Does anybody out have a routine where you swim and lift weights on the same day?
I want to start swimming for cardio because
I want to become a better swimmer
I have bad feet (actually bad arches), and so it’s kind of a drag to jog or even use the elliptical trainer.
My current routine is to (1) do 20-25 minutes of cardio on the elliptical trainer (and just put up with my sore feet), then (2) do my weight lifting, and then (3) go home and take a shower.
I’ve heard that you’re supposed to do your cardio before lifting, but if I swim first, I have to swim, take a shower, dry off, and then lift, and then take another shower after lifting.
That seems cumbersome. Anybody have any other ideas?
Why would you shower after swimming? I mean you’re already wet! I don’t shower after swimming unless I am coming to work.
I have no sugesstions for working out after swimming, but I know I usually can’t move my arms afterwards. I also don’t do much, read very very little, working out. Though I would like to become a much faster swimmer and could use hitting the gym.
I’ve always disagreed with those who say cardio first then lift.
I always do the lifting first because it takes so much energy that you can’t do it properly after cardio when you’re so tired.
I was talking to a personal trainer friend of mine and he was explaining something about why it’s better physiologically to do the lifting first, but I lost him at “the lactic acid…” I’d need to see the study he was talking about.
My personal reasoning is this: 1) the above mentioned 2) lifting first gets your heart rate up before the cardio starts, so maybe that helps you get to the fat burning cardio sooner. 3) If you do cardio first, you’re that guy who leaves pools of sweat all over the machine. 4) It’s alot easier to lower your cardio intensity and still keep your heart rate up when you’re tired than to do another rep with heavy weight.
so 1) lift 2) go swim, then 3) the shower’s optional, cause, hey, the water in the pool’s clean right?
It depends on what you want to emphasize, the lifting or the swimming? If weight lifting is more important to you, do it first. If you have done an upper body workout, it is difficult to swim, but it can be done. (Have you considered prescription orthotics? My feet are really flat, but I can run marathons with orthotics. And, of course, there is always biking.)
If swimming is more important, do it first. Technique is very important in swimming, and it is hard to maintain technique when tired. Then, I would lift later in the day, after you have recovered from swimming.
I always did lifting before swimming. I was told that it was good to do aerobic exercise after lifting because when you exercise, your muscles get more blood supplied to them, which should help them recover from the lifting. Plus, then I only had to shower once.
I did some pretty decent lifting, and never felt I was overly tired when I did my swim. Part of that is using good technique rather than brute force. Swimming is a technique sport, and even people with good conditioning can have difficulty getting a good workout. I don’t know your background, but I think this is a great book for technique. The drills may seem a bit silly, but they really help you focus on what you need to with your body when in the water. In addition to drills, it offers a series of progressing workouts. As always, YMMV.
I went on a bit longer than I meant to. It’s been a few years since I’ve done some serious swimming, and I’ve always vowed to get back to the pool. It hasn’t happened yet.
First, I’ve always heard the opposite, that if you’re doing both on the same day, you should lift first and then do cardio (due to the way your muscles recover after cardio v. the way they recover after lifting.)
Anyway, due to the horrors of hair care, it wouldn’t matter. If I’m doing multiple workouts, swimming is always the last thing I do before leaving the gym. So, I lift first, then swim. (Plus strangely enough my swimming technique is better when I’m slightly tired. I think it’s that since I can’t power through it, I have to think and concentrate on the technique)
For every study that indicates you should lift/run before you run/lift, there’s an even better study showing the opposite. Find what works for you and do that.
Thanks, everyone, for your responses. I think I’ll try the lift first, then swim routine, and see how that works.
Thanks SMT. Yeah, I actually do have prescription orthotics, but I still seem to get tingly feet when I’m on the elliptical. I think perhaps I need new workout shoes. I’ve had mine for at least a year, and I’ve heard (much to my and my budget’s chagrin) that good running shoes only last that long before they lose their cushion.
Thanks, easy e. The book sounds great, but there seems to be a problem with the link. Can you repost the title?
Granted he’s not a gym rat, but my son is a high school competitive swimmer. They swim daily and lift usually two days a week. When they lift they do it before they swim and abbreviated practice.
constantine, my observation is that the elliptical trainers are hard on people with foot problems. I may be wrong, but I know that I can use the treadmill and cycles with no prob, but five minutes on the elliptical, and my arches are screaming at me. I’ve checked my form several times… even had a trainer come in and watch me to make sure my posture was good on the machine. My theory is that my feet tend to over-pronate in the best of circumstances, but that something about the posture for using the elliptical trainer makes it worse.