Birkie prep sessions (for the working professionals)
By Erika Flowers
For those of us feeling underprepared and overcommitted but who want to still feel good on race day.
We’ve all been there – grand ambitions of coming into our 50K gold star race of the season but in the weeks and months leading up to the race school/work/poor snow/no snow/kids/my aunt’s best friend’s birthday/my broken alarm clock/cold weather/warm weather got in the way. With just week to go until race day, we’re left feeling equal parts excited and apprehensive. We may not have nailed every workout up until now, but we do have time to dial in three key pre-race workouts to show up on race day making the most of what we’ve got.
As a busy executive trying to balance training and work, I like to pick 3 workouts a week to really nail. Any additional training I get in is like extra frosting on the cake. Here are my three favorite pre-Birkie prep sessions, no matter what your training has looked like this season.
Workout 1: Easy distance 45-90min.
Although it can be tempting to confuse tapering with resting, this week is all about some easy, low volume skiing to keep the muscles loose and the body ready for race day. Plan to get out for an easy 45min.-1.5 hour ski this week, keeping the heart rate in L1 and focused on simply moving well through varying terrain. This is a good excuse to get out with friends and just enjoy the trails!
Workout 2: 20 min. warm-up, 1X10-25 min. L3/threshold, 10-15 min. cool-down, plus post-workout snack
On the Tuesday or Wednesday before the Birkie, I aim to get one last intensity session in with a continuous threshold interval. Based on what training you’ve been doing up until this point, plan to make the total duration of the L3 “on” time equal 60-70% of your typical L3 session. For example, If you’ve worked up to 5x8min. L3 (40min. “on”) plan to make this continuous L3 session 24-30 minutes.
The purpose of this session is to wake up the body before race day, so it’s primed and ready to go hard, without adding additional load or fatigue. I like to use this continuous L3 to practice my feeding strategy for the race and take a gel about halfway through the continuous interval. Given you are doing one, slightly longer, L3 interval, plan to start controlled and keep the pace moderate. The goal is to feel better at the end than at the beginning. Add a quick cool-down followed by some post work-out fueling and you can call it a day.
Workout 3: Pre-race 20-30 min. warm-up and ski test, 2x3-6 min. L3/threshold, 5x15-30 sec. speeds, 10 min. cool down.
The purpose of this final tune-up is to get your skis dialed and the body feeling good before race morning. I typically do this the day before the race to stay in touch with a faster gear and while leaving plenty in the tank. Again, the goal here is NOT to add load, but to get your lungs and muscle and brain ready to race. Think of it like putting a leash on your dog to head out for a run but then just running around the block rather than the usual 5 mile neighborhood loop. Odds are that your dog will be whining at the door wanting to head back out after its run was cut short but that’s the kind of hungry energy we want to create the day before the Birkie! Keep this workout as short as possible while still touching some light intensity.
Finally, don’t forget to hit the hydration and fueling all week long and indulge in a bit of extra sleep. See you on the race trails!
