[mkendrick]

My only purpose in doing strength training is to look toned. Of course, there's all the added benefits that come with stronger muscles, but as long as I don't look excessively jiggly, I'm satisfied. I'm not trying to build up a bunch of muscle or get a really low body fat percentage or anything. That being said, I HATE strength training. I think it's boring, repetitive, and I have a hard time forcing myself to do it. I've tried switching up my routines, and I just can't make it fun.

Well I've started swimming, and I'm tired and sore all over afterwords. I've been doing 30 min of freestyle laps (basically, breast stroke and doggy paddle, haha...I'm not a great swimmer).

Anyways, I was wondering...will I get the same benefits from swimming as I do from doing the weight machines and free weights? They say that the best exercise is the one that you'll actually do. I'm having a hard time doing weights, but I enjoy swimming.

[Tomato]

Hi there,

I saw your post late last night but I could not reply.

In short, I would say - GO FOR IT!!!
A longer answer: I used to swim on a regular basis, 1x a week for 45 minutes, long time ago. The stupid hours the pool facility kept for lane swim forced me to get up at 5:25 am so that I was hitting the pool exactly at 6:00am - when they unlocked the doors from the change rooms to the pool. That was summer or winter. I guess I loved it enough to climb out of warm bed on pitch black winter mornings. At that time, i was not trying to lose weight, it was just something I enjoyed doing. I actually got nicely defined arms from the swimming, even though I swim only breast stroke (and I swim a somewhat different breast stroke - I don't go under water like it's customary here - I grew up in Europe and that's the way I was taught to swim. I also felt that swimming did a lot of good for my abdominal area.

Then I stopped (life happens). Of course, I gained weight (not only because I stopped swimming, there was a number of other reasons - depression, being horribly unhappy with myself, you know the reasons - we have all been there. ).
I resumed swimming last year again - I am happy that now the pool has better hours and I can sneak out for an extended lunch break and get a 35 minute swim in during the day (2x a week).
It is a good workout for the entire body. And do you know what, I just read in the last issue of Oxygen that breast stroke burns a whopping 590 calories per hour (only the butterfly burns more, all other styles burn less).
The magazine also included info re how many laps/lengths you need to swim to cover 1 mile so I started to count (I never counted before). Counting pushes me to go faster (i am a slow swimmer).
So if you enjoy swimming, SWIM!!!

Personally, I love weight lifting so I don't understand how somebody can not enjoy it but I DO understand that we are all wired differently. :-)

[julesp313]

I just started swimming again a few months ago - February, to be exact, when a fabulous new pool opened just two miles from my house. I hadn't swum laps in probably a decade or more, and the first few weeks were incredibly hard. I was sore, just like after a strength training workout. Now I am less sore but I am still aware of my muscles being worked. I personally love weight training, and I hate steady state cardio other than running, so I do 3x a week with a weight circuit (incorporating short cardio bursts), I swim twice a week for 40-45 minutes, and I run. And I think all of that combined gives me some pretty good muscle definition - unlike you, I am actually looking to build muscle, so I'm working hard on the weights. But swimming is has definitely contributed to my shoulders, back, and abs really starting to look like they belong on someone who's fit!

And as you said - the best form of exercise is the one you'll stick with! If you hate weights, go with something alternative that you love. It's a much better choice!

[kamilpratz]

It is often mentioned that swimming is one of the best exercises you can put your body through, using a combination of muscles throughout the entire body that few other exercises can match.
As we know exercise can help in growing taller naturally, this would naturally lead us to the question of whether or not swimming is a good exercise routine for increasing your height.

[Leap]

I love to swim! My mom "made" me be on swim team when I was younger and now I'm so glad she did. I'm also very glad for this thread. I thought I would have to add in some strength training, which I hate, but I'm just going to keep swimming. I know how to do all the strokes (even that awful, tiring butterfly), and it's gotten easier each time I've gone.

Once it does start getting easier, don't worry. The chlorine and the washing makes even the best swimsuits get ratty, and weight loss will make them too big! Wear them over the new one, for "drag". I can't wiat to have a drag suit!

[ICUwishing]

Lovelovelovelove swimming ... gravity is a true downer, and sweating is not something I enjoy particularly! I swam/swim competitively and can list a few positives: 1) in 30+ years, I've never had an injury. Sore, for sure ... but never damaged. 2) Swimming tones a body like nothing on the planet. 3) Swimmers tend to look younger than they are, regardless of age group (go to a Master's meet and you'll see what I mean!) 4) Swimmers are a happy bunch, generally. That being said, even the lifetime swimmers/coaches disagree about whether it can be the ONLY form of exercise. Reasons why include that swimming is not a weight-bearing exercise, and appears not to have any benefits for bone-density maintenance or increase. There was some flap a few years ago about swimming causing big increases in hunger, thought to be caused by the cooling effects of the water, and there's some concerns about chloramines causing breathing difficulties for some sensitive people in poorly-ventilated indoor pools. I've noticed that hardcore swimmers who don't do regular stretching or upper-body strengthening tend to get over-strong pectorals, which can cause a curled-forward posture that makes the collarbone especially prominent. I personally went through that one, but it's very easy to avoid.

Technique improvements are easy - the Total Immersion videos are really good and they also give swimming seminars all over the country.

Enjoy!