I have found that in general, as runners and skiers, we need to add more speed work to our programs and the program needs to be varied to have adaptation. If we do the same type of training each week our body plateaus and progress slows or stops all together. Then if we train long and slow, we will adapt to run/ski long and slow. If we train shorter and faster, we will enjoy training, compete more, remain healthy, and continue to improve over many years at a range of shorter to longer distances.

Speed, speed endurance, specific (to event) endurance, anaerobic threshold, aerobic endurance; strength, power, quickness, and technique are the keys to improvement, as well as constant variation to challenge the body to improve, and then allow full recovery. “Excessive Active Recovery Workouts”, either just following a workout or on alternate days, prevents recovery and adaptation. By increasing speed work and decreasing mileage, after 4 to 6 weeks you will see dramatic increases in speed, strength and fitness and as well as faster race times across the board and you will have way more time for family and friends.

The following explains some of the key components of the AthleticsNorth program;

Core Strength
Recent information has shown that it is better to complete your core strength work after your hard workouts so that you are fresh for the workouts themselves. The following routines are best done after your main workouts on Tuesday, Thursdays and Saturdays. But if you do not have time to fit them in then, find another time during the day to set aside a few minutes for these routines;

• Stage #1
• Stage #2
• Stage #3
• Stage #4
• Stage #5

Workout Choices
You should aim to do your main workouts on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday as your event of choice, i.e. if you are preparing for a running race these workouts would be done running, if you are preparing for a ski race these workouts would be done roller skiing and skiing. Then your recovery workouts would be completed as cross training or your main sport if you wish to put in more mileage in your main sport.

Interval Workouts
I have found the key to training is not so much the mileage but the amount of quality workouts you complete in a week. Having said that if you add up how far you go in each interval workout you will be pleasantly surprised how much mileage you have completed. Within the weekly workouts on our main page you will see three interval options as to how many intervals you would complete depending on the length of event you are preparing for;

• Option #1 ~ Half marathon
• Option #2 ~ Marathon
• Option #3 ~ Ultra Marathon

In competition the objective is to perform at 100% effort across the duration of the event. On training / interval days, the objective is to perform at 100% effort across the duration of the entire workout based on the number of intervals, length of each interval and the duration of the recovery between intervals so that there is no noticeable drop in pace over the last half of the workout.

With this type of system there are going to be different goals going into a workout, for example for someone preparing for a ultra marathon/loppet, it is going to be more important to complete more intervals at a slightly slower pace then to complete less intervals at a faster pace. That being said if you do not have time for the complete workout; do complete the less interval option at the faster pace. With this in mind when you are pacing a workout regardless of what the goal pace is for the workout your goal is to run/ski the full workout at the best pace possible without a loss of speed over the last ¼ of the workout. For example if you decide to do option #3 for reps you will need to pace accordingly, so that you do not run out of gas later in the run/ski.

Why so many intervals for ultra runners, when we do intervals we can duplicate the kind of fatigue that is created in an ultra / loppet but much sooner, so the fatigue you create after 75mins of intervals is similar to the fatigue you will feel 4 to 6 hours into the ultra or 3 to 4 hours into a loppet, but by using intensity you can create the training adaption quicker and by running / skiing less miles you reduce chance of injury, burnout and best of all you increase the speed at which you can run your events in contrast to doing allot of base running / skiing where you will train your body to withstand the duration of the event but will do it at the detriment of your speed and you will end up running your event slower and with more fatigue.

The main interval workouts will change every week to add variety and to further promote a varying stimulus to your body to increase improvement. The pacing is included with each workout where you run / ski by feel and let your body dictate the pace. You will naturally increase and decrease the speed of intervals based on their length.

Note for Nordic Athletes – Aim to complete 25% of each interval workout double poling only to increase upper body strength and speed.

Cruise Workouts
The aim of your cruise workouts is to run/ski crisp and light working on your form. You would start with 6 minutes easy jogging, approximately 110-130 heart rate depending on individual, then 12, 18 or 24 minutes of controlled aerobic training at approximately 140-160 heart rate depending on individual. The pace of these workouts will always change based on how you are feeling. Because cruise workouts are scheduled on your recovery days, the duration must be controlled and should not create fatigue.

