Intervals – FasterSkier.com

Reaping Mountain Biking Benefits for Cross-Country Ski Training with Jessica Yeaton

Jessica YeatonMay 17, 2022

Cross-country skiers are notorious for training high volumes during the off season in order to be in peak racing form in the winter. There is a common mantra used by coaches to help motivate athletes to train hard even though the racing season is months away: “skiers are made in the summer”. From my experience working with different coaches, the large bulk of the summer’s volume is intended to be on roller skis or foot...

Resources Training Workouts

Interval Session to Kick Start The Season

Rachel PerkinsDecember 17, 2020

We’ve reached mid-December. With any luck, your local trail system is beginning to fill in, you’ve scraped off your storage wax, and you’ve put in at least a handful of easy days getting reacquainted with your boards. Whether or not you rollerski during the summer, skiing on snow has its own jive and it’s normal to feel a little like Bambi your first few sessions. In my experience as a coach and masters athlete, I...

Resources Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Building Sprint Capacity with Dr. Øyvind Sandbakk

Jason AlbertJuly 25, 2018

The following Wednesday Workout was written by Dr. Øyvind B. Sandbakk, the managing director at the Centre for Elite Sports Research at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway. (He’ll also be featured in an upcoming Nordic Nation podcast.) Beyond his work at NTNU, Sandbakk is the head of research and development at the Norwegian Olympic Sports Center (Olympiatoppen). At 37, he has established himself as one of the premier researchers studying...

Resources Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Russian Intervals with a Canmore Master

FasterSkierJuly 4, 2018

(Note: The following workout was submitted to FasterSkier by ELA climbing guide) or in the Canadian Alpine Journal (CAJ v. 65 (1982), p. 24; 66 (1983), p. 98).) After a sabbatical year in 1979 in distant mountains (the Pyrenees, the Alps, Morocco, and Chile), the remainder of my Winnipeg years were focused on climbing trips: Mexico, Yosemite, the Red Rocks, the Dolomites, Ecuador, Nepal, and, most frequently, the Canadian Rockies. When I retired in 1997,...

Resources Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Lung-Busting with Hanna Falk

Jason AlbertSeptember 27, 2017

“I have a workout that I like and usually do in the autumn when it’s time to shape up.” Those are the words of Swedish national-team member Hanna Falk. To take Falk’s words literally, it is that time of year: in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s officially autumn and “time to shape up”. In two months, the 2017/2018 World Cup will open with classic sprints on Nov. 26 in Kuusamo, Finland. For the figurative aspect of...

General Resources Training US Ski Team Workouts

Wednesday Workout: SkiErg Intervals with Sadie Bjornsen

FasterSkierAugust 9, 2017

If you have a lower-body injury, be it acute or chronic, training for cross-country skiing can be frustrating: there are so many activities which must be cut back if you are trying to protect a knee, ankle, or foot. Luckily, there are good training options available, especially if you have access to a double-pole machine like an Ercolina or a Concept2 SkiErg. “I use the SkiErg a lot because I fight with feet injuries, and...

Resources Technique Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Getting Adaptable with NSCF-FXC

FasterSkierJuly 26, 2017

The following workout comes from Alasdair Tutt, interim coach for the Nordic Ski Club of Fairbanks/Fairbanks XC (commonly known as NSCF-FXC). Tutt recognizes that while training in central Alaska has its perks (like reliable snow), it can also be tough for skiers to excel outside of their familiar environment (like on significantly warmer snow). This is true for anyone racing in variable climates and at both high and low elevations across North America. So for NSCF-FXC, the goal is...

General Interviews Masters Resources Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: ‘Old Lady’ Interval Ladder with ’94 Olympians Hall and McCabe

Gabby NaranjaJune 7, 2017

*Note: This article has been updated to include email comments from Laura McCabe as of Wednesday. Don’t let the name “Old Lady Intervals” (designated by Leslie Hall) fool you. The interval ladder she and Laura McCabe complete every Wednesday and submitted to FasterSkier is one that takes experience and willpower. Hall doesn’t recommend the workout for juniors, but more for masters and those with limited time for harder training efforts. *** If their houses were any...

