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There is really only one way to become a faster skier. Train. We will keep you inspired with training reports from the best around, as well as articles on specific workouts and suggestions on how to improve your own training. Use the links below to view articles in a specific sub-category, or srcoll down to view all Training articles.
Wednesday Workout: Race Prep Intensity with Palmer-Charrette

Evan Palmer-Charrette, of Thunder Bay’s National Team Development Centre (NTDC), had an eventful 2016/2017 season, starting with compartment syndrome surgery in the summer to remedy an issue that had plagued him for four years, his classic sprint at Canadian Ski Nationals, behind two U.S.-based university skiers, which made him the top Canadian. “Awesome to be Canadian champion, but a surprise for sure in a classic sprint,” he told FasterSkier at nationals, reflecting his preference for distance...

Bend: Where You Should Be Right Now

You should be in Bend. Bend, Oregon. Right now. For all of my “shallow readers” in the audience, those unable to focus on any piece of written work longer than 140 characters (you know who you are), you can stop here. You’ve both learned everything you need to know and also everything your SnapChat-addled brain can handle, so you’re done. For those of you with attention spans longer than those of fruit flies, dig in,...

Kristen Bourne on Recovering from Mono and Making NCAAs

Two-and-half months into her summer training last year, Kristen Bourne woke up in a cold sweat. Her temperature read higher than normal and no amount of lozenges could soothe her sore throat. The Central Collegiate Ski Association (CSSA) Distance Championships and also qualified for NCAA Skiing Championships. There in Jackson, N.H., she finished 17th in the 5 k classic and was the top NMU woman in the 15 k freestyle mass start two days later, placing 13th and 

Wednesday Workout: Dance Cross-Training with Diggins

Anyone who follows Jessie Diggins extensively on social media knows the woman has some moves. She’s been the ringleader for multiple U.S. Ski Team choreographed dance videos, and two weeks ago, posted a video of herself doing a little “fancy footwork” House dance in Boston. https://www.instagram.com/p/BTrQiGcFVct/?taken-by=jessiediggins Her background in dance began at the Woodbury Dance Center just outside Saint Paul, Minn. “I think I started the year it opened, actually!” Diggins, 25, wrote in an...

Nordic Nation: Training and Intensity with Dr. Stephen Seiler

80/20 Rule — the easy to hard intensity ratio when it comes to training sessions, has been well publicized. Seiler believes easy days should be truly easy, meaning walking the hills may be mandatory. If the easy days are easy, then the hard days are hard. He espouses a fidelity to training models with little, if any, in-between efforts; that means no middle-of-the-road intensity. And his observations come straight from Norway. “… They know what gets you...

Wednesday Workout: ‘Spring Fling’ Pushups TT (with Video)

On May 6, Sovereign Lake hosted a classic time trial with a twist. Instead of using a standard interval start, each skier drew a number, did that many pushups, put their skis on, and started the 5-kilometre, one-lap course. When one skier hit the 5-metre line, the next skier stepped up to the pushup station. Troy Hudson, general manager of the Sovereign Lake Nordic Club (SLNC), came up with the format the night before, so the special equipment...

Wednesday Workout: Sand Hills TT with the UNM Ski Team

This week’s workout comes from University of New Mexico (UNM) sophomore Julia Devaux, who recently wrapped up her second season with the UNM nordic team. Devaux, 23, is originally from Grenoble, France, and grew up training in Villard de Lans. She was previously a member of the French national team but sought out new motivation to continue skiing. “[UNM Head Coach] Fredrik [Landstedt] gave me the opportunity to come at UNM 2 years ago,” Devaux wrote in an email. “I chose UNM because...

Start of a New Season (as Seen on Social Media)

Happy May! With the start of a new training year, FasterSkier scanned social media for a sense of how nordic skiers kicked off Day 1 (and the days before) of the 2017/2018 season. Kikkan Randall of the U.S. Ski Team (USST) and Alaska Pacific University (APU) “sneaking in some secret Mom training” while pushing her son Breck on April 30: View this post on Instagram Excited to kick off a new training season tomorrow! (Sneaking in some secret Mom training...

Wednesday Workout: Spring ‘Break’ from Skiing with Utah’s Kevin Bolger

With spring in full swing and many skiers returning to training, this week’s Wednesday Workout is presented by University of Utah Ski Team member, Kevin Bolger. While most of his athletic accomplishments from this past season are nordic-based — he’s a NCAA All-American, the 2017 Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association (RMISA) U.S. nationals classic sprint champion — most of Bolger’s spring workouts mean giving skiing a spring ‘break.’ *** It’s no secret that natives of Sweden, Norway and other overseas nations often...

Wednesday Workout: Finding Your Warmup Routine with Christian Gow

Has a coach ever told you that you should be hot at the start line of your races? That the engine needs to be revved up and ready to go? Then you might be surprised at the scene before a World Cup biathlon race. While some competitors are jogging around and jumping up and down, others seem to be just standing around for a surprisingly long stretch of time — the opposite of arriving to...

Wednesday Workout: Double-Pole Endurance Training

Double poling is an increasingly important part of cross-country skiing and it pays to be good at it. If watching World Cup stars double pole short races on television doesn’t have you convinced, take a look at the races you might enter. Most loppets, marathons and citizen races feature flatter courses with a lot of double-poling time. Even in skating, the three main techniques all include slight variations on double poling. When five Canmore skiers...

Wednesday Workout: Skiing Fat-Bike Singletrack (Like Eli Brown)

If you are craving a challenging ski workout that will train your agility, boost your strength, and add variety to your skiing, you should look no further than your local fat-bike, singletrack ride. Have you ever tried to keep up with the fat bikes? On their trail? “Hardest workout out there!” said Eli Brown, a longtime U.S. Ski Team volunteer wax tech from Michigan, who is doing the majority of his skiing this season on singletrack....

An Open Letter About Depression in Competition

If you follow U.S. skiing closely, you’ve probably heard of Paul Everett. After three years on US Biathlon’s development team, Everett, 20, is currently a Montana State University sophomore and member of the Bridger Ski Foundation in Bozeman, Mont. He is studying exercise science and psychology, and wrote the following letter for an assignment. It’s about depression and anxiety in athletes, “more specifically ski racing about what it is like for those competing with these disorders and...

Wednesday Workout: Testing the (Endurance) Waters

Living in New England, the adult version of Christmas is waiting for the first snowfall. For most skiers in New England usually by the time the first race comes around you have skied once or twice on snow if you are lucky. The key to be race ready without going on snow is to train your body in race conditions. We do this by rollerskiing, running, strength, etc. One workout that I do to make...

FasterSkier’s 12 Days of FBD Christmas: Day 11

Patagonia.com. Baxter State Parka, $249 Speaking of classic styles, this FBD BP is a good one. Last year during one of our L.L. Bean. *** Over $250: Oakley Turbine ($160) We’ve had a few “twofers” along the way in our magically little journey here together and get ready for another: I suppose I’m a teeny, tiny bit conflicted over this concept, as technically any one of these suggestions could be purchased individually, therein violating the carefully...