Well it is certainly working for me. Swimming is fantastic exercise. But I now only swim but also do a lot of water workouts with weights, water dance, aerobics, etc. I do running, steps, jumping up and down forward and backward, etc. There are all kinds of things you can do in the water that you can't do on solid ground.

A set of foam water weights is excellent for a good workout, too, as is (as someone else suggested) a kickboard. A lot can be done with a noodle and even a big plastic ball.

What a crazy thing for an aerobics teacher to say! And LOL if she is overweight too perhaps she should join you in the water

It is a super overall workout!

Thank you SO much everyone for all of the warm support! I went again today and stayed about an hour - this time I used a lap lane! They only have 3 sectioned off. I rec'd some tips from the lifeguard on how to swim better - I don't normally put my entire face in the water - but manage to swim freestyle - and she encouraged me to put my face under and basically taught me swimming the right way. She also gave me tips for treading water in the deep end while holding my hands over my head, she gave me lots of tips. I am in my mid 40s and have arthritis. Just feeling it this year, and the low impact is awesome - feels great on my entire body. I want to feel proud of my exercise choice. I will continue to lift weights and try things like "walk off the pounds" in small doses - but right now - the water is my friend. I detest changing out of the wet suit while at the pool - and I hate being there without a friend to chat away with - but right now - this pool is my "must do" thing every morning. I will keep swimming along - and building my endurance. Thank you each SOOOOOOOOO much! This is just fantastic support!! Oh as for being hungry - today for lunch after swimming I had a bowl of oatmeal. First bowl of oatmeal I've ever eaten. But it was filling and healthier than a cheeseburger and fries!!! Thanks so much everyone!!!!!!!!

Not only is the above true, but swimming is one of the best forms of exercise to increase lung capacity...because swimming forces you to have controlled breathing (and go slow enough that you can actually breathe). And this forces your lungs to be more efficient. Better lung capacity means more oxygen in your blood lower blood pressure, and the ability for your lungs (breathing) to keep up when you are doing exercises on dry land.

And, its great cross training if you are doing other weight bearing exercises. So keep it up!

I agree! It is great exercise. And there are a lot of fun ways to work out in the water besides laps, which I find incredibly boring. Foam water weights are great, as is a kickboard. And if you can't do much at first, no big deal. You will be surprised how fast you build up strength.

Today I got some new neat water workout equipment, too. Zoomers are neat swim fins that are short and not as hard to work with as the bigger ones.

http://www.swimoutlet.com/product_p/1267.htm

Also got some Speedo arm trainers but I just googled and they have been discontinued... probably why I got them half price! But I love them. Anyway, you can look around at swim shops, etc. and find water equipment that is not all that expensive.

My favorite is water dancing, which I made up myself and have never seen anyone else do. Just dance... in the water. Jump up and lift your arms, twirl around, whatever... to music if it is available. I just think it in my head, or sing if there is no one else around. But I plan to buy an underwater MP3 player.

Swimming and water workouts are FUN and VERY effective!

yeah, she's wrong... when I was on the swim team in HS I got down to my lowest, like 130-ish tops, and I would cram myself with Taco Bell after meets, swimming is a great way to get the heart rate up, my water aerobics instructor always emphasizes that to us, plus it works as both cardio and strength training because of the resistance of the water

And my scale has been "stuck" for ages... I swim and do hard water workouts with weights, so it is not just "swimming" but workouts in the pool. Even though my scale was not moving, I am wearing a smaller size pants... and the waistband is about 3" smaller on the smaller size pants. And my friend just told me I look a LOT smaller than I did when she saw me in October, even though I have lost only 3-4 pounds.

Actually I remember watching a documentary about the Boston Marathon (i think) and the woman who won had a major injury and her training was done on an underwater treadmill lol. So yes I'd say get in the pool and laugh off the nonsense.

For sure! There are always going to be the naysayers... forget about them and go do your workouts!! I am living proof that it works!

I've started swimming 3 x a week at the Canada Games Pool here in town. They have half of the 51 meter pool set aside for laps (so about 25.5 meter lengths) and I strive to do as many as possible in 30-45 minutes. I don't count, as I found that by saying "well I'll just do 10" makes me go slower.

I've heard the mixed reviews on swimming, too. Some say that because of my weight, and how inefficient my body is at swimming, I'm not actually working anything enough to help with weight loss or toning. Others say that BECAUSE my body is inefficient (i.e. uses more energy than a skilled swimmer would), you get a better exercise.

Frankly, I'm of the opinion that anything that gets your heart rate elevated for a sustained period of time (30 min minimum) is a good thing. I can't really walk/jog enough to make enough of an impact on burned calories since I work at home and do schooling at home, as well as do a lot of housework, etc. Swimming seems to burn (from every calorie burner calculator I've tried) a heck of a lot of calories in a relatively short period of time AND I don't feel a lot of aches/pains while doing it, like I did when I was going to the gym where I used to work.

Keep at it!

I wish we could all get together and swim! Misti - thanks for all those tips - I should look into some equipment!

I was a competitive swimmer most my life and I can tell you that swimming is a complete body workout, even when you are just walking around (I say just because lap swimming is definitely more of a calorie burner than water walking) you burn calories due to resistance. I use to swim 8 hours a week and weighed 130 (in high school) and had little fat on my body, I looked amazing! Keep it up in the water, it is so worth it!

AND there are a lot of exercises you can do in the pool. I find lap swimming incredibly boring, so I invent all kinds of swimming strokes myself... such as lying on my back and swimming forward, swimming standing up (in deep water), etc. Also I love water dancing... just doing all my dance moves and also jumping up and going under. Water weights, kickboard, noodle, wearing "zoomers" (short fins)... the list of workouts you can do is endless. You are getting all the exercise you would by working out "on land" plus the huge extra benefit of the water resistance.

I think you get out what you put in when it comes to swimming. There's two regulars I see at my gym everytime I go to the pool; a man who's lost almost 200lbs. doing nothing but aqua aerobics (he's kinda like the unofficial mascot 'cause he's done so well the past two years) and a younger girl who goes almost every night to the aqua classes but is still hovering at 300lbs. because she'd rather socialize then put in an actual workout. It's really easy to either push yourself in the pool or let the water move you. I've lost several pounds with the aqua classes, but I make sure I push myself everytime I'm in that pool. The pool offers great resistance training and I've read that aqua zumba can actually be better than regular zumba because of the resistance the water provides. But again, if you're letting the water move you, you won't really lose anything. As far as what your instructor said.... I think the word instructor is used soooo loosely in today's gyms. Most instructing positions at gyms don't require any training or certification. I've seen my share of out of shape and overweight instructors, so I take what they say with a grain of salt. If you're pushing yourself in the pool and putting in real effort, I guarantee you'll see results.

I don't know how they could downgrade any exercise. I think swimming is a great total body workout and it's especially great for beginners as it's easier on the joints and makes the movements feel easier at the time, yet you'll definitely feel the burn the following day!
I would disregard what they said, you are doing an amazing job working out and do not let them discourage you in any way! Swimming is an excellent form of exercise! Keep up the great work!