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Swimming vs. Running

Are you a fan of swimming? If so, you're about to become an even bigger one.

Studies have shown that Swimming is 4x more effective than running in regards to burning calories (based upon individuals who had just begun doing exercise, as well as individuals who were accustomed to different types of exercise). The water acts as a resistance, so your whole body has to push and pull to get you through the water. If your goal is to burn lots of calories during a workout, swimming for a half-hour is a great way to do it, and will exercise the entirety of your body.

Comments

12/4/2008 12:28:09 PM
Abby said:

However, if you are exercising for bone health, then running or lifting weights is better.

12/4/2008 1:11:22 PM
Fuzzy said:

I am not sure if I believe that. Water keeps you floating, while running you have an up and forward motion where you have gravity and your own body weight as resistance. Based on my personal experience (I haven't looked at studies) swimmers on average seem to have more body fat then runners.

4/24/2009 7:32:22 PM
Nicholas said:

I'm talking about Cardio-Respiratorily (i.e. the difficulty for your body as a whole)

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