Here in Montana the leaves are beginning to change colors, the temps are dropping, and the mountain tops are dusted with snow. All this to say, the ski season is approaching quickly, and I am getting pretty excited! Throughout the summer, we do a lot of easy distance L1 training and threshold intervals. Around September, we start to incorporate harder L4 efforts, time trails, and races. This past week, our team did the John Colter Trail Race which is a local 8 mile running race near Three Forks, Montana. This was a great chance for me to get in a really hard effort and work on pushing my body out of its comfort zone. I ended up placing second in the event along with some other podiums from my BSF teammates (pictured below).
(Post-race with the local Montana mountain men)
I’ve also been doing a decent amount of bounding intensity. My favorite place to bound is up the Bridger Bowl Alpine mountain.
While doing a lot of intensity, it's important to keep your easy days very easy. Keeping these distance workouts in a true L1 level helps you to recover quicker and get more out of your hard sessions.
(Rollerskiing under the Bridger Range)
(Easy distance run near town)
When you are pushing your body hard several days per week, it is crucial to take care of yourself to avoid getting sick. This fall I have been trying to prioritize sleep, making sure that I get at least 8-9 hours every night. I have also been trying to do a better job staying on top of my hydration. I’m someone who gets headaches and fatigue quite often when I’m low on liquids, so to maximize my training, I have been drinking electrolytes during and after all of my sessions.
My team and I will be heading to Park City, Utah for a 2 week long training camp at the beginning of October. We will be joining many of the other professional teams around the country along with the U.S Ski Team for most of our sessions. I’ll be back on the Pioneer blog with a Utah recap after the training camp, but if you are wanting some live updates, follow the Pioneer Instagram for some behind the scenes content throughout the camp (@pioneermidwest)!
Until next time,
Hannah
