Training for Cross-Country Skiing G

Training for Cross-Countryyg Skiing

October, 2010

Andy Pasternak, MD, MS Silver Sage Center for Family Medicine Silver Sage Sports Performance

Jeff Schloss Director and Head Nordic Coach of the Sugar Bowl Academy Nordic Program

Note: This document is based on a presentation given by the authors on October 30, 2010

2 Overview

¾ Brief review of terms and definitions

¾ What determines performance? VO2 Max Lactate Threshold Efficiency

¾ What we can measure?

¾ What are the training zones and what does training in various zones do for you?

¾ Nutritional issues

The goal for training is to get your body prepared as much as possible for your specific race/event. This requires training different metabolic systems to produce as much energy as possible for the duration of the race. This goes for everyone from Olympic athletes to people doing their first race

All other things being equal, the person who is able to generate more energy is goin g to win

To do this properly you need to know: Your body’ s natural strengths and weakness Distance/duration of the event Profile of the event

Aerobic - From the Greek aeras meaning air. The energy system that uses oxygen

Anaerobic - Without air - the two energy systems that don’t use oxygen

Glycogen - chain of glucose molecules- the carbohydrate used for energy

Lactate - C3H5O3 - Naturally occurring compound that is both a by- product and a fuel for exercise. Used interchangeably with lactic acid. Produced when your body uses glycogen as a fuel source

Car bo hy dra tes (CHO) - S(ilSugars (simple or comp l)thtbdlex) that your body uses for energy. Your body either gets energy from carbohydrates or fats

VO2 Max - VO2 max is the maximum amount of oxygen, in milliliters, one can use in one minute per kilogram of bodyweight (usually expressed as ml/kg/min). It is an indication of your aerobic endurance potential. Increasing your VO2 Max allows your body to generate more energy

Lactate threshold / anaerobic threshold (LT) - Point of at which we change from aerobic metabolism to anaerobic metabolism. It is an indication of how much of your VO2 Max you can actually use. A higher threshold relative to your VO2 Max is better

ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) - Your main source of energy in cells/mitochondria. When ATP is broken down into ADP or AMP, this gives muscles cells the energy they need to contract

¾ ATP - Phosphocreatine system

¾ Lactate System

¾ Aerobic System

¾ Used for very short periods of time

¾ Immediate energy - ATP coverts to ADP

¾ Can use for 8 -12 seconds

¾ Takes at least 30-45 sec to regenerate

¾ Glucose + ADP => Lactic Acid + ATP

¾ Supplies energy for shorter periods of time (20 sec-10 min)

¾ Will supply energy during “surges” in endurance events

¾ Fats + Oxygen + ADP => carbon dioxide + ATP + Water 1st phase: Glucose + ADP =>lactic acid + ATP

nd 2 phase: Lactic acid + O2 + ADP => CO2 + ATP + water

¾ Used for endurance exercise

¾ Lactate is not bad for you

¾ Lactate / lactic acid doesn’t cause the burn you feel during periods of high-intensity exercise

¾ Lactate / lactic acid isn’t what limits your exercise capacity

¾ Lactate is a by-ppyroduct of your anaerobic s ystem

¾ Your lactate threshold (LT) tells us where your body transitions from aerobic to anaerobic metabolism

¾ By measuring lactate, we can get a good idea of fitness capacity

This diagram is a simplified Glyygcogen description of energy produ ction

The fate of pyruvate and its link with lactate are the keyygs in estimating energy production

The amount of lactate in the blood Pyruvate Lactate at different intensity levels can be Oxygen used to assess how much pyruvate has been produced and what Fats percentage has been used for Proteins aerobic energy Water Carbon Dioxide

Where will lac ta te go ?

Heart uses lactate

Also converted to glycogen in the liver

Part of body will store temporarily

Happens very quickly

Exercise Duration

90 80 70 60 50 Fat 40 CHO 30 20 10 0 0.511.522.533.544.555.56 Hours

Edwards HT, et al. Metabolic rate, blood sugar And utilization of carbohydrate. Am J Physio 1934

Heart Rate ((pbpm)

Distance Duration Phos Lactate Aerobic System System System 42K 130 min + 0% 5% 95%

10K 28-60 m in 5% 15% 80%

5K 14-30 10% 20% 70%

800 M 2-5 min 30% 65% 5%

100 m 10-20 sec 98% 2% 0%

Energy use during a cross country ski event of comparable distance / time would be similar

