Best way to cross train if injured

I'm a NCAA Division I cross country/middle distance/distance coach, but I just finished reading Janet Evans' swimming training book, and I highly recommend it. The many parallels between running training and swimming training were really interesting.

For crosstraining while injured -- as a running coach, this is a short version of what I would boil Evans down to: 1) Warm up with 10 minutes of extremely easy swimming; 2) To substitute for a high-quality running workout, probably try to simulate a running threshold workout -- say 20 minutes of trying to have your heartrate around 85% to 90% of max (you can take very short, occasional rests while hanging onto the end of the pool, similar to taking a very short rest between threshold running segments on the track -- keep the heartrate/respiration high); 3) 10 minutes of extremely easy swimming for cooldown.

To simulate a long run instead, try for a heartrate of 70% to 85% of max. Again, you can take very short rests while hanging onto the end of the pool. But, compared to the threshold workout, the "long-run swim" would last much longer than 20 minutes and would have more consecutive laps between short rests.

Probably take a day off from swimming between these workouts, or else maybe swim short and easy to simulate a recovery run.

swimming gets a good cardio workout, but is not anywhere near as running-specific as pool running. pool running will keep you in great shape and will give you a great cardio workout once you learn how to do it hard enough. pool run for 4-5 days a week along with swimming, or just pool run every day if you want to maintain your conditioning

Head to the pool for deep water running. It takes a lot of discipline and more concentration than running, but it will keep you fit. Wear a HR monitor. Keeping the HR up is harder than you would think. The link gives some insightful tips and should help you map out a training plan that you can adapt to your running schedule.

http://www.pfitzinger.com/labreports/water.shtml

Good luck.

I don't know if you're interested in non-pool workouts, but I swear by the elliptical. Not quite the same as running, but good enough maintenance when you're injured.

while HR is somewhat important to maintain cardiovascular fitness the main thing is to find an exercise that you can do without aggravating you injury that most closely resembles running in terms of muscles and motion. If you do this then you will be able to elicit a fairly comparable HR based on effort to your runs. The less like running your exercise is the harder it will feel at a given HR so you will need to rely more upon HR monitors to ensure an honest effort. The order of running similar exercise goes: pool running, eliptical, XC skiing, biking, then swimming. Note that swimming is not a very aerobic exercise and is therefore doubly undesirable becasue it doesn't work your cardiovascular system as well and is not running specific in muscles and movements used.

The stairmster is not only a good crosstraining machine when you are injured, it is great to crosstrain on when you are training(running). Very similar to running hills but no impact. In my opinion, it is a little better than the eliptical.