Dryland General Resources Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Moosehoofing for Speed and Capacity with Chris Mallory

Jason AlbertSeptember 28, 2016

"The goals of the workout are to increase classic striding leg speed and explosiveness, make neuromuscular gains, and increase aerobic capacity," explains Chris Mallory, new head coach of the SVSEF Gold Team. "The workout is fairly short and sweet, but very effective, and it helps to sharpen the athletes up as we near race season."

Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Quality Level 3 and 4 for the Working Class

Peter MindeOctober 14, 2015

A day after turning 58, FasterSkier contributor Peter Minde shaved 6 seconds off his time in the insanely tough Climb to the Castle. Here, Minde shares three workouts that have helped him get the most out of each week, while balancing work, family and training for skiing in New Jersey.

Regional / Local Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Max Aerobic Speed Intervals with Colin Foley

BrainspiralJanuary 29, 2014

This week's, Colin Foley of the Callaghan Valley Training Centre details one of his favorite intensity workouts, which felt like a sprint qualifier: max aerobic speed at 15-second intervals. "It’s something that we’ve done a few times and I really hope we do more in the future," he writes.

Biathlon Camps Dryland General Training Workouts

U.S. Biathletes Hammer Hard in Placid (Photo Gallery)

Alex KochonOctober 4, 20132

FasterSkier caught the US Biathlon team during one of their hardest workouts of the training season in Lake Placid, with the added bonus of watching German gold medalist Andrea Henkel rollerski around with them.

General Training

Wednesday Workout: Finding Your Realistic Race Pace

Steven McCarthySeptember 11, 2013

It happens all too often. Inexperienced skier takes off from the start of a distance race as though it is a sprint qualifier, only to struggle through several more kilometers. Will Sweetser, competitive programs director at the Maine Winter Sports Center, has a workout that encourages athletes to take an honest look at their individual ability and find a sustainable pace for every distance.

General News

This Month in Journals: Team Dynamics in Individual Sports, How to Prescribe Intervals

Chelsea LittleAugust 1, 2013

This month in scientific journals, researchers investigated how teammates affect performance in individual sports, which has rarely been considered; six Canadian skiers took part in the study. Also, how do you plan intervals? Uphill, or on the flat? Based on heart rate, percent of VO2Max, or anaerobic threshold? Two papers investigated.

Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Double-Pole Intensity with Ida Sargent

Audrey ManganJune 26, 2013

Whether it's the first meters of a mass start or the final stages of a head-to-head sprint, a strong double-pole can be critical to the outcome of a race. Ida Sargent shares an interval session that has helped her make recent gains.

Training Workouts

Wednesday Workout: Reese Hanneman’s On-the-Road Intervals

Audrey ManganJune 5, 2013

Traveling this summer? Alaska Pacific University’s Reese Hanneman has an efficient, one-hour interval session for you that fits easily into a busy vacation schedule away from home.

General News Training Workouts

This Month In Journals: All About Intervals

Chelsea LittleFebruary 27, 20132

We look at two recent studies about interval training, each coming to a different conclusion about what's best - and then ask the question, how does this apply to real-life training? Pros and cons of academic research into endurance training, considered.

Q&A: Efficient Interval Training and Boot Width

BrainspiralFebruary 14, 20131

In this edition we offer advice on interval training for skiers short on time, and Nathan Schultz of Boulder Nordic Sport provides information on boot width.

Camps Dryland General News Regional / Local Training US Ski Team Workouts

Bounding Up Whiteface: Video from USST Elite Camp (Updated with Quotes)

Alex KochonSeptember 13, 2012

WILMINGTON, N.Y. — The view from partially up Whiteface Mountain on Wednesday morning was about as picturesque as they get. From the trail, one could see that the leaves had started to turn shades of red and yellow — just in time for the U.S. Ski Team’s fall training camp in Lake Placid, N.Y. Way down below, a few small dots proceeded up the dirt access road: first to warm up, then to get after...

Training Workouts

Pro Workout: Running Intervals in the Rain with Liz Stephen

Topher SabotNovember 4, 2010

Some skiers love to run; others tolerate it. The U.S. Ski Team’s Liz Stephen is the former. And while uphill running intervals present plenty of challenge for most, Stephen not only wants a solid grade and 20+ minutes of active time – she wants a steady downpour, mud, slippery footing, and whatever else nature can throw at her. “For me it is always more fun when it is raining out,” said Stephen. “It is muddy…your...

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