¾ White fibers = type II = Fast Twitch II a fibers - supplbiiily some aerobic activity II b fibers - Anaerobic only

¾ Red fibers = Type I = Slow Twitch Work slowly, don’t fatigue easily

¾ With training, sprinters can develop more slow twitch fibers but endurance athletes can’t develop more fast twitch fibers

¾ With age , fast twitch fibers reduce

Type I Type II a Type II b (Slow Twitch) (Fast Twitch) (Fast Twitch) Energy Aerobic Aerobic- anaerobic supply anaerobic Fuel Fats CHO and fats CHO

Exercise Light Intermediate Heavy Duration Hours 1-2 hrs Short

Lactate None Moderate High prodtiduction Speed Slow Fast High/Max

¾ 1. VO2 Max - How big is the engine?

¾ 2. Lactate Threshold - How efficient is the engine and how close can you run it to max?

¾ 3. Efficiency - How well can you use your energy to move forward

¾ Determine fitness and energy prediction

¾ Race prediction / Who to race

¾ Heart rate zone determination / training assistance

¾ Graded exercise test with measurement of blood lactate every 3-4 minutes

¾ Heart rate measured on a regular basis

¾ Can be done in the field or in the lab

¾ Various methods used to determine heart rate zones from the blood lactate data

Your lactate threshold can be improved with training

Sea Level

2,000 m

4,000 m

At elevation, blood lactate levels will be higher for any particular exertion level

¾ Done using a machine that measures both oxygen consumption and carbon dioxide production

¾ Traditionally only able to do in big labs. Technology now allows easier testing with less expensive equipment

¾ 99% of the time, done in the lab or health center due to constraints of the machine Treadmill Exercise bicycle

Use of fat as a fuel source

Anaerobic / lactate threshold

Oxygen Consumption

60 O2 Consumption 50

nn 40 Anaerobic Threshold 30 Trained l/kg/mi

mm 20 Anaerobic Threshold 10 Untrained 0 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170 180 Heart Rate (bpm) VO2 Max can be improved with training, but heredity plays an important role in the amount of potential improvement

¾ Much of VO2 Max is genetically determined ¾ May see some increases in V02 Max for people going from couch potato status to actively exercising ¾ If you are exercising regularly, VO2 Max is going to stay relatively stable (see graph on next page) ¾ Level 3 and Level 4 workouts (pp 35, 36 and 50-55), can increase VO2 max small amounts ¾ For most masters skiers, a more important concept is to focus on imppgroving lactate threshold and efficiency

¾ Metabolic testing may be a better measure of potential

¾ Metabolic testing gives better information on fat metabolism

¾ For average athletes and above, lactate threshold testing is a better predictor of performance

¾ Lactate testingggg is more sensitive to changes in training

¾ Lactate testing can be specific to cross country skiing

Zone 1 - Active Recovery/Endurance

Zone 2 - Endurance/Tempo

Zone 3 - Lactate Threshold Pace

Zone 4 - Max aerobic power

Zone 5 - Anaerobic capacity

¾ Usually anywhere up to 75-80% of heart rate at LT

¾ All day pace

¾ Typical work outs 2-5 hours

¾ Using a combination of fats/carbs as a fuel source

¾ Most useful zone for improving aerobic capacity

¾ Usually about 75-80% to 90-95% of heart rate at LT

¾ Workouts usually 1.5 to 3 hours long

¾ Recovery more difficult that Level 1 workouts but can still do consecutive days with limits on duration and proper nutrition

¾ 90-95 to 100-105% of heart rate at LT

¾ Should have essentially continuous sensation of effort/fatigue

¾ Usually workouts would be blocks of longer intervals (2 x 20 min as example)

¾ Goal of these workouts is to stay in this zone - don’t go to slow but don’t go over threshold

¾ Training in this zone helps improve your lactate threshold

¾ 100% + of heart rate at LT

¾ Interval workouts

¾ Shouldn’ t do on consecutive days

¾ Interval work outs - longest intervals 2-8 min at MOST!

¾ Total work out times 30-40 min at MOST!

