Does anybody swim here?

[josh_did_what]

I'm thinking about starting swimming, for exercise not for sport, but I've heard a lot of people don't like it because it can be boring. I lost 60lbs a few years ago, and while overall I'm pretty happy, I've been self-conscious of the fact that I lack muscle tone (read: flabby). I hate running, and I have a hard time sticking with gym programs, so I read in GQ today about swimming and got interested.

Does anyone have any tips or resources for staying involved?
Thanks.

[acdelco]

I swim a couple times per week. great workout! First and foremost, stay hydrated! It is easy to forget to drink water when your are literally swimming in it. Second change it up by using a kick board, hand fins and flippers. Other than that, pich an apple, put it in the basket. Excellent cardio and should tone you up pretty well

[josh_did_what]

I swim a couple times per week. great workout! First and foremost, stay hydrated! It is easy to forget to drink water when your are literally swimming in it. Second change it up by using a kick board, hand fins and flippers. Other than that, pich an apple, put it in the basket. Excellent cardio and should tone you up pretty well

Huh?

Anyway when I get my paycheck this week I might get some hand fins, but I think they have kickboards at my pool.

[spoolin215]

So because you want to be more muscular you're going to start doing an aerobic endurance based activity?

Pick up something heavy, instead.

[josh_did_what]

So because you want to be more muscular you're going to start doing an aerobic endurance based activity?

Pick up something heavy, instead.

No I just want to be leaner. I know weights are good for that but I have a really hard time fitting so much stuff into my schedule, so I thought swimming might be a good all around exercise.

[acdelco]

Huh?

Anyway when I get my paycheck this week I might get some hand fins, but I think they have kickboards at my pool.

oops, I meant PICK an apple put it in your pocket, its something to think about when working on form.

[Papa Dras]

Swimming is great for you and the only people that would think it's boring are people that don't know how to swim, so they make an excuse. I have never swam competitively or anything, but I have always done it to some extent.

[josh_did_what]

oops, I meant PICK an apple put it in your pocket, its something to think about when working on form.

Ohhhh yea haha.

Went this morning. It was fun I suppose, I'm completley exhausted though. Much harder than I expected. Planning to go back tomorrow or wednesday morning schedule permitting.

[Tornado2dr]

Huh?

Anyway when I get my paycheck this week I might get some hand fins, but I think they have kickboards at my pool.

Do you swim well, now? I.E. do you have good form?

I recommend strongly that you stay away from hand fins/paddles until you get someone who isn't your swim buddy to critique your stroke. You can create serious pain for yourself.

See that over-45 but lean dude/gal who is always in the pool and looks like they're a machine? Ask them to watch you do a 100m as a favor.

[Papa Dras]

and then tell them that you'll watch them next

[josh_did_what]

Do you swim well, now? I.E. do you have good form?

I recommend strongly that you stay away from hand fins/paddles until you get someone who isn't your swim buddy to critique your stroke. You can create serious pain for yourself.

See that over-45 but lean dude/gal who is always in the pool and looks like they're a machine? Ask them to watch you do a 100m as a favor.

OK cool. One of my best friends is/was a swimmer so I'll ask him to come with me some times.

I did freestyle the whole time but (and this may sound like a dumb question) should I be doing backstroke or should I hold off until I have a trained partner?

And how long is a normal swim sesh? I did like 25-30 min, but I was hoping to do an hour. Then I did a few laps and was exhausted so I quickly changed my mind.

[leaftye]

I did freestyle the whole time but (and this may sound like a dumb question) should I be doing backstroke or should I hold off until I have a trained partner?

Since you're just doing this for weight loss, I don't see how it matters what you do so long as you're burning calories and aren't hurting yourself.

Too bad you don't live around here. Catching some waves is great exercise and fun enough that it'll keep you going out there.

[josh_did_what]

Since you're just doing this for weight loss, I don't see how it matters what you do so long as you're burning calories and aren't hurting yourself.

Too bad you don't live around here. Catching some waves is great exercise and fun enough that it'll keep you going out there.

Aye I live in Buffalo, NY currently, so no I dont have any waves . I love the Northeast and want to move out to New England after school, but I was just in south Florida this weekend, and we had a hotel on the beach, and damn was that nice lol.

