Month: March 2005

through some checkpoints both on asphalt and in the forest to get a good idea of the actual pace. I am still feeling fresh in my legs a good indication that the training period has been successful. Much due to the nice training atmosphere around here plus intensity control all through.

Looking forward to some treadmill sessions again now to really get an idea of the shape. Then lots of rest 🙂

Off to Oslo again,

Marius

I have said before I really like the surface you can run on here. It is very compact and hard while at the same time soft enough to run alot. I run much better on harder surfaces (with no rolling stones on top/where I can really float) and this is perfect for this. For the remaining of the stay, the main goal is to keep the intensity and frequency of the trainings up so that I can rest alot when arriving back home again.

Most of the time here is training, relaxing by the pool and more relaxing.. But very social also, as the club Vidar has a good number of athletes both on the male and female side that participate in the Eastern training camps. This year even the sprinters (last year we were only distance runners) from the club. It adds to the nice training atmosphere 🙂

Well, time for some evening rest

Marius

long run yesterday totally sunburned so got to be careful 🙂 The morning run at around eight and the evening at 4.30 when it has cooled off abit. Now that the full group is here, plenty of people out on the long runs in all kinds of paces so no problem if you wish to run hard or just an easy stroll.

Jack Waitz joined the quality session yesterday and made sure the lactate meters etc. stayed in place while we were running. Great to have an insightful person around like that when you do sessions, makes you just a little more focused because you know the kind of level of training he knows about. Important to focus now. Like I have said before, the Eastern training camp is sort of a push into the spring training, as my January training camp is so to the winter. Without those two specific training camps the winter feels sort of “incomplete” in terms of motivation and training stress. Tried it before and it felt like the winter just “went by” 🙂

Some of the others are leaving for Sevilla tomorrow for a day trip. The rest of us will stay here for some more quality work – got to push on while you can..

From Portugal,

Marius

solo, with a babyjogger in front of him with all his stuff like tent etc (!) Interesting to get his view on running, it is totally different than what I am used to – but at the same time very goal oriented. You have to admire someone like that, not only for the joy of running that we both have but also for the patience it takes for such long journeys.

Training hard today plus yesterday. A couple of the intervall runs have been run on asphalt since Henrik is getting ready for them marathon. Fine for me, I like to mix it up a bit as long as the majority of the session is on soft cinder/mud.

I still enjoy the softness in the training paths you get here, in the small forest around here. The forest is not extremely bitg but I actually got lost in it yesterday doing an intervall session and ended with three more runs. I was never very good at orienteering..

Well, time for dinner now. Got to fill up the body after the hard training 😉

Pressing on,
Marius

ps : link to photoes on previous post now activated

just keep on going 🙂

100 meters outside of the hotel we are staying, there is a forest reserve on both sides of the road providing perfect soft surfaces all through. A mix of cinder and hard packed mud makes it very soft on the legs. It sort of reminds me of Italy last year where we had similar great running conditions. There, I managed to put in probably one of the most consistant training camps in the last few years due to the surface and good training temperature. Hopefully this will be the case this year also.

A huge group of Scandinavian runners will be down here. Just in our hotel we will be over 150 (!) Then there are other hotels with Norwegians around here plus groups from other nations. So it should be close to 250 runners in total. Quite different than Kenya, when I sometimes was the only white man within miles. But is is nice with some change sometimes. Plus, as in South Afria, the living conditions here are excellent. Adds to the total atmosphere..

We will be doing the first quality session down here today. About 15-20 of our group have arrived already, but about ten more will come Monday.

From Monte Gordo, Portugal!

Marius
Photolink should be activated later today

period of training. Plenty of chance for a good training lift when you are in such great training environment.

Soft surfaces, sun, good mileage, rest and 20-25 degrees..

Marius

total of around 30 will travel down there – a mix of different distances. I am looking forward to travelling down there, we have had loads of snow up by Sogsvann recently so time for some warm weather and soft surfaces again.

The combination of that is great about Portugal as the Eastern break is early this year. There you will still have 20-25 degrees C while at the same time nice soft running surfaces. That combination is something different than hammering around on the asphalt. It gives you both the training lift needed in itself while at the same time restitution on legs having done miles after miles on hard winter surfaces.

So just keeping the pressure up now until then 🙂

Marius

training I have done and prior tests. Plenty of information there, especially if you add to that the lactate taken during the run, the speed run at and the heart rate. At least in Norway this time a year that is as standarized and complete as we can get it. In addition to that, we got a muscular evaluation from Jonny Høgseth later that day, probably the physio in Norway who has done the most evaluations on the muscle condtition of top athletes in Norway during the last 20 years. A long but satisfying day.

Hopefully I will get the videoevaluation from Leif later this week. He has incredible analytical skills from many years as a successful sprint coach and this ability is very helpful in the investigation of the running pattern seperate from the other tests. It takes extreme analyzes to coach a (white) runner to 10.08 in the 100 meter so important to take adventage of this..

Very easy running today after yesterday. Climbing up to Holmenkollen this morning, just jogging down again at a comfortable pace 🙂

All well!

Marius

long runs so I had to leave the rest of the group about halfways, but got a nice progressive climb up to Sogsvann again instead. Getting a good stride up there, to right on the top where I live. Have to be abit careful though, I know I should rest alot post altitude, so gotta be disciplined 😉

The rest of the group up in Dullstrom (of Norwegians, Karl Johan and Bjørnar) left today, heading back to western-Norway. It seemed like they had a successful stay down there, as they were building shape week after week. Both with very good training intelligence that will be extremely helpful as they put their system back finetuned again while doing the season buildup. Going injured for a period, altitude training brings you right up there in much shorter time than at sea level providing that you do not go too hard too early after starting up again, so a smart move especially this time a year when you can have snow and ice in Norway.

Heading into a week of steady increase of workload, with the first test on Wednesday. On the treadmill of course. Not only for the standarization of the test, but also to get a sharp toe off in the running stride after spending time at altitude (where I did lots of mileage, at good intensity) I believe that this is one of the keys to the Africans, their ability to get an extremely short time on the group, almost bouncing forward. Alot of that has to do with the way they are built (look at their calf muscles) but also with years on walking barefoot, running barefoot as children. And ; when they get older they have this extreme strength in their legs. For those that disagree, see the link below – some mzungos take it to the extreme 🙂

Well, time for some rest now!

Marius

long as the roads are ok to run on I really do not mind that much. I will go into a period of easy training now and so the speed on the long runs should not limit the progress.

Spoke to Ståle Jan today after arrival home and we discussed the dates for the testing regime after arrival home. Since he lives in Tønsberg, about 1 hr 20 minutes from Oslo we have to book those tests a bit in advance. But hopefully next week and at least the week after that we will do the standarized testing with the team. Very important but also very inspirational to push the progress, you cannot hide during those tests.

Maybe some track strides the coming week to freshen up the legs abit after the altitude stay. A while ago since last time and not much track work in Dullstrom, as the track there got stolen a few years ago (only in Africa! The grass track actually got stolen piece by piece by the locals a few years ago as the grass made good building parts for their houses) But if I really wanted to I could have gone to Belfast, only 15 minutes drive for the nice grass track down there. Back here though, plenty of options, either in the Ekeberg indoor hall, the Top athletics center or at the College of Sports nearby. We will see, taking it day by day..

From Oslo!

Marius