¾ Recovery periods of 2-5 min in between intervals also important

¾ Training in this zone helps improve your lactate threshold

¾ Very short (less than 30 sec intervals) with high intensity

¾ Want complete recovery in between efforts

¾ Mostly focusing on improving ATP system

¾ Usually least important zone for masters skiers unless you are a sppprint expert

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5

Increased plasma volume ++ ++ +++ ++++

Incr mitochondrial enzymes ++ +++ ++++ ++ +

Increased Lactate Threshold ++ +++ ++++ ++

Incr Muscle Glycogen storage +++ ++++ ++ +

Incr muscle capillarization ++ ++ ++ +++

Conversion of fast twitch ++ +++ +++ ++ muscle fibers Increased stroke volume/max + ++ +++ ++++ cardiac output Increased VO2 max + ++ +++ ++++

Increased high energy + +++ phosphate stores Increased lactate tolerance +++ + (anaerobic capacity) Fast twitch fiber hypertropy +++

Increased neuromuscular ++ +++ power

¾ In general, eat healthy

¾ Fruits/veggies always good (vitamin C, carotenoids, phytochemicals, zinc, iron, B6/B12 are good for you in moderate doses)

¾ Hydration is more important

¾ Discussion about carbohyygdrates and training at low elevation / / racing at high elevation - hasn’t really been shown to be of help yet

¾ 50 K distance- 4.5 to 5.5 grams/CHO/lb of body weight

¾ 20-50K- 3-4.5 gms/CHO/lb of body weight

¾ Should plan on eating 50-75 gms of CHO within 30 min of exercise along with rehydration

¾ 20-25 % of calories should come from gg(ood (unsaturated ) fats

¾ Exercise in cold conditions burns more calories than in heat. Glycogen stores are also used up faster

¾ Chocolate milk is a good recovery drink

¾ During longer races, hydration and CHO intake during the race is definitely important

¾ Practice during training what CHO foods/drinks work for you

¾ Cold weather often can dull your sense of thirst

¾ Duringgygy a race, start hydrating as early at 15-20 min into the race

42 Overview

¾ Recap – traininggy intensity zones

¾ The training pyramid

¾ TiiTraining pri iitiorities

¾ Interval training guidelines

¾ Level 3, 4 and 5 intervals

¾ Race training strategy and peaking

Level 1: Long easy endurance pace. “guilt-producingly easy.” Over distance workouts, recovery workouts. 25-35 beats below LT

Level 2: Medium endurance pace, 70-80% of max heart rate (80-90% of LT). Shorter distance workouts and strength workouts. Avoid too much training in this zone

Level 3: Up to anaerobic threshold: 80-90% of max heart rate (90-100% of LT). Long intervals and pace workouts. This is the intensity level of longer races (20- 30K ) . Finish feeling “euphoric not exhausted”- the tired will come later that night

Level 4: Race pace: 90-95% of max heart rate. Hard intervals in the 2-5 minute range

Level 5: Maximum effort: 95-100% of max heart rate. Very short duration: 30- 80 second peaking intervals for young and fit athletes. Use this zone sparingly

Ll5Level 5 Speed Intervals

Level 3 and Level 4 Interval Training + Strength Training

Increase LT and VO2 Max

Level 1 – Endurance / Distance Training

Strengthen aerobic capacity

1. One long slow distance workout every week: 2 hours or more done at level 1. Tired from the duration of the workout, not from the intensity

2. One Level 3 interval or pace workout every week to build anaerobic threshold (AT/LT). Lots of “on time” and relatively short recovery (50% of work time)

3. At l east one d ay off per week -often two d ays. R ecovery is w hen we ge t fitter. List en to your body.

4. Add short speed bursts of 10-15 seconds to ski-specific workouts 1-3 times per week.

5. Strength is important but should never come at the expense of cardio training. Specific strength is the most bang for the buck: double pole up-hill, skate without poles, etc. Upper body and core should make up the majority of strength training. For general stthhdidlltrength: crunches, dips, and pull-ups. T20iTwo 20 min sess ions per wee k are goo d

6. The body adapts to training loads, so you must change the load to keep the body adappgting. Increases in volume , intensit y, amount of “on time”

7. Recovery week every 3rd or 4th week. Cut back to about ½ of the time of your other weeks

8. Try to eat within 30 min of finishing exercise

8. Separate the intensities - don’t always train the same speed!

9. Specificity matters. You need to make your training as much like skiing as possible. Roller skiing and ski walking with poles are the most specific dry land activities. Specificity is more important for intensity sessions.