• Half marathon ~ 6-12-6
• Marathon ~ 6-18-6
• Ultra Marathon ~ 6-24-6

Technique
The primary objective for distance athletes is technique efficiency accounting for 10% of performance.
Running Technique

• Phase 1
• Phase 2
• Phase 3
• Phase 4
• Phase 5

Nordic Technique
Classic

• Double Pole
• Classic Stride

Skate

• Offset
• One Skate
• Two Skate

Goal Race Selection
On scheduling competitions for runners up to a marathon, I generally recommend a marathon at 6 month intervals, 1/2 marathon at 3 months between, and a 5k/10k/15k at month intervals between those.  Good marathons with good weather are usually in May and October. For Nordic skiers I generally recommend loppet's of various distances every other weekend.

Goal Time for Races
The program does not set out any goal times for races, simply complete the training each day to the best of your ability and let the racing take care of itself.

Saturday Simulation Runs
Every forth Saturday a simulation run is scheduled as your specific race preparation. This workout should be completed over similar conditions and terrain as your goal event. The length of these simulations will increase as your program progresses cumulating three weeks before your goal event when we start to taper off for your event.

Sunday Workouts
Your Sunday workout is scheduled as a easy recovery workout based on the distance of your event as follows;

• ½ marathon / 20km loppet – 60mins
• Marathon / 30km loppet – 90mins
• Ultra Marathon / 50km loppet – 120mins

Keep in mind if you feel tired at all reduce your Sunday long run / ski to 45mins, you still have your quality long runs on every forth Saturday and time trial events as your specific race simulation runs. The goal for your Sunday workout is recovery and not building race specific mileage for the event you are preparing for.  

Word of Caution
As you set out on this program there will be a period of adjustment, be very careful to run / ski the intervals relaxed and in control for the first few weeks until your body adjusts and then you can increase the pace as your body adapts. These interval workouts are not designed to be done as fast as you can for each interval but as fast as you can without losing speed for the full workout, crisp with good technique at all times. If your technique breaks down, you will need to reduce the speed of your intervals until you have quality technique again.

Nutrition
Proper Nutrition
Simply put, training combined with adequate rest and proper nutrition is the recipe for improved performance, the better the nutrition, the less rest needed, therefore the faster performance improves.

Proper nutrition is an essential part of your overall program.  I would suggest you follow an eating plan which is especially rich in fruits, vegetables, and low GI foods.  Try to eat as many anti-inflammatory foods (brightly colored fruits and vegetables, flaxseed oil, and oily fish) as you possibly can.

Eating low-GI foods means you avoid those spikes and dramatic falls in blood-glucose so you get a much steadier stream of energy. Insulin is a storage hormone that stockpiles nutrients for later use by the body. A high-GI diet causes a lot of insulin to be produced and when you have too much insulin in your body too much of the time, it makes it easier to store fat and harder to burn it.

Don't be worried into thinking you need to know the GI value of every food. Healthy foods such as fruits and vegetables, except potatoes, should be eaten daily regardless of their GI. Simply knowing the low, medium and high varieties of the major carbohydrate foods in your diet — breakfast cereals, breads, rice, pasta — and choosing the low-GI ones is sufficient to produce healthy benefits.

General Guidelines
Eat small meals and snacks throughout the day. By doing so, you will never be too full or too hungry. Eating frequently will give you balanced energy while eating less food than if you were eating three meals per day.

Start each day with a nutritious breakfast with a balance of carbohydrates and protein and then graze throughout the day, eating raw vegetables and fruits. Eat a substantial afternoon snack with able protein, quality fats and fiber to provide mental clarity and will make sure you are not too hungry at dinner time, so that you do not eat too big a meal at dinner time. Eat a large leafy green salad each day for dinner. Eating a big salad with dark leafy greens each day will boost overall health. Eat a small evening snack of raw vegetables and nuts.

Race Nutrition
Liquid Nutrition
For any endurance athlete needing to consume calories during a race, you need to find out what works for you. This involves experimenting during training (not racing). I can make some basic suggestions. The first is water – you’ll usually finish the race dehydrated, so drinking small amounts of water throughout the race, and often, is important. Carbohydrate liquids can provide both nutrient (carbs) and water. These carbs actually help maintain our fat-burning process. I prefer monosaccharide carb liquids because they don’t require digestion (which uses energy), so there’s no stomach bloating or gas from undigested carbs, and you can absorb the sugar much easier. These liquids include coconut water, non citrus fruit juice diluted with water, honey diluted with water, maple syrup with cinnamon diluted with water, each with sea salt to taste or one of the better sports drinks on the market.

