Fat Burning Workout?

Ok....so there have been alot of people to view my post! I started my first official day of my "weight loss swimming" routine. My goal is to do a Swim-a-thon in April. If you read this and have even the slightest encouragement that would help me out big time! Thanks!!!

I would suggest getting a book or video that explains intervals, sets, etc and that also gives sample workouts. There are also a lot of workouts on this site. I like Emmit Hines' "Fitness Swimming" and also Phillip Whitten's "The Complete Book of Swimming". As for encouragement, I personally lost 35 lbs in about a year and a half - without completely starving myself! I even competed in my first triathlon in August. Believe me - if I can do it, you can do it. You just have to make it a priority. For me, it's family, work, swimming. And sometimes it's family, swimming, work!:D

Seems to me the first place to start is with a sport watch with a stop watch function and split times function. I got one for about 15 bucks at Walgreens. Then use the watch to see how long it takes you to swim at an easy or moderate pace 50 yards, 100 yards, 200 yards, 400 yards, 500 yards, etc. in different strokes. Then check out the workouts posted on this site and modify the intervals and sets to match your level of fitness. Start out without putting a lot of emphasis on the split times and distance but just get a basic understanding of how you swim a set and how much rest you need during a set and between sets to make the workout. If you know your fitness level now, great but making sure you don't overdo it at first is important not only for injury and health reasons but also for motivation reasons. Just a thought. Good luck.

jenn- When you start swimming again, do not forget to work on good technique on all of your strokes... it will help prevent injury (and you'll look really good too)! Don't forget to stretch!!! If you get Zoomers, they are an awesome fin to practice with. If you have a strong kick (very flexible ankles), purchase the RED ones. If you have weak kick, get the BLUE. I'd just thought that I'd insert that info... some people do not know that. If you have difficulty starting out w/ the interval sets, find a proper heart rate to swim at (those cardio charts at workout centers are nice), check b/t each swim (between each 50, 100 or whatever you are doing), and rest 10 or 15 seconds between each swim. My coach in H.S. did that... I believed it helped us considerably. Quick way to check pulse b/t swims is to count your pulse for 6 seconds and multiply times 10. Good luck! I'm starting back again as well... I think it's been about 5 years.... a swim-a-thon is a great goal!!! Have fun!!!:p

Thanks everyone! I have the blue zoomer fins which I like to use while kicking on my back, arms streamlined and when doing fly. I really would like to join Masters but I am very overweight and I probably would not be able to compete yet. When you join Masters is it required to compete right away? Are there any people overweight that have joined?

I'd second using Fitness Swimming by Emmett Hines. I am currently working my way through the workouts and my form has improved considerably. I also picked up a pair of zoomers fins and once a week do a workout with the fins. They are supposed to help you raise your heart rate which is good for improving aerobic conditioning and for burning fat.

Jenn -- I don't know whether it's critical to buy a watch or any fancy equipment. Really, it seems to me that you just want to get "better". There are so many directions that "better" can come from -- not only speed per lap, but how many laps you can do before you have to stop to rest, how long you need to rest between sets/reps, how long you can keep your workout going, etc. You have until April. no need to panic or rush. If the pool you use has a pace clock, that should be all the electronics you need. Swim 50 yards. (Or even 25 if that's where you're at now.) See how long it takes you to do it at a comfortable pace. Try it again. Was it slower? Rest a little longer in between. See how long you need to rest between swims to keep the same pace from repetition to repetition. See if you can sustain that for 5 or 10 repetitions. Maybe it takes you a week just to figure this much out. You have until April, so that's OK. If you were doing 50 yards in the above exercise, see if you can do that same pace for 75 or 100 yards. Maybe it takes you another week to make that happen. Not bad! When you get that down, then extend it to 150 yards. And so on. And as you are progressing through the weeks, see if you can cut one second off the pace per 50 yards. And/or see if you can cut 5 seconds off your rest interval. And/or see if you can increase the number of repetitions by one or two. No huge chunks. Just a series of baby steps. Over time, enough baby steps translate into a giant step. You don't recognize it until one day in February when you look back and see what you used to be doing in November. And then one day in April you look back and see what you ised to be doing in February. A log book helps you see this. Swim-a-thon -- what is the goal of that event? To see how many laps/yards/miles you can do in a certain time? Or to see how long it takes you to cover a certain distance? (These are different goals, and you can tailor your training depending on what the goal of the swim-a-thon is.) My advice is not to over-think this. Just find out where you are at today, put a stake in the ground, and slowly grow from there.

If you join Masters, it's not required to compete at all! Many, many swimmers join so that they have friends/like minded individuals to help thim stick with their exercising - and nothing more.

Masters is a great way for a former swimmer to get back into shape. Any swimmer, any shape... big or small, fast or slow, young or old are all on a masters team. You can let your coach help you get your form back into shape and a workout is posted... You don't ever have to compete if you don't want to. Masters teams offer great hours to practice, depending on the team, in the morning, lunchtime, or evenings... it's very conventient for a Master.

Way to go Jen! 6 months ago I would have laughed at anyone who said that I'd be swimming a mile three times a week by now.... only it's 2 miles :) in about 70 minutes. If you keep at it you'll be in fine shape before you know it - be prepared to buy new clothes :) I like those zoomers too - perhaps to the point that I may use them too much.