10. Technique is 100% important. In all training, work on crisp snappy movements even when going slow. The biggest technique gains can be made in body position, weight transfer, and balance/glide

Monday and Friday – take the day off

Tuesday – strength training at the gym or home. 20-40 min emphasizing the upper body and core

Wednesday – day off if no time for exercise. Otherwise, 10 min warm-up + 5to6x2min5 to 6x2 min Level 4 intervals with equal recovery. The exercise could be skiing, ski walking with poles, treadmill, exercise bike, swimming, etc

Thursday - strength training at the gym or home. 20-40 min on push-ups, dips, crunches, squat jumps, step-ups, back raises, lunges

Saturday – Skate ski 15 min warm-up + 15 min without poles + 4x7 min Level 3 intervals with 4 min recovery. Cool down. Total time 1 to 1.5 hrs

Sunday – Over-distance Level 1 for 1 ½ to 2 ½ hrs including 5x10 sec speed intervals. Skate or classic. Keep the intensity low

Monday – take the day off

Tuesday – Classic ski: 1 hr at Level 1 + 5x1 min double pole uphill + 5x1 min single pole uphill at Level 3 with 1 min recovery between intervals

Wednesday – Skate ski: 15 min warm-up + 5x10 sec speed intervals with lots of recovery + 3x7 min Level 3 intervals with 3 min recovery. Cool down

Thursday – Easy skate or classic ski at Level 1 for 1 hr + 5x10 sec speed intervals + 30 min of general strength training with crunches, dips, pull ups, pushups, “Hitler’s Dog” back exercises

Friday – Day off or easy run with optional 10 min of plyometric jumps, especially if racing Sunday

Saturday – Classic ski: 4x4 min Level 4 intervals with equal recovery. Good warm-up and cool down

Sunday – Over-distance skate ski of 2-3 hrs at Level 1. Include 20 min of no-pole skiing with focus on weight transfer and glide

¾ Level 3 intervals increase the anaerobic threshold and improve the ability to go well in long races or in shorter races that have long climbs

¾ Level 3 is particularly valuable for master skiers over 40 because they are not as stressful on the body as Level 4 intervals It takes a lot of time spent near the anaerobic threshold (AT) to improve it, so the idea is to have a lot of work time with fairly short recovery between intervals: 5-10 minutes of effort with recovery about 1/3 to ½ the work time

¾ Level 3 should feel like a medium hard intensity, a pace that you could maintain for a 45 minute or longer race. If you feel your breathing becoming very rapid and uncontrolled, you have probably passed beyond level 3 and are not accompli s hing your goa l for an AT bu ilding wor kou t

¾ The progression of Level 3 interval sessions during the season is to keep adding more on-time to the sessions but not increasing the intensity In the fall, shoot for 15-25 minutes of total work time per session (excluding recovery time), progress this to 20-35 minutes by early winter. If your goal races are 20-30K races you should be hitting 30-35 plus minutes of work-time by six weeks before your goal race

¾ When possible, Level 3 intervals should be done twice a week in the fall and earlyyg winter and then go to 1 time a week in the winter For the peaking period at the end of the ski season, drop Level 3 intervals entirely and focus on level 4

¾ Level 3 intervals are great time to work on smooth efficient technique, think efficiency rather than speed

Examples of Level 3 Intervals 1. 3x5 minute intervals with 2 minute recovery. After 3 weeks of doing this, progress it to 4x5 minutes, and after another 3 weeks go to 5x5 2. 3,5,7,5 minute intervals with recovery = ½ work time. Progress this by going 3,5,7,5,3 after 3 weeks then after another 3 weeks you can try 3,5,7,7,5,3. 3. 2x10 minute with 3 minute recovery. This is a great workout to do if you are cyclist an d you have some long up hills to wor k w it h. Progress t his in a big step by going to 3x10 minutes and eventually 4x10 for the highly trained

Level 3 Pace Workouts

¾ These also increase the anaerobic threshold but are done in one medium long effort. Also sometimes called “tempo workouts” these are a favorite of runners and are very effective for x-c skiers as well. They are like a time trial or a race but are done at slightly lower than race pace intensity

¾ Do this in place of a Level 3 interval session every other week and aim for 20- 40 minutes done at AT after the warm up. Again the way to progress this is to add more time at threshold, so maybe your pace workouts are 20 minutes long in September and are 35 minutes long by mid late December

