First CXC Team training camp of the season
Mon, May 21, 2007 - By Bryan Fish
CXC TEAM – CAMP 1
Hayward, Wisconsin
The first CXC Team training camp of the season began on May 5th. The goal was four fold: welcome back returning athletes and meet the new athletes to kick off the year with overall team goal setting; physiology and general fitness testing; results analysis and individual coach/athlete meetings to develop individualized plans; and begin ski specific team training and technique analysis.
We sat down as a team, looked back at last season and discussed the direction and goals for the new year. Former Olympians and Russian National coaches Igor Badamshin (CXC high performance advisor) and Nikolai Anikin provided insight and perspective while looking forward to future training and racing.
Our second May camp objective was to conduct physiological testing on the athletes to analyze present fitness and set baseline values for new and returning athletes alike. Testing included VO2 analysis separately on a running treadmill and through a “Russian” double pole machine. The VO2 testing was followed by a set of strength test protocols. The data displayed an overall improvement in our returning athletes. All returning athletes either stabilized or improved their physiology test results from October. Their physiological test results showed significant improvement over the 2006 summer testing. General fitness results were also improved across the board for general strength and 3,000 meter running time trial. General fitness will be tested once again this July. Basic fitness testing will not be continued beyond mid summer due to a progressive target toward more specific training methods particularly in strength and intensity training. The general assessments are valuable in reviewing and building on overall early season general fitness.
The Team then sat down individually and set personal goals, analyzed and discussed the data collected and initiated a plan for each athlete. Baseline training plans are based on 625 hours for the women and 725 hours for the men. Valuable general fitness information will be gathered in the June camp and personal training plan deviations from the baseline yearly plan will be fully implemented after that point. Specifics of monthly and daily planning remain ongoing throughout the year with the utilization of sports science and coaches/ athlete assessments. Regular adjustments are critical to planning specific workouts for the upcoming period.
Fourth, was simply the start of the preparation period as a cohesive team. The main goal was ski specific distance workouts with technique drills. One of the major team goals this year is to become more technically proficient.
Respectfully,
Bryan Fish
CXC Team Head Coach