Health – FasterSkier.com

Birkie Health Survey Underscores Link Between Exercise and Healthy Behavior

Chelsea LittleOctober 16, 2017

Back in 2014, Paul Anderson and his colleague, Ralph Bovard, set out to study the health habits of cross-country skiers by surveying those who participated in the American Birkebeiner (“the Birkie”), a cross-country ski marathon in Wisconsin. “We wanted to understand and characterize the role of social support for exercise among Birkie skiers,” Anderson explained in an email this month. “Dr. Bovard and myself are both Birkie skiers and we have both experienced how the...

Book Review News Research Resources Training

We’re Not Invincible: More Heart Arrhythmias in Endurance Athletes (Book Review)

Chelsea LittleJuly 27, 2017

When I heard that there was a new book coming out about heart arrhythmias in endurance athletes, I was interested. Several years ago, I read some of the research papers that the book’s authors refer to. One was a cohort study on participants in the Vasaloppet, the 90-kilometer ski marathon in Sweden. Those researchers found that skiers who competed in more Vasaloppets had more heart arrhythmias – as did those who finished the race the...

News

Why Skiing? How A Sport Saved My Life

Chelsea LittleMarch 28, 2016

After graduating from college with a math degree, I was stuck in a call-center job that I hated and struggling with a family history of anxiety and heart disease. Then a few good mentors got me cross-country skiing. I've since enrolled in grad school at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, and joined their ski team. Almost every aspect of my life changed for the better.

News

Herbal Supplements Commonly Used by Athletes Lead to Emergency Room Trips

Chelsea LittleOctober 22, 2015

Herbal supplements and micronutrient vitamins are largely unregulated and may in fact contain substances prohibited by WADA. But a new study also shows that they cause thousands of emergency room visits per year in the U.S.

News

Female Skiers Accumulate Airway Injury and Cough During Race Season

Chelsea LittleSeptember 8, 2015

After finding that female cross-country skiers develop airway inflammation and a persistent cough which affects their sleep by the end of the season, Dr. Michael Kennedy explains why it's such a bigger problem for women: smaller lungs means that there's much more stress on their airways, which leads to greater injury in the winter months.

News World Cup

Skofterud Brings Eating Disorders into the Spotlight; 1 in 9 Athletes Affected

Chelsea LittleMay 13, 2015

Vibeke Skofterud, an Olympic gold medalist and Vasaloppet champ, is opening up about eating disorders which have plagued her career. Thirteen percent of athletes will have disordered eating at some point in their career, but Skofterud asks them to think bigger: "Do not forget why you're doing what you're doing... What is it that really makes you happy?”

News Results

Masters World Cup 2015: The Russian Experience

Inge ScheveApril 3, 2015

Inge Scheve's take on racing at her fifth Masters World Cup, which took place last month in Syktyvkar, Russia. In all, eight members of Team USA collected seven medals at this year's championships.

News

Associations, National Teams See Multiple Benefits in Low-Fluoro or ‘Same-Wax’ Race Protocols

Chelsea LittleNovember 19, 20147

For reasons as wide-ranging as fairness of competition, stress on athletes, health of coaches, and saving money, several North American ski and biathlon organizations have policies limiting the use of high-fluoro waxes at some competitions. And they have nothing but positive feedback from their experiences.

News

Birkie Survey to Study Health, How Social Support and Interaction Keep Us Going

Chelsea LittleNovember 12, 2014

Dr. Paul Anderson and World Cup sprint champ Kikkan Randall chat with us about a new study of American Birkebeiner participants. Using 24,000 skiers who have competed in the Wisconsin marathon over the years, they hope to gain valuable insight into what gets people to exercise - and then apply it in a public health perspective.

News World Cup

This Month in Journals: Aerosol Particles and Wax Tech Health

Chelsea LittleSeptember 25, 20142

A new study assessed the exposure to airborne particles by 45 different World Cup wax techs across three disciplines - cross country, biathlon, and nordic combined. The results are scary, but the team also demonstrated that a custom-built ventilation system can reduce exposure by 95%.

Testing

September Edition: This Month In Journals

Chelsea LittleSeptember 17, 20123

FasterSkier is starting a new, once-a-month series looking at new research in the field of sports science. Periodically, we’ll flip through some of the world’s best peer-reviewed medical journals and summarize, in plain English, studies that we think will be of interest to skiers. Here’s our first installment – enjoy! * Those dopers who claim that their blood measurements were funny because they just did a really hard workout might actually have a point. A...

News World Cup

Swede Fears Germs Airport More than Driving

Inge ScheveFebruary 21, 2011

Sweden’s star skier Emil Joensson refused to fly to the Norway for the World Cup last weekend and the following World Championships – opted for the Interstate.

Job Postings News

MSU Seeks Exercise Physiology Graduate Students

Ben TheyerlDecember 2, 2010

The Department of Health & Human Development (HHD) at Montana State University (MSU) in Bozeman, MT, is actively seeking applications for graduate study in applied exercise physiology (Masters degree only; Fall 2011). Dr Dan Heil (http://www.montana.edu/cpa/news/nwview.php?article=9158 We also have lots of lab testing photos on the Facebook page for the Movement Science / Human Performance Lab (MSL): http://www.montana.edu/hhd/facultyandstaff/dheil.htm More information about our graduate program is here: http://www.montana.edu/wwwdg/apply.html To talk with the HHD Graduate Coordinator, contact...

Training

Fueling on the Go – Lunch

Inge ScheveNovember 2, 2010

Norwegians are known world-wide for their habit of packing open-faced sandwiches in paper and bring them along wherever they go. Not a bad habit, but there is more to the world than dry slices of bread in a messy and noisy wrapper.

Training

Recipe of the Week: Risotto with Mushrooms, Red Peppers, and Spinach

Linnaea KershawAugust 4, 20101

Been out of the game for the past few weeks with an illness that kept me from trying out and eating tasty recipes but here it is. We’re back with a delish recipe involving, rice, cheese and spinach… my favourite! Risotto with Mushrooms, Red Peppers, and Spinach Ingredients: – 1 cup Arborio rice – 3 cups chicken stock – 1/2 onion or three shallots, chopped – 3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely – 1/2 a red...

Training

Barbeques, Beer, and Training

Kieran JonesJuly 28, 20106

The summer is in full swing. For athletes, that means building up your training base with long workouts, intensity sessions, and time in running shoes and on rollerskis. While the training is what will keep you fast for those race weekends in January and February, during July and August, the season can seem a long way off. The temptation to have a barbeque with your friends, knock back a few of your favorite adult drinks,...

Training

Recipe of the Week: Paprika-Coriander Crusted Salmon with Avocado-Mango Salsa

Linnaea KershawJune 10, 2010

Ski news is all well and good and satisfies the ski nerd in us all but since food tends to eventually take up an unbelievable amount of any conversation athlete have, why not incorporate that into the site? So, starting now is a new series with a new recipe every week. You can try them, adapt them, review them, whatever. We’re also going to run nutritional stats with whatever we cook up so that you...