The West Wednesday Workout: L3/L4 Skate Intensity (with Video)

For this week’s Wednesday Workout, FasterSkier contributor Hailey Swirbul of the Aspen Valley Ski Club in Aspen, Colo., takes us though a workout she and her team recently did on the snow-covered Rendezvous Ski Trails at the annual season-opening ski festival in West Yellowstone, Mont. (Trouble viewing video? Click here.)

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Every year in West Yellowstone, Mont., thousands of nordic skiers of all abilities flock to the trails for a weeklong training and racing opportunity over Thanksgiving week.

Aspen Valley Ski Club (AVSC) is one team of many here to take advantage of the pristine snow conditions and unbelieveable nordic skiing community during the week.

This festival provides a perfect location for AVSC’s athletes to move fast, work hard and prep for upcoming races this week and this season.

What better way to spend a morning than with a Level 3/ Level 4 combination skate-intensity workout?

AVSC’s West Wednesday Workout

Warmup: Recruit teammates and friends for this tough workout, and skate ski easy for 25 minutes. Pick a flat section of trail to do three build-up speeds, lasting about 10 seconds. Start slowly and work up to a full sprint.

Level 3: After warmup speeds, begin your first 8-minute Level 3 or threshold interval, about 85 percent of max, on gradual rolling terrain to focus on V2 and transitions. Take 2 minutes off after that interval and begin a second 8-minute effort.

Level 4: Now it’s go time. On similar terrain, ski three 4-minute L4 intervals with equal recovery between. On crowded trails like West Yellowstone’s, practice efficient passing!

Cool down: Now that the hard work is over, ski easy for 20 to 30 more minutes. A cool down is a great time to practice maintaining technique with tired muscles or mass start Chinese downhills, and is also a perfect opportunity to catch up with fellow skiers from across the country if you are lucky enough to be surrounded by thousands of them at the Yellowstone Ski Festival!

See you on the trails!
– AVSC