You want to get stronger? You want to become an even better swimmer?
Then you have to work for it, and what I think a lot of people don't understand is that you shouldn't just do wet workouts. Wet as in being in the pool for your exercise. Whether you are doing actual swimming, or water aerobics, etc; It doesn't matter, as although those are phenomenal, you still need to work out with weight bearing exercises.
Why + Philosophy:
The pool has wonderful resistance that your body can then overcome. It is fantastic to run in, despite it being slow, as you have to use your whole body to do it. Swimming is literally one of the best workouts in the world because of it.
Despite all of that though you are taking the gravity off of the situation. In some cases that is the reason why people GO to the pool in the first place, but after a long period of time you'll lose bone density. Not to sound overly dramatic, but you need to incorporate weight training, and dry walking into your already existing workout system. For swimmers it isn't as dramatic, but by lifting weights you are building the muscle.
Of which that muscle will make you a heavier swimmer, and you'll also be able to pull the water a lot stronger as well.
How + Physics:
Given how vast the amount of people that read this will be in their exercise routines. This section by default has to be simplified, as each person is different. However there are common themes, and exercises that I think EVERYONE should be following.
The Trifecta:
A group of exercises that make use of a majority of muscles, and you can all do them to some degree.
20x Push Ups, 20x Pull ups, and 20x Squats.
By doing those you'll be getting a lot of muscles, and they will also greatly help your swimming as well. Not to mention just simply make you stronger in other areas of life as well.
Two things, firstly 20x means 20 total in my view, and so you can do them as slow as you need to. I usually do four sets of five, or in the case of pushups I may do them all at once. With pull ups I still struggle at doing many in a row.
Some of you may even exclaim you can do squats, but not the pull ups and/or push ups. Okay, that's fine. Change the intensity.
With push ups you don't have to do them on the floor. Perhaps you are more older you can do them at the wall, and over time slowly start to make your way to the floor. Do them next on the counter, then on a bench, then do one only on the floor. Gradually change the difficulty.
Same thing goes for the pull ups, as most gyms will have a pull up machine that supports your weight. You can train the muscles to react properly, and work on your form as you gradually decrease how much the machine is supporting.
What + Psychology:
The idea is to diversify your exercise routines, and expand beyond what you feel most comfortable with. I'm not sure if you're a beginner swimmer or an Olympic athlete. However in each case I'm sure there is something more you could do.
That isn't a negative thing either, and so many people fall into the trap line of thinking. "He said I should do more, then am I not doing enough?" "Am I not enough?", and you'd be surprised how common of a thought process that is.
What my intention is to help expand your horizons, but never to put you down. When I say you can do more it is excitement, and envisioning what you could accomplish in the future.
Conclusion
Quite literally the point of this post was to get you to start thinking about working out beyond just the pool. This is a swimming newsletter, and while you'll be in the pool most of the time. I didn't want you to think that is all that we did.
By going outside of the pool you give yourself a new experience, and push the body even further.
Here are some posts to help you get started:
Dustin Miller | PolyInnovator
Disclaimer:
This is advice for people to level up their swimming, or perhaps get started in the first place. While you swim you should make sure you are doing so in a public facility with a lifeguard on duty for safety.
