I have a bad back and a weak left leg so am pretty limited when it comes to exercise. So I decided to try swimming everday, and that's been working out ok. all though it is VERY tiring. I do 20 laps in a 10 meter pool.

But I'm concerned about how it will effect my weight loss. I heard that too much exercise can cause your body to hold onto fat. does 20 laps daily sound like too much exercise? I want to get into shape but I'm very overweight, and losing weight is my main concern...

__________________
~Sunny.

"You can't expect to keep happiness out of your life forever."

start date: Sept 17th, 2004
Starting: 310 lbs (5'10")
Goal: 180 lbs

Exercise never causes your body to hold on to fat.
If you are VERY, VERY tired maybe you are just doing too much too soon. Try
cutting back to 10 laps and increase it only by like a lap at a time when you feel ready.
Susie

Sunny,
All that exercise will do for you is rev up your metabolism, burn fat and make you feel and look good. What it will not do is make you hold onto fat. If anything, your weightloss may seem to stall, since you're building muscle and it weighs more than fat does. It is, however, more compact, so you should be smaller (and sleeker, and stronger, which is all good). The best way to measure if exercise is helping is to take your measurements, and check them after awhile. You should see a loss in inches, even if the scale doesn't move.
Doing water exercises is an excellent idea if you have physical limitations; maybe try taking a water aerobics class as well as swimming laps? That way, you will get a more complete workout without stressing your joints. And Susie is right; maybe you need to cut back on laps until you feel you can handle more. You should fatigue your muscles, but you shouldn't feel so drained after a workout. Work up to a level that challenges you, but leaves you feeling energized.
Good luck!!

__________________
Trina

Vice-President of the Intergalactic Order of Brussels Sprouts Haters

[font='Times New Roman', Times, Serif, serif][/font]

Ah thanks for clearing up my confusion about exercise causing you to hold onto fat. perhaps I need to cut back by a few laps so I don't get so exhausted..

__________________
~Sunny.

"You can't expect to keep happiness out of your life forever."

start date: Sept 17th, 2004
Starting: 310 lbs (5'10")
Goal: 180 lbs

Put this in the FWIW category - I totally do not know the truth of the matter...

... but I remember reading one of the diet gurus (Coverty Bailey, Fit or Fat) back in the '80s, who said that swimming was not especially good for weight loss, although it is a great toner and cardio workout. The reasoning was that most marine mammals have a high level of body fat, which helps keeps them warm and buoyant. Thus, swimming is adaptive for fat. I know I swam a couple of miles almost every day in high school, and I was quite chubby. However, I was always ravenous after a workout, so I doubt that I was exercising good dietary control at that time.

This is from a page where Covert Bailey compares the relative merits of different forms of exercise for fitness and weight loss (http://www.healthcentral.com/FitorFa...=33275&src=n31)

__________________
~~~Teelbee
Back to GOAL!!!
start weight: 176/goal range: 137-134/now: 138
Reached goal in Aug. 2003 - 4rd year of maintenance.

So, in consideration of the comments above, how about walking on one day and swimming on the next.

__________________
Judy
Goal = <135, Current status = RIGHT ON TARGET!
Never give up. Never never never never give up -- Winston Churchill

excellent, this has all been very informative... thanks for the article teelbee
I'm going to try to keep up my daily laps , do water exercises in between laps , etc. its a good exercise for me esp. with my bum leg. It occured to me today that I do an enourmous amount of walking around too (i'm a college student and I live on campus) I calculated that I walk 1 1/2 to 2 miles everyday (varying each day). My leg feels like crap afterwards, and I'm sweating and panting because I'm out of shape. I've used my back and my leg as an excuse to stay inactive for SO long, its time for a change!

lol I'm SO ravenous after swimming too! but I eat a nice low-carb dinner afterward. and it feels great. So we'll see how this works... I won't know immediately, since I'm refusing to weigh myself until december.

__________________
~Sunny.

"You can't expect to keep happiness out of your life forever."

start date: Sept 17th, 2004
Starting: 310 lbs (5'10")
Goal: 180 lbs

Hi SunnyDaze, any exercise is good exercise and all the advice everyone has been posting is great. One other consideration for mixing up your routine and including some walking days is that swimming is non-impact, which although perhaps better for your weaker leg and arm, it doesn't do much for your bones. As we women get older we have to watch our bone health, and an aerobic impact exercise, such as walking, will help you maintain your healthy bones. You can walk with hand weights to make it more difficult. You can also consider getting an exercise ball and working your core muscles with basic balancing exercises. Here's an excerpt from Shape magazine, which has great ideas! http://www.shape.com/getfit/1457
Also, you should consider eating a protein-dense snack before exercising, like a handful of nuts, to give you energy to complete your exercise with good form.
I do a lot of Tae Bo and I try to eat something like that before exercising, drinking lots of water during, and if it's an advanced workout, I'll go with a low-carb protein shake afterwards to help my muscle tissue repair itself quicker.
Good luck!
Michele

Hey Sunny!

What did you do to your leg? I have been through extensive physiotherapy/massage therapy/rehab for my right knee. Tore it REAL good playing hockey. COuldn't play for almost a whole year! Geez!

What is wrong with your back? I am currently a second year rehabilitation massage therapy student (more medically/health care based rehab massage specializing in sports and chronic traumatic injury) and may be able to offer you some self-care, lengthening/strengthening exercises that may be able to help in your newfound exercise program.


I'd like to chat more... why don't you shoot me an email? Do you have MSN? We could chat that way if you do! My email addy is: hockeygirl34@rogers.com

I just started my exercise program (marathon/triathalon training) this week and am thinking I'm going to get very discouraged soon (nice positive thinking huh?).... Maybe we can perk eachother up?

Regards,
Krystyne

__________________
Start - May 7th, 2004, 175/157/145



http://hockeygirl34.blogspot.com

It feels soooooo good to be in the water.
One thing that I have tried when feeling so bad was a water exercise class. I really believe that energy creates energy. Doesn't your body do all the fat burning and such even after you stop exercising?

When I get in that water and do those excercises it is easier for my body to accomplish moves that I just can't do outside of the pool. I feel stronger and actually get a bounce in my step after just a few workouts (I think your flexability improves). I know that the moves in the pool will be mine outside of the pool someday too. I haven't tried lap swimming but those "water aerobics" really help me when they were available.

I have to say that I wouldn't have even got in the water if not for my children and their safety (when my son was 5 he was on a tender boat most of the summer - wanted him to have basic water skills besides a PFD-and my smallest has some disabilities and the water workout was necessary for her. It was an incredibly hard thing for me to do (the swimsuit thing) but I admit it felt great.

Remember, it's never all or nothing, just find a balance for you right?
(Sorry this post is so long)

Hey hockeygirl.. thanks for responding, I'll email you soon

Mother Bear- I know exactly what you're talking about. I'm totally in the zone when I'm in the water. it's so refreshing and fantastic. and I'm very lucky to go to a university that has heated pools available year round for me to swim in!

The swimsuit thing... was DEFINITELY an issue for me. Still kind of is. I go to the pool and swim with people that are on the swimteam or something, and have these incredible thin, sleak bodies and swim incredibly. it makes me feel kind of rotten until i actually get into the water. then its all ok...

__________________
~Sunny.

"You can't expect to keep happiness out of your life forever."

start date: Sept 17th, 2004
Starting: 310 lbs (5'10")
Goal: 180 lbs