Bret

Bret, how are you feeling with the cross-training? I'm sure it's hard to tell, but do you feel like it's maintaining running fitness?

Drew - you know I probably won't really know for sure until I resume running - but I don't expect it to equate.

Running muscles and muscle memory are obviously going to be different and cannot be duplicated or mimicked in the cross training I am doing - so I fully expect to have to work back into running fitness (and gradually re-introduce impact to the injured foot).

I think the only way to duplicate running muscle memory/fitness is with the AlterG treadmill (maybe pool running but who wants to do that). The Alter G, which I would do in a heartbeat if there was one close to me and/or they did not cost an arm and a leg to use or purchase is awesome - I used one in Clearwater for a short period of time in 2013 when I had a sports hernia injury. I read where Dathan Ritzenhein had a stress fracture a couple years back when he was still training with Al Sal - and he ran on that thing for like 6 weeks and gradually got back on the roads, and never missed a beat in his training.

As far as cardio effort is concerned - I think it is a mixed bag. Swimming is probably the closest I can come to equating to running cardio - where I am moving along at a good rate and my breathing and effort are equal to what I would do on an aerobic run. Indoor rowing requires a much greater amount of focus and strength (or in my case failure of strength) to maintain a high enough level on my HR. Instead, I tend to find a rhythm and lock-in for the time rather than push for a target HR. The indoor cycling (my outdoor bike is on an indoor trainer as opposed to a spin bike or stationary exercise bike) is mentally taxing. No coasting or downhills that you have outside and no wind to cool you down (although I do have fan positioned in front of the bike to compensate) - but I tend to hit the HR's that I would on an easy to moderate run.

So I think in the end I will probably be "ok" from a cardio standpoint.

My main goal was to maintain a reasonable level of fitness (keep from getting too fat) and perhaps tone up some muscle groups that have been neglected due to run-only training. So I think that's working too.

All that being said - I really would like nothing better than to go out for a nice long run.