Cant run for a while, suggestions for cross training

steve14

Due to a back injury the sports physio told me not to run for a while. But he did say I could cycle as a form of cross training. He was a bit vague as to what sort of distances I should be hitting on the bike. So what sort of distances should I be covering to replace the running?

I was doing 3 Run sessions a week

Long slow distance 4 miles
High Intensity 20 Mins
Intervels 6 * 1/4 mile

Any Ideas?

steve

Peterx

I do a lot of cycling when the legs are wrecked from running.

It's brilliant, gets the blood pumping and joints moving while being non load bearing as well. Going up hills can give a savage strength session.
Swimming is another good one, especially if you are crap at it as then it really gets the lungs and heart working

Back to cycling, get the very best bike you can afford - a decent road or hybrid bike - the better it is the more likely you are to want to use it and thus the more useful it will be. As for distances - just do twice the times you were doing for running to start off with and see how your body reacts after the initial pains.
Cheap mountain bikes are nasty, plain as that and simple as...

Krusty_Clown

Being in a similar position (but a different injury) I asked this very same question on my training log recently.
To paraphrase a helpful cyclist (in relation to running Vs cycling mileage):

MCOS wrote:

Ratio of 1:4 to 1:6 depending on how fast you are cycling
Interesting short article http://www.drmirkin.com/fitness/8841.html

So I've been getting out and doing cycles of 10-30 miles, every other day, along with core strength, weights, and the very occasional trip to the gym. I'm in the last couple of weeks of a marathon training program, so I'm trying to at least train for the same number of hours, and using the lost running hours to improve core strength etc.

*Edit*: I'm using a cheap and nasty mountain bike. Don't like it much, but hope to be back to full running speed soon. I have been enjoying the bike though, and would consider picking one up for non-running days.

emerald007

how long did the physio say your back would take to recover, weeks or months?. if its only a week or two i'd do nothing and let your body recover properly, without the stress or stains from cross training.

makker

In the same boat, picked up tendonitis in my ankle 5 weeks ago and have not run since, was at the physio today and need to give it another 4 weeks. Aparently my ligaments are in bad shape for numerous ankle strains from footie over the years, which has caused the tendonistis.

I have been given the green light to cycle and typically have been cycling 40k. My typical runs prevously were 10k so that make it about 4:1 for me and i feel the intensity of a hard 40k cycle with hills replicates a hard 10k run.

when you get up to speed i reccommend getting some hills in as there is an enormous sense of satisfaction when you get to the summit

If it wasn't for the cycling I would have gone completely insane over the last 5 weeks so get it into you!

BTW I'm using a intermediate level road bike