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Swimming after weight lifting - not a good idea?

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michelleturner

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Hi.

I was told at the gym the other day that going swimming after lifting weights will waste all the work I have just done. ie. I won't get any bigger becuse the blood has been pumped to different parts of my body when swimming.


Is this true? The guy who told me was just another gym go'er like myself so I don't want to take JUST his word for it.


Any advice appreciated.
 
Skeptic

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I'll wait for someone more informed than myself... but if you keep your calories in excess of what you use, then swimming shouldn't hinder your gains.
 
tim290280

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Well, it depends....... How much, what intensity, any PWO drinks, etc?

Swimming is good exercise, it is good to do cardio and non-load bearing exercise (mainly for the spine). But if you are doing any cardio straight after weights then you do tend to limit the effectiveness of the cardio (unless you are talking fat burning, but swimming isn't great at that) and eat into your recovery ability (dependant on PWO nutrition, etc).

As for the blood being pumped to different areas.......... occlusion training doesn't really work in practical application.

If your focus is getting big and getting strong, then swimming would be better placed on non-lifting days. But swimming is fine any time, just make the focus on the lifting (i.e. first) and make sure you take some PWO nutrition after the lifting before the swimming.
 
Big04pimpin

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ya, what Tim said.
 
Zigurd

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Tim, why do you say swimming is bad for fat burning ? I completely disagree.

No cardio has melted the fat better for me than swimming.
 
tim290280

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^^ Because it isn't weight bearing. Less effort is involved.

Plus there was a study that showed the relative calorie expenditure was offset by a higher percieved exhaustion level (i.e. people ate more afterwards). This was due to the chlorine and dehydration affecting the hunger response.

I agree that swimming is great exercise and is good to do. I agree that it does burn fat, but just not as well as some of the other options.

Personally I suck at swimming as I move like a brick in the water. So I started swimming for my knee rehab and it was great. No pool where I live now so I miss being able to do that.
 
Zigurd

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^^ Because it isn't weight bearing. Less effort is involved.

Plus there was a study that showed the relative calorie expenditure was offset by a higher percieved exhaustion level (i.e. people ate more afterwards). This was due to the chlorine and dehydration affecting the hunger response.

Less effort ? Try doing HIIT while swimming. Nothing comes close. On the second point... people ate more afterwards ? That's retarded. A logical and intelligent person on his way to cutting will not eat more. That only works for your average idiot.

Being hungrier does not mean one will eat more. It does mean one will have to restrain from eating more. Which I did and most people do.
(there was another study that shows cold water also induced a higher percieved exhaustion level).


I agree that swimming is great exercise and is good to do. I agree that it does burn fat, but just not as well as some of the other options.

Like what ?

Personally I suck at swimming as I move like a brick in the water. So I started swimming for my knee rehab and it was great. No pool where I live now so I miss being able to do that.

Swimming = numbah 1 cardio.
I'd tattoo "I <3 swimming" on my eyebrows if I had the insane mentality to do so.
 
tim290280

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Less effort ? Try doing HIIT while swimming. Nothing comes close.
You don't bear your body weight.

You don't have to support your body.

It takes less effort from your muscles as a result.

Do you want a picture drawn? :bitelip:
On the second point... people ate more afterwards ? That's retarded. A logical and intelligent person on his way to cutting will not eat more. That only works for your average idiot.

Being hungrier does not mean one will eat more. It does mean one will have to restrain from eating more. Which I did and most people do.
(there was another study that shows cold water also induced a higher percieved exhaustion level).
Yes they ate more calories as they had become dehydrated and didn't realise it. So they compensated with food. It is very easy to do with swimming because of the perceived effort and the way you can sweat a lot when swimming and not notice. I'm not saying everyone who is counting calories and being a mindful dieter will do this, but it is easy to do, especially in comparison to other cardio methods.

Like what ?
Load bearing exercise....... that would be running, jumping, climbing...... I've got a power point that could help :gaygay:
 
Zigurd

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You don't bear your body weight.

You don't have to support your body.

It takes less effort from your muscles as a result.

Do you want a picture drawn? :bitelip:

Not having so support your body does not diminish the effort you have to do in order to propel yourself at top speed.

I would encourage you to try HIIT swimming, just for the sake of experimentation. If you get the chance to swim some day, PM me and I can give you some pointers (since there are almost none online about HIIT swimming).

