Over the last 20 years or so, athletes have become increasingly aware of the potential benefits of cross training, which can be defined as participating in an alternative training mode which is different from the one used in competitive efforts (1). Cross Training

he attractiveness of such training is based on the ideas that participation in a different sport (from one's main sporting pursuit) produces a cross transfer of training effects and adaptations which are beneficial (and perhaps unique), and that such participation may constitute a form of recovery from the primary sport (2, 3, 4, & 5). For example, various studies have shown that cycling workouts, strength training, and plyometric exercises can improve running performances, and that resistance sessions can enhance cycling capacity.

Swimming is in the cross-training mix, too, as studies have shown that in-the-water strength training can upgrade maximal swimming speed and distance covered per stroke, key predictors of swimming performance (6). However, it is not clear whether two very popular sports, running and cycling, can benefit swimmers in any way, nor is it certain whether swimming can help to boost running and/or cycling capacities. Studies have suggested that in order for one form of training to have a positive impact on another, it is important for the first activity to be specific in some way to the other pursuit (7 & 8). As an example of this, strength training carried out on land (using exercise machines, free weights, and devices such as the "Swim Bench") has never been linked with improved swimming performances, while strength training carried out in the water (using stroke-relevant movements) has been correlated with a variety of swimming benefits (6). Skeptics contend that the skilled movements of swimming are so dissimilar from the biomechanics of cycling and running that one should not expect fitness to "cross over" between swimming and the other sports, but there has been little research in this area.

To find out more about the relationships and cross-transfer-of-fitness effects between swimming, cycling, and running, French researchers recently worked with four elite triathletes (three females and one male) (9). Average age of the athletes was 32 years, and mean VO2max settled at a rather-lofty 71 ml kg-1 min-1. The subjects had been training for the triathlon for an average of 9.3 years and had accumulated a grand total (between them) of nine French-National-Championships titles, along with five top-three places in European or World Championships. The athletes' training was carefully monitored over a 40-week period, which commenced in November after a six-week break and ended with the last important competition of the season in early September of the following year. Cross Training

he four athletes recorded their heart rates during every swimming, cycling, and running session with a heart-rate monitor and downloaded the data to a computer after each workout. A training stimulus (called "W") was calculated separately for each sport and also for occasional, miscellaneous training (resistance work and cross country skiing). We won't go into the scary details of the calculation of W but will simply mention that it depended on Xj, where:

Xj= (HRj - HRrest)/HRmax-HRrest)

HRj was simply the heart rate recorded at one specific moment within a workout, while HRrest, as you have probably figured out, was the athlete's resting heart rate on the day of training. HRmax was the athlete's maximal heart rate, which was checked every three months during the study (yes, max heart rate can change in response to training).

To learn more about cross training for swimming (the full article can be read by purchasing Vol.2 Issue 1) and many more swimming related topics. Simply enter cross training, in the "search archives" box, or enter any subject you wish to learn more about. A subscription to Swimming Research News is another way to receive valuable information.
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