Liquid Gels
I have found supplementing your sports drink with watered down sports gels works very well if you sip the gels every 15mins throughout the entire event as opposed to taking a full strength gel all at once every 5km or 10km or waiting until the last 10km when it can be to late. In order to access your fat stores start sipping the gel after 60 to 90mins depending the length of time of your event.

• 60mins – ½ marathon
• 90mins – marathon
• 120mins – ultra marathon

Solid Food
Solid carbohydrate foods are important too, but use those that are easy to digest. The best are ripe fruits as they do not need digestion to get the sugar available for energy, they do need to be well chewed. You could also use fruit smoothies or fruit based gels to aid digestion further. For ultra type events another good option is heated soups and stews as they are full of whole food nutrition and are easier to digest.

I do not recommend grains, in the form of sandwiches or pizza for ultras because the grains contain carbohydrates bound together that must be digested before they can be absorbed. Grains are made up of three sugars bound together that require more digestion. Carbohydrate digestion begins in the mouth and most athletes don’t chew sufficiently for this phase of digestion. During a race and even training digestion is normally very inefficient, so give your gut something easy to deal with. Creating digestive stress commonly causes intestinal upset – gas, bloating, and even diarrhea. And, you may not get the full load of nutrients from your foods.

Performance Weight
If you weigh the same as the average person for your height, you can improve your performance by losing weight by 5 to 10% to find your optimal race weight.

Body fat can be adjusted outside training though monitored food intake and proper nutrition. A Training program consumes 100 calories per mile regardless of intensity.

Stillman Performance Height/Weight Ratio Table
Men

• 110lbs for your first 5feet in height
• 5.5lbs for each additional inch in height
• 5 to 10% less than total weight
• Ideal weight for 6ft man, 110lbs + 66lbs = 176lbs
• Ideal race weight for 6ft man, subtract 5 to 10% = 159 to 168lbs

Women

• 100lbs for the first 5feet in height
• 5lbs for each additional inch in height
• 5 to 10% less than total weight
• Ideal weight for 5ft 6inch female, 100lbs +30 lbs = 130lbs
• Ideal race weight for 5ft 6inch female, subtract 5 to 10% = 117 to 124lbs

Sleeping Recommendations
It's only logical to assume that athletes need more sleep than a normal person to function, since we are constantly stressing and then adapting (through recovery, or sleep). Aim for between 8 to 10 hours of sleep per day. As a general suggestion you should be able to wake up at a reasonable time without an alarm clock and feel rested.  If you can't do this, try going to bed slightly earlier each night until you find a point where you can wake up unassisted at a reasonable hour and feel refreshed.  Sleep should also be constant.  Your body develops a rhythm that it follows based on your sleep patterns.  Therefore it's a smart idea to go to bed and wake up at similar hours throughout the week and to not deprive your self of sleep during the weekday and then "catch up" on the weekend.  If you alter your sleeping pattern by going to bed later, than you will get less deep sleep and you will probably wake up at normal time and won't be able to sleep in because your body is adjusted to your pattern.

Program Flexibility
Workout Fatigue
If you are feeling really fatigued on any particular day, this is a good sign that your body needs more recovery before it is ready to tackle another challenging workout. Simply replace your workout for the day with an easy recovery run.  Good training is always a balance between great work and great recovery, and we should never tip the balance toward too much work.  Improvements in fitness occur during recovery periods, not on hard training days, so we want to make sure you get plenty of recovery.

Workout Schedule
You do not want to follow an absolutely rigid training schedule. Instead, monitor yourself closely and keep your training "in synch" with how you are feeling. There is a temptation to complete a scheduled workout even though you feel tired. Attempting to follow a written training program and working hard on days when you are really tired are guaranteed ways to maximize the risk of overtraining.

Workout Progression
Try not to worry too much about your training. We exercise to reduce stress and not to create stress. Things happen, including missed workouts, slower-than-expected races, illnesses, and injuries, just to name a few. Simply acknowledge these disappointments and then look forward to better workouts and races in the future. The focus is on gradual progress toward a better future and not on beating oneself up over disappointing events.

End of Season Recovery

For two weeks after your big event jog / ski 30mins every other day to get mentally fresh again.  Then start the whole process over again for your next event.

Have fun and let me know if you have any questions.