Swimming is one
of the best activities that you can perform for overall
physical fitness. First, swimming involves almost all of
your major muscle groups. For example, the standard
crawl stroke uses the neck, shoulder, chest, back,
triceps, and biceps muscles of the upper body, the
abdominal, low back, and oblique muscles of the
midsection, and the gluteal, quadriceps, hamstrings, and
calf muscles of the legs.
Second, swimming
is an excellent exercise for conditioning your cardiovascular system.
Although you won't go as far in a 20-minute swim as you will during 20
minutes of walking, running, or cycling, the cardiovascular benefits are
essentially the same.
Third, swimming
seems to enhance joint flexibility, especially in the neck, shoulders,
hips, and midsection area. Much of this is due to the repetitive
twisting movements as your body turns from side to side during the crawl
stroke.
Of course,
exercising in water is a totally different experience than land-based
activity. For one thing, swimming requires a horizontal body position,
that places less stress on your heart with respect to blood circulation.
The gentle pressure of the water against your skin also enhances blood
circulation.
Because water is
an isokinetic medium, the resistance varies in proportion to your muscle
force. That is, when you give low muscle force against the water you
encounter relatively low resistance from the water, and when you give
high muscle force against the water you receive relatively high
resistance from the water.
Another
advantage of aquatic exercise is the cooling effect of the water. Unlike
hot weather activity on land, you are unlikely to overheat when
swimming. What could be better than a cool pool, lake or ocean in which
to exercise on a hot summer day.
With so many
reasons to enjoy swimming, why do so few adults spend time in the water?
The major problem for some adults is lack of confidence in their
swimming ability. This can be easily overcome by a few lessons or a
refresher swimming course. However, I find that most adults do not
understand how to swim long enough for fitness benefits. To make a land
activity analogy, they start out running rather than walking. In other
words, instead of starting with a slow swimming speed and gradually
picking up the pace new swimmers tend to sprint a lap or two, exhausting
themselves and ending their exercise session prematurely. By so doing,
they miss both the enjoyment and the fitness benefit of this fine
physical activity.
Although
swimming is excellent exercise, it should be performed in a relaxed
manner. Your arms and legs should feel loose and your movements should
be balanced and coordinated. If you feel tight or tense, simply slow
down and let the water work with you rather than against you. Because
the water buoys up your body, you can swim very slowly and still
maintain your top-of-the-water body position.
By the way,
unless you want to swim competitively, do not compare yourself with
other swimmers. Bodybuilding plays a major role in swimming speed, but
it has little effect on your fitness outcome. For example, people who
are wide from side to side and thin from front to back seem to skim over
the water surface like a surfboard. On the other hand, people who are
narrow from side to side and thick from front to back encounter much
more water resistance and must work much harder at a given swimming
pace. The solution is to swim for yourself at a comfortable speed, and
let the faster swimmers use the high speed lanes.
As an aerobic
conditioning activity, you should aim for at least 20 minutes of
continuous swimming. However, until you develop sufficient
cardiovascular endurance, you may vary the pace throughout your
20-minute swimming session. Consider the following training progression
for beginning a fitness-oriented swimming program. For best results,
stay within the guidelines that gradually increase the swimming distance
and the number of faster-paced laps.
Sample Beginning Swimming Fitness Program
Week 1:
Day 1:
Swim 100 yards (4 pool lengths) at a slow pace.
Day 2:
Swim 150 yards (6 pool lengths) at a slow pace.
Day 3:
Swim 200 yards (8 pool lengths) at a slow pace.
Week 2:
Day 1:
Swim 200 yards alternating slower-paced and faster-paced laps.
Day 2:
Swim 250 yards (10 pool lengths) alternating slower-paced and
faster-paced laps.
Day 3:
Swim 300 yards (12 pool lengths) alternating slower-paced and faster-
paced laps.
Week 3:
Day 1:
Swim 300 yards alternating 1 slower-paced with 2 faster-paced laps.
Day 2:
Swim 350 yards (14 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 2
faster-paced laps.
Day 3:
Swim 400 yards (16 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 2
faster-paced laps.
Week 4:
Day 1:
Swim 400 yards alternating 1 slower-paced with 3 faster-paced laps.
Day 2:
Swim 450 yards (18 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 3
faster-paced laps.
Day 3:
Swim 500 yards (20 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 3
faster-paced laps.
Week 5:
Day 1:
Swim 500 yards alternating 1 slower-paced with 4 faster-paced laps.
Day 2:
Swim 550 yards (22 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 4
faster-paced laps.
Day 3:
Swim 600 yards (24 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 4
faster-paced laps.
Week 6:
Day 1:
Swim 600 yards alternating 1 slower-paced with 5 faster-paced laps.
Day 2:
Swim 650 yards (26 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 5
faster-paced laps.
Day 3:
Swim 700 yards (28 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 5
faster-paced laps.
Week 7:
Day 1:
Swim 700 yards alternating 1 slower-paced with 6 faster-paced laps.
Day 2:
Swim 750 yards (30 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 6
faster-paced laps.
Day 3:
Swim 800 yards (32 pool lengths) alternating 1 slower-paced with 6
faster-paced laps.
Week 8:
Day 1:
Swim 800 yards in the following manner - 10 faster-paced laps, 1
slower-paced lap, 10 faster-paced laps, 1 slower-paced lap, 10
faster-paced laps.
Day 2:
Swim 800 yards in the following manner - 15 faster-paced laps, 2
slower-paced laps, 15 faster-paced laps.
Day 3:
Swim 800 yards without any slower-paced laps.
Succeeding Weeks
Gradually increase your
distance until you are swimming comfortably for 20-30 minutes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wayne
L. Westcott, Ph.D.
is fitness research director at the South Shore YMCA and
author of the new book
Strength Training Past 50.
More
Books from Dr. Westcott
CEC:
Current Strength Training Research by Dr.
Westcott
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