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Quoted message said:Hello,
I have recently(4 weeks) began swimming at the gym in the morning,
freestyle for about 30 minutes or so. I swim a few laps, take a
breather and continue.
I am already noticing the 'belly' receding and some mild toning, but I
keep reading that you don't really build muscle while swimming as much
as tone it.
Toning muscle, as most people use the term, is a myth. While you can
actually increase muscle tone through lifting heavy weights, on the
order 80% or more of your one-repetition maximum, done for sets of 3-6
reps (or other, similar strategies), for most people, what they mean by
"tone" is achieved by lowering bodyfat. That's worth repeating - what
most people mean by muscle tone is achieved by lowering bodyfat and
through almost any regularly-practiced exercise program.
Quoted message said:What type of 'weight workouts' do you guys do to build muscle?
Ask on a weightlifting newsgroup such as misc.fitness.misc, or
misc.fitness.weights. In mfw, the noise-to-signal ratio isn't always
very good, but there are knowledgeable people who can and do answer. Be
careful to ask a very specific question after first giving enough
details about your background to make a specific answer possible.
Quoted message said:Also, do you workout first and then swim, or do you alternate days to
focus on each?
All ways are possible. My point of view: all other things being equal,
do what matters most to you first. When I was primarily a swimmer, I
swam first and lifted a few weights afterwards. Now that I'm primarily
a lifter, I get in the pool after all my lifting is done, just to put in
a few hundred yards for fun as much as any other reason. You may
certainly alternate days. If your priority is swimming, then I would
look for a minimalist type of lifting program that doesn't take a lot of
your time and energy. In the recent thread entitled "dryland training,"
I posted a reply to the original question which you might find worth
reading on this subject.
Quoted message said:I am hooked on swimming, wish I would have gotten started earlier(26
now).
Welcome aboard. Swimming is a wonderful thing - I didn't learn how to
do it until I was 27.
-S-
http://www.kbnj.com
Quoted message said:Thanks