¾ These are hard intervals that increase VO2 Max and increase race pace. Level 4 intervals will build fitness and speed for races of 1-10K very effectively These intervals are hard on the body and should usually have 48 hours before doing another session Level 4 intervals should feel like a solid hard effort - about 90-95% of maximum effort. Recovery is usually equal to work time

¾ Level 4 intervals can progress through the season in two ways 1. Increase the amount of on time 2. Go a bit harder within your level 4 range later in the season

¾ Leve l 4 in terva ls are very e ffecti ve if the on-time is be tween 10-20 m inu tes with the pace staying high through the whole session

Examples of Level 4 Intervals 1. 3x4 minutes level 4 with 3-4 minute recovery. This is a great VO2 max- building workout and can be progressed to 4x4 2. 1,2,3,3,2,1 minute intervals with equal recovery time. This a great way to build speed and VO2 max. Can be progressed by adding 2x30 seconds of Level 5 in the peaking season 3. 14x30seconds with 30 seconds of recovery. This is a favorite of the Sugar Bowl Academy Ski team. The idea is that the recovery is so short that you are actually staying in VO2 max-building heart rates the whole workout, even during the recovery. It is important to do these at about 95% of what feels like maximum and to stay fast through each one. Once the pace of an individual interval starts to drop off, the session should be over 4. 10x1 minute with 2 minutes recovery. This is a great peaking interval session and we often use it once a week in the 4 weeks leading up to an important race. Most useful for peaking for races 15K and under

¾ Speed training is designed to train the neurological system to go fast and is best done in ski-specific workouts. Speed intervals are short intense bursts of effort with duration between 10-30 seconds. The effort should be near 100% Short speeds of 10-15 seconds can be added to almost any workout without making the workout too hard as long as there is sufficient recovery between bursts - ideally a few minutes Longer speeds of 30-45 seconds can be used to increase anaerobic capacity and peaking speed, but they will be hard on the body and should have lots of recovery build around them

¾ Monitoring your heart rate might not reflect how hard you are going because the effort is too short to get an accurate reading. Go hard and don’t worry about the HR

¾ Short speeds should be used all fall and winter in a majority of the workouts. Longer speeds (Level 5 intervals) should be used sparingly during the fall and early winter and then a bit more during the peaking phase

Examples of Short Speed Intervals 1. During a distance workout, add 5 to 8x10 second bursts throughout the workout 2. Before an interval session but after the warm up, do 5 to 8x10 seconds explosive speeds then get into your intervals 3. Base a whole workout around speed by warming up then doing 3 sets of 5 to10 intervals per set with 5-10 minutes of Level 1 between sets

Examples of Longer Speed Intervals 1. In the fall and early winter, do 2 or 3x30 seconds of Level 5 speed after the warm up then finish with a long, easy distance ski. This can increase Anaerobic capacity. Do this workout about once per month 2. During the last 6 weeks before an important race, try adding the following workout maybe once every 10 days Warm up, then do 1x3 minute Level 3 interval, then 4 to 6x 30 second Level 5 intervals with 2 minute recovery followed by 3x15 seconds with 2 minute recovery

Peaking

Reduce volume of training

Maintain or increase intensity of training

The peak should be short and sharp peak, not long and gradual. Last week is 50% of a normal week of training

Be ultra-hydrated

Carbo loading a couple days before the race is effective for longer races

Mental Strategies – before the race Visualize the course and yourself skiing it powerfully Set effort-based goals, not results-based goals Create a key word or phrase that you' ll use during the race, e. g., “attack,” “fast hands,” “witness the fitness”

Mental Strategies – during the race No negative self-talk Use your key words Remember your body can go harder, even when your mind says it can’t Relish the pain – this is what you’ve trained for

Physical Strategies EtbEat breakf kft2½hast 2 ½ hrs b bfefore th e race. E Etat a gel l10i 10 min bfbefore the s tar t. Eat carbs within 30 min of finishing Warm up for 15-45 min before the race. The shorter the race, the longer the warm up (50k races require only a 10 min warm-up). Cool down for 10-15 min after a 10-20 km race When possible, ski the technical parts of the course the day before the race. Ski the downhills at race speed Start fast for the first 10 seconds, then settle into your pace. DON’T go too hard after the first 10 seconds If the race is longer than 45 min, an energy drink will help Push hard over the tops of hills to carry speed into the downhills LEAVE IT ALL OUT THERE ON THE COURSE!