[VW1.8Tsunami]

OK cool. One of my best friends is/was a swimmer so I'll ask him to come with me some times.

I did freestyle the whole time but (and this may sound like a dumb question) should I be doing backstroke or should I hold off until I have a trained partner?

And how long is a normal swim sesh? I did like 25-30 min, but I was hoping to do an hour. Then I did a few laps and was exhausted so I quickly changed my mind.

I was a competitve swimmer for 20 years. I still swim from time to time but just being on a team and having someone in your lane or in the lane next to you will really push you. YMMV.

There's no problem swimming all freestyle. Actually, I remember my coach telling newbs that they don't do the other strokes until they are better conditioned.

25-30min is decent for just starting out. I started again this year and that's all I could do at first. Just make sure you track your distance (usually yards) for each workout and try to add to it every workout. Also, swimming is something that you can get REALLY good at quickly if you do it everyday (5-6x/wk). Also, make things interesting by using sets.

Very Basic Example:
200 warmup
200 kick w/ fins
200 pull
200 drill (corkscrew, thumb up side, etc. google is your friend)
200 cool down

You can break down the 200s into 4x50s or whatever you feel like. For me, I always try to get up to 2000 yards per hour then I work on my speed. Once I can hit that in under an hour, I increase the yardage.

[vwbrvr6]

I was on a swim team in school. I just recently started swimming again just for fun/exorcize. It's funny that it seems like I have forgotten how to breath. LOL I keep getting splashes of water down my throat causing me to cough. I am doing mostly freestyle and pop in some breast stroke when I am getting out of breath. Unfortunately, they keep the pool to warm, and I find myself overheating. So my sessions are short.

Get some earplugs if you haven't already, makes life a lot easier keeping the water out of your ears.

[corradokreep]

To mix it up even more, you could do pool running. You look like an idiot but it's also a great workout. We would just do ladders of (for example) 15 seconds hard, 10 seconds rest, 30 seconds hard, 10 rest, 45, 15, 1:00, 15, 1:30, 15, 2:00, 15 rest etc. We would do it for like 30 to 45 minutes. That was what we'd do after a short run on our off days when I ran in college.

We also used the flotations you wrap around your waste. Skinny white kids don't float too well. But if you take the flotation off it's harder (but you'll most likely just compromise your form to make it work.)

[leaftye]

Swimming boost energy levels and increase acrobatic capacity.

Funny, but since you're a spammer, you can go kill yourself.

[71DubBugBug]

I was on a swim team in school. I just recently started swimming again just for fun/exorcize. It's funny that it seems like I have forgotten how to breath. LOL I keep getting splashes of water down my throat causing me to cough. I am doing mostly freestyle and pop in some breast stroke when I am getting out of breath. Unfortunately, they keep the pool to warm, and I find myself overheating. So my sessions are short.

Get some earplugs if you haven't already, makes life a lot easier keeping the water out of your ears.

similar here
i did club swimming as a kid, and a couple years in high school. I always had an extra few pounds, so was never super fast, other than in breaststroke
but long distances and open water were never a problem
getting into the pool agian, i forgot i had one speed, and that was quick, and I cant go for hours taking a breat every 6 or 8 strokes, can barely make it 4 these days

Funny, but since you're a spammer, you can go kill yourself.

lol, to op, make it your goal to reach the inner gutters, and keep stretching after each swim, you will be surprised how much your flexibility increases



one of these can make it a much more enjoyable experience

[mrothwell]

So because you want to be more muscular you're going to start doing an aerobic endurance based activity?

Pick up something heavy, instead.

Haha, let me guess, size 48 chest, size 40 waist, 5'8''?

[FlashRedGLS1.8T]

Haha, let me guess, size 48 chest, size 40 waist, 5'8''?

[leaftye]

It's too bad the moderators aren't worth a damn in this forum.

[pops]

Swimming is my main sport,I am a distance swimmer (1500m in the pool, anything more open water!). Swimming is an activity that burns lots of calorie, is easy on the joint parts, facilitates your weight, creates muscle strength and stamina, enhances heart fitness, calme down you off and refreshes you in summer.

Aden699, I like you. You seem to have a good head on your shoulders.

If you wind up spamming this place I'm going to hunt you down and kill you.