Editor’s Note: While Sportbladet and Kalla claim this to be a “radical†new form of training, intensity block methods, pioneered by Norweigan Jan Helgerud, have been in use in various forms for some years. Canadian Beckie Scott used this type of training on her way to second place overall in the World Cup in 2006.
Swedish newspaper Sportbladet reports on the training of Charlotte Kalla.
Hard training is going to take Kalla to the top: This is something totally radical.
Norweigan Marit Bjœrgen trains the most and hardest of anyone.
Now Charlotte Kalla wants to use the “Bjœrgen-training†to reach the top of the world elite. “This is something totally new,†says Kalla.
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<p>Over the past three years Marit Bjœrgen has been the giant of women’s Nordic skiing. The general impression in the ski world is that nobody trains more or harder than the rock hard Norwegian. </p>
<p>“The one who trains the best, wins the most†she recently told Sportbladet.</p>
<p>Now Charlotte Kalla, the great hope of Swedish Nordic, is going to imitate Bjœrgen — in particular during the high intensity interval weeks, which are based on the findings of the Norwegian physiology researchers Jan Hofterud and Jan Hoff, who have also helped Real Madrid and Barcelona. </p>
<p>Kalla says that, “this is something totally radical. It’s only something that I have read about.â€</p>
<p><b>Training in Crete</b><br />
The entire women’s national team has followed the new training plan under the supervision of the ski foundation supervisor Joakim Abrahamsson. The training has been divided into 3 one week periods (see below) with the last, and most difficult week taking place in Crete. </p>
<p>“These are very effective workouts,†says Kalla.</p>
<p>Abrahamsson says that, “the goal is to increase the maximum rate of lactic acid metabolism, increase the length of time that the skiers can ski near this threshold, and also to increase how hard they compete with each other.â€</p>
<p><i>Here is Kalla’s New Training</i><br />
(Three high intensity dryland interval weeks.)<br />
Monday: 2 workouts<br />
Tuesday: 1 workout<br />
Wednesday: Rest<br />
Thursday: 2 workouts<br />
Saturday: rest<br />
Sunday: 2 workouts</p>
<p>Each interval is 3-7 minutes in length and the total effective time is between 20 and 25 minutes. </p>
<p>Purpose: The primary goal is to increase the maximum rate of lactic acid metabolism.</p>
<p><b>Training for Several Hours</b><br />
Kalla has, in contrast to many of the other national team skiers, not only increased the quality but also the quantity of training. “This year I plan on training 720 hours, in comparison with last year when I trained 678,â€she says.</p>
<p>The 20-year old has also made changes to her strength training: “I have started training more with barbells and am doing more complex exercises.†In Crete she “maxed†in the bench press. “60 kilos, so I can press at least my own body weight.â€</p>
<p>It is this new training that is going to transform the world’s best junior into the world’s best senior skier. In the week before the world cup opener, she spoke about her world cup ambitions: “I’d like to be consistently in the top 10 or 15 and peak for the Tour de Ski, before the World Championship in Liberec and the competitions in Falun.†</p>
<p>Last year she was the fastest Swedish female (the 10km in the world championship). “But it’s a big step from 5th place to the podium.†Now, the 20-year old super-talent plans to take the final step to the top of the podium in the 2010 Olympics. “Each season until the Olympics we’re planning to increase the load and make the training harder and harder,†concludes Abrahamsson. </p>
<p><b>Source:</b> Sportbladet</p>
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