Skiers go into the weight room to turn strength into power, and as the big races approach, to turn this into ski specific power. With the New Year here the racing season is very much underway for most skiers. For those with Olympic aspirations, many athletes are getting more ski specific with their strength and power building, both in the weight room, and on snow.
![](http://images.fasterskier.com/oldsitearchive/upload/060102leif.jpg width=271 height=362 border=1><br />
<BR><font size=1 face=verdana>BSF’s Leif Zimmerman skis dynamically in the 2005 U.S. Nationals 30 km, in part due to his time spent jacking weights at Gold’s Gym in Bozeman.</font></center><BR></p>
<p>Through November and December, the U.S. Sprint Team is in the “Sport Specific Power-Velocity phase.†Here Emphasis is placed on moving heavy loads quickly, hopefully turning strength gains from summer and fall into the ability to produce power for use on the race course. With the six weeks before the Olympics spent trying to maintain strength and power, this Power- Velocity period is Newell’s and my last chance to maximize weight room gains for the Olympics. </p>
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![](http://images.fasterskier.com/oldsitearchive/upload/060102newell_nz.jpg width=433 height=325 border=1><br />
<BR><font size=1 face=verdana>Andrew Newell warming up for an afternoon strength session outside the SnowFarm in New Zealand this summer. </font></center><BR> </p>
<p>The Sprint Team has taken uphill spenst training, and brought it indoors. Flat terrain and a more responsive surface than grass allows for the plyometric jumps to be quick and snappy. Along with doing these plyometric movements throughout the year, and not just stopping when the snow appears as most spenst doers do, the hope is Newell and I will be able to load have quicker kicks in skating and striding when the terrain rewards this kind of explosive, hammering over hills and through transitions, ski terrain. </p>
<p>“This training teaches you to utilize the strength you’ve been building,†says U.S. Sprint Coach Vidar Loefshus. “Doing these in flat terrain really helps in this, as you can be more explosive in your push-offs. And this is the main goal of plyometric training.â€</p>
<p>“All summer skiers do spenst training. Then snow falls and its forgotten,†continues Vidar. “For sure, skiers could better maintain their gains if they kept at it over the winter. This is important for 30 kilometer to Vasaloppet skiers as well. You see how Frode Estil or a Thobias Angerer is able to respond at the end of the race, and you know you need this skill if you have ambitions of winning. Maybe Estil or Angerer were born explosive, I don’t know. But if you aren’t naturally this way, you have to work on this even more.â€</p>
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