Strength training and swimming

Definitely! I can't say I weight train just for the swim, but I feel the difference from weight training. You'll want to focus on upper body and back work, such as shoulders, triceps and lats. Pulldowns are great, lateral and front raises, and wide-grip, behind-the-neck pullups. On the pullups, it's OK to use a stool to bounce from until you have the strength to complete a set of five. Then work for two sets. Also, try to lower yourself slowly as there is huge benefit in that. Good luck.

I have not done wight training since college (D1 swimmer), but am going to begin next week to focus on swimming during the winter. (Specifically breaststroke and mid distance free). I have not done weight training the last couple of years mainly because I totally bulk up. I also find that weight training really helps with sprinting and shorter distances (also leg strength for breaststroke), while for OWS I need to focus more on conditioning than strength.
Anyway, i'm going to put together a swim focused weight training plan so you can feel free to take a look at my training log. Would love some help on distance running
My guess is that you should work on upper body strength since your legs are in great shape.

Thanks triman! I will be checking in as I get started!

Thanks jellyfish! I will definitely check into your training log...
Distance running is my absolute passion and I also coach cross country...Let me know if I can help you out in any way!

Don't forget your core - abs and lower back. I've found that when I'm consistent training my core, my running is stronger too!

I also swam D1, and while we'd do a lot of general weight training to build overall strength, we'd do a ton of work on lats and triceps. You should really be able to feel the benefits of that, lats on the start of each stroke, and triceps on the finish.

I can go either way on this. Lift or not lift. I saw some guys in the gym who lifted and were great swimmers. Some guys never touched a weight and they were just as good. One thing I would do is have your technique evaluated along the way. Maybe every 3-4 months. Sometimes just a little tweaking with the technique goes a long way.
I discovered last year through an evaluation that my stroke had changed. The first six inches of my pull underneath the water my hand was facing the wrong way. I wasn't getting the initial power I should be. I changed, and it made me a much faster swimmer.

I started out tri trianing with a weak upper body, because all I did was run before.  I have noticed a big difference from weight lifting. I try to lift 2 times a week, 3 times a week was too much for me.  I just lift low weight lots of reps- I do 4 sets of 25 reps.  It's made a big difference and has helped lean me out a little bit.  The weights have helped me gain upper body strength, endurance with swimming, and actually has leaned me out a little bit.