Yes they ate more calories as they had become dehydrated and didn't realise it. So they compensated with food. It is very easy to do with swimming because of the perceived effort and the way you can sweat a lot when swimming and not notice. I'm not saying everyone who is counting calories and being a mindful dieter will do this, but it is easy to do, especially in comparison to other cardio methods.

Indeed yo. But I never compare myself to others. I never made that mistake, so it's not a valid point for me. My friends didn't either.


Load bearing exercise....... that would be running, jumping, climbing...... I've got a power point that could help :gaygay:

I've done all of them, also jumping rope. None come close to HIIT swimming. At least for me !

Either way, I'd be very happy if you tried it some day =)
 
tim290280

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^^ Why do you assume I haven't tried HIIT swimming?

I don't just read science papers I do actually train and apply stuff I learn.

And not having to lift your body does mean less exertion. Plain and simple. Top speed running requires more force exerted, don't try and compare top speed swimming with jogging or something.
 

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It's kind of hard to compare running and swimming. Competitive swimming training usually involves a mix of long-distance, middle-distance, and sprints every day. The long-distance guys would get a more long-distance oriented program (things like 500 yd repeats and 200 yd repeats), but there would still probably be some 50 and 25 yard sprints thrown in, too. And once or twice a week they would do a more-sprint oriented workout just so they wouldn't get stagnant. Vice-versa with the sprinters.

With running it seems like it's more specialized. They still vary their training, but swimming is inherently more varied because the time difference between long distance and a sprint is smaller; 20 minutes is a really long swim but a short run, so an hour swim workout can get you a huge mix of training.

I think swimming provides a great mix of anaerobic and aerobic work, kind of like the middle ground between a running sprinter and a long-distance runner. Is it possible that the muscle-building effects of swimming offset the immediate calorie deficit to running through an increased BMR?

In other words, is the perceived effort an actual effort that isn't immediately measurable? I'm more often sore after swimming than I am after running.
 
tim290280

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It's kind of hard to compare running and swimming. Competitive swimming training usually involves a mix of long-distance, middle-distance, and sprints every day. The long-distance guys would get a more long-distance oriented program (things like 500 yd repeats and 200 yd repeats), but there would still probably be some 50 and 25 yard sprints thrown in, too. And once or twice a week they would do a more-sprint oriented workout just so they wouldn't get stagnant. Vice-versa with the sprinters.

With running it seems like it's more specialized. They still vary their training, but swimming is inherently more varied because the time difference between long distance and a sprint is smaller; 20 minutes is a really long swim but a short run, so an hour swim workout can get you a huge mix of training.

I think swimming provides a great mix of anaerobic and aerobic work, kind of like the middle ground between a running sprinter and a long-distance runner. Is it possible that the muscle-building effects of swimming offset the immediate calorie deficit to running through an increased BMR?

In other words, is the perceived effort an actual effort that isn't immediately measurable? I'm more often sore after swimming than I am after running.
I think the muscle building effect is minimal from swimming. There can be an effect but mainly in the untrained or if you are really pushing the limits of what you can do. As with any exercise that builds muscle it has to be progressive, and swimming does get to a point were it is just steady state cardio pretty quickly.

I agree that I do get sore after swimming, especially if you do some kickboard work, and clearly this is obviously going to contribute to a training effect. However bear in mind that both you and I do tend to do more feet based work (running, jumping, sprints, skipping) than swimming and are somewhat conditioned for the basic requirements. Much like doing any slightly different exercise for the first time, it is tougher.
 
Glex

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Well, even close to the end of swim season back in high school I'd still be getting sore. You're definitely more conditioned for it and so it becomes more cardio oriented, I agree, but I did develop more muscle.

Meh, I was also kinda a fat blob out of season so maybe you're right.

Either way, Tim and I both agree it's a great extremely low-impact exercise :xyxthumbs: While it does happen, it's much harder to get injured swimming than running, and it's great while recovering from a lot of ankle and back injuries.
 
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molle

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If I plan to swim 4-5 times a week and weight lift 4 times a week. It's advanced swimming for 1,5-2 hours with distance, hiit, technique and recovery on different days. What would be the best way to divide these sessions over a week? I want to get the most out of the weight lifting without hurting the swimming to much and vice verca.
 
tim290280

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Morning for one, afternoon for the other.

Eat lots.
 
Folk Artist

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Weight training first is a good idea, because it allows you to build muscle and strength- your muscles will be to fatiqued, if you go swimming first. Spending time in the weight room first, will result in better strength gains, then after the glycogen is depleted, swimming will then burn a large percentage of fat.
 

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