Month: April 2005

threshold enables you do to more harder reps plus the hormonal effect after altitude speeds the recovery quite a bit. You can feel it from the soreness you get through the sessions, but still then the recovery thereafter is fast. So it is really just a matter of running easy when you absolutely have to, other than that press on throughout this period:)

Next week I will be doing some tests again just to ensure that things are ok going into more faster work soon. Always making sure that the endurance element is right, it is what carries you through those 12 1/2 laps on the track.

Still enjoying the Norwegian spring. It is a great to come home from altitude and get this hard training period as we head into the spring and summer..

All well from here,
Marius

the sprinters ; the principles of muscular tension plus recovery of the central nervous system. The sprint group of Alnes has almost perfected these two elements (in addition to their sprint training in general) and it gives me a constant challenge as I know I have alot to learn from this being a distance runner.

When a distance runner “rests” he either runs very easy runs or just rests totally. Then he just feels “dead” during that period and not really rested coming out of the recovery part and feels “out of shape”. The sprinters on the other hand have understood that the nervous system needs rest but the muscular system needs just small stimulus on a regular basis to be sharp. Those two combined you can almost rest totally while at the same time keep your “shape” (muscular) very, very sharp. Extremely effective and hopefully I can use this even more in the future. We know TONS on training but very little research has been done of recovery on the other hand – even though training is really just about breaking down, while the recovery is the building up part!

I feel fine and rested now after the post altitude period. So gradually increasing stress now 🙂

Out around beautiful and sunny Sonsvann,

Marius

through the winter and been great to run with on the longer endurance stuff. That base he has now will help him alot in the summer so hopefully he can get under 14 in the 5000 meters as well.

I am enjoying the rest days after altitude now. Only one training/day since I arrived back before todays double session. Then the load will gradually start increasing as I feel rested and ready again. This was about my 20th altitude stay in normal altitude (and about the 60th if you count the years I used artificual altitude – it is now no longer legal in Norway) so I am not surprised by the daily variations I see. They are incredible simililar stay after stay. Of course you can say it is self fulfilling once you already “know” when it goes up and down – but even on the lactate profiles the trend is extremely clear time after time. Inspiring to see the body so fined tune in terms of adaption 🙂

Perfect days for training in Oslo now. About 15 degrees C, fresh air and sun. Making the Sogsvann area crowded with people around there. On Monday I did a semi-hard workout there, nice to have people around again after looong treadmill sessions in the lab this winter…

Easy recovery today, going on the sideroads of Sogsvann.

From Oslo, resting well

Marius

nice as the stay down there has been intense and hard especially since I still had training from Portugal in my legs going up there.

But what better way to star a training period with easy runs in the newly melted areas around here..

Back in Oslo,
Marius

in Africa) and days trips – including Scandinavian tours. The city transforms to being a very busy place packed with tourists buying things and going to the nice restaurants here.

Training is progressing well with a fresh period from day 6 and onwards. But how well is hard to say as the mysterious 1000 meter up here still remains unsolved ; it has been used for a few years now but I have argued it to be a bit short as my float speed seems to be slower in the 1000 m. I do not float above 3.05-10/km and up there I could do so slightly at a “slower speed”. So after too many discussions we finally decided to measure it : first with a cyclecomputer then with a GPS. 40 meters difference… After many,many more debates we finally decided to close the matter once and for all. Got a 5 meter measuring equipment and used it to measure up a 50 meter rope. Before going up there and walk through it all meter for meter. It did not look very smart but anything to close a heated debate.. Unfortunately it proved way too short to Bjornars major frustration and in desperation he decided to control measure the rope. And yes, the 50 m rope had actually stretched itself during the actual measuring with 1,7 meters. The debate now is how much it streched how soon in the measuring. Next time I am bringing a measuring wheel to finally bring some peace in the house:)

Other than that, quiet and peaceful days but hard training. Weather is still nice here, dipping over 25 C yesterday which meant good over 30 in the fresh altitude sun. A great way to get into the Norwegian spring.

All well,
Marius

Norwegians. 1000 meters (well, Africa 1000s, you never know how long it actually is..) right up by the train tracks 5 minutes jog from where we stay. Normally one would expect that some time is needed between the travel and the hard training but the travel down here is close to perfect ; leaving from Oslo at 19 (7 pm) and landing in South Africa the next morning at 8.50 am. So you can do two good training both the day of leaving and arriving. With some good sleep on the place that leaves you pretty fresh for immediate hard sessions. It “feels” long to travel here but going to Portugal was actually much more “tiring” with getting up very early and missing training going down + home.

On the way here I met the former coach of 04 Olympic rowing champ Olaf Tufte, who is up in Belfast – 20 minutes drive from here training. Interesting talk with him, who is now a coach for the Olympic team “Olympiatoppen”. He came directly from China where he had checked the Olympic places, through Frankfurt so felt like he had been travelling forever. The rowers have been very successful through the years and have adopted a very aerobic training regime (mixed with bouts of harder training) with a supercomp in the summer for maximum peaking.

Today is day three up here so a bit more heavy (those natural variations almost always hit it..) but fine for some longer repeats that I did this morning. Going up to the small town north of Dullstrom where most of the workers live pluss some on the side of the road where you have the same nice,soft “vulcanic” mud that you have other places in Africa.

For a fun story on Africa and racing up here, click on the article below written by Olli Pekka, the coach up here 🙂 He is the one organizing things here but has also been a very successfull distance coach – coahing Carsten Joergensen to 2750s in the 10000 and European cross gold medal.

From Dullstrom!
Marius

the Norwegians down there have been good so hopefully it will be another good period of winter training. I like the timing as the spring is coming in full at the moment in Norway but still not 100 % clear in the forest. So some altitude, higher temps and really soft surface allthrough will be helpful this time a year also.

Heading for South Africa,
Marius

again.

That stay will hopefully bring the last little lift in performance before the spring tune in. So lots of base running and high end endurance sessions to make sure I am right where I should going into May.

Just a very brief update from here 🙂 Got to enjoy the Norwegian spring the few days I can..

From sunny Oslo,

Marius