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 08:51:37 GMT