Running. Does it help your swimming or is it an interesting diversion? A lot of people here seem to cross train with running. (Some are obviously triathletes). USS teams now have their swimmers running. But does running really help swimming?
For me, I'm not so sure. I think it helps a bit on the cardio side and may build leg strength. I do it to tighten everything up, because I like being outside and it gives my shoulders a break. But I'm not sure I wouldn't be better off with more pool time if my body could take it.
My counter to this is the zillions of talented runners who can't swim worth a flip. As Ande likes to point out, to swim faster you have to swim faster.
I had already been swimming 5x a week and if anything was getting slower. Running helped me shed 20+ pounds and built up my aerobic conditioning so I could handle the longer swims.
I believe the question was, "Will crosstraining in running help my swimming?" Not, "are all fast runners fast swimmers?". For me it has been a huge success.
My counter to this is the zillions of talented runners who can't swim worth a flip. As Ande likes to point out, to swim faster you have to swim faster.
I had already been swimming 5x a week and if anything was getting slower. Running helped me shed 20+ pounds and built up my aerobic conditioning so I could handle the longer swims.
I believe the question was, "Will crosstraining in running help my swimming?" Not, "are all fast runners fast swimmers?". For me it has been a huge success.
