Swimming for healthy weight loss

Are you
under the impression that certain kinds of swimming barely qualify as exercise,
for example when silver-haired seniors glide up and down at a stately pace? If
so, then you’re wrong! Swimming is a highly effective method of weight loss.

Gliding through the water with even strokes and a feeling of quasi-weightlessness — swimming often has something meditative about it. Surrounded by the blue tiles of the pool and the coolness of the water, you can let the daily stress wash away. But relaxation is not the only thing which pool-based workouts have to offer.

Swimming can also be used as a means of healthy weight loss.
Unlike running, for example, swimming is gentle on the joints and ligaments.
The buoyancy of the water provides a welcome break for joints which get enough
wear and tear in everyday life. You only bear about 10% of your body weight
when you are swimming.

The pool-based sport is also great for legs and can prevent
varicose veins, spider veins, and swelling, since it takes the pressure off the
veins. Swimming also strengthens your upper body, improves your fitness and
conditions your cardiovascular system, cranks up your metabolism, and can help
with neck or back problems because it relaxes your muscles and relieves
tension.

Swimming for weight loss — why is it so
effective?

Some people disparagingly refer to swimming as “counting tiles”
because it is supposedly so monotonous and soporific. But nothing could be
further from the truth! Working out in water trains many more muscles at the
same time than most other sports, since it uses not only the leg and glute
muscles, but also the arms, shoulders, chest, and back — the entire upper body,
in other words. Swimming can even help you achieve the notoriously difficult
goal of losing weight around the stomach. Water-based workouts are particularly
good for your muscles because water provides 14 times the resistance of
air.

What this means
is that even an easy session in the pool can burn up to 500 calories per
hour. And pool sessions where you really push yourself can torch as many as
700. These figures are based on breaststroke. Other strokes such as front crawl
or butterfly may well achieve even higher calorie burns because they require
more effort.

Blasting calories in the pool: form matters!

As we said, the maximum possible calorie burn in the pool depends on the individual stroke. But your form in the water naturally also plays a role. If you perform a stroke incorrectly, you’re more likely to pick up an injury than to lose weight. Your first step should therefore be to tune up your technique.

But which stroke sheds the most pounds? According to Elmar
Trunz-Carlisi, sports scientist at the University for Prevention and Aftercare
(IPN) in Cologne, crawl is the most effective stroke provided that the swimmer
has practiced it to a level that he or she can go for long periods without a
break and without gasping for breath. Crawl is also a particularly good choice
for workouts which vary in tempo and intensity — an essential part of training
for anyone who want to crank up the fat burn while they’re in the pool. It
places a uniform load on the legs, lower body, and upper body, strengthening
all your muscles at the same time.

But if you have yet to master the art of crawl, never fear — you
can still lose weight with breaststroke. Many amateur swimmers prefer this
stroke over all the others. And breaststroke is an equally good way to blitz
your belly.

Swimming for weight loss — he who fails to
plan, plans to fail!

Swimming is similar to land-based endurance sports in that
weight loss is most easily achieved through interval training. Rather than
ploughing up and down the lane at a comfortable speed, you should push yourself
to swim faster and faster for short periods, followed by quick breaks. Drawing
up a training plan every few weeks can help you stay on track.

A sample first week might look something like this. Three pool
sessions per week:

• On the first day (Monday), warm up by swimming for 150 meters at a relaxed pace, then swim 10 x 100-meter intervals at a fast pace, with a 15-second break after each interval. Cool down by swimming for 150 meters at a slower pace.
• Take a day’s rest before the next training session.
• On Wednesday, repeat the 150-meter warm-up. This time complete 4 x 200-meter intervals at a fast pace with a 60-second break after each interval, followed by a 150-meter cool-down.
• On Friday, start with another 150-meter warm-up. Then complete a reverse ladder set by swimming intervals of 200/150/100/50 meters; repeat the entire set once. Take a 30-second break after each interval. Cool down by swimming for 150 meters.

Regular training increases the likelihood of
success on the scales

How often should you visit the pool? As a general rule, you’re
more likely to lose weight by swimming if you take the plunge three or four
times each week, for 30 to 45 minutes at a…