After three weeks of intense training, I am enjoying an easy week of training on my own before the team meets up again Ruhpolding, Germany next week.   Our training camps normally last 3 weeks, but this year we decided on a 7 week Europe camp in order to maximize one on one coaching time and to take full advantage of the World class venues over here. Knowing that 7 weeks together would be pretty tough for the team, our coaches decided to break things up a bit and allow us to train on our own for a week.  I decided to stay right here in Ruhpolding, Germany in order to minimize travel time and maximize recovery time.

Before arriving in Germany, I spent two weeks training in Ostersund, Sweden.  Everything went smoothly there and it was nice to be back working with my coaches Per and Armin.  Once again, these guys brought a ton of energy to the camp and we got a ton of work done in 2 weeks.

On my second to last day in Sweden Per, Lowell and I drove two hours west to the Sweden/Norway border to go for a long run in the Swedish mountains.  What was planned to be a 3-hour run turned into a 5.5-hour epic training session.   After running 10 miles (16K) across the tundra to the base of Sweden’s second highest peak, we decided we had come too far to not make a summit attempt. In the end we had to turn around just before reaching the summit because we were out of time and we were completely unprepared with gear.  Nevertheless, it was a really cool experience and I got to see a part of Sweden that I have never seen before.  What I was most impressed with during our mountain run was that Per stuck with Lowell and I for the entire day.  We estimated that we ran around 26 miles (42k) in really tough terrain and Per hung with us. I really thought that we would be carrying Per after 20 miles but he toughed it out.  Never again will I doubt his fitness level!  For a funny video of the run check out my teammates site at www.lowellbailey.com.

From Sweden we flew down to Ruhpolding, Germany for our third week of camp.  Training here has been great.  The competition trails here are really nice, with over 5k of paved trails for roller skiing and the nearby mountains offer endless opportunities for running and biking.  It also feels really nice to be back in more summer conditions.  Although we had quite a few sunny days in Sweden, it definitely felt like late fall there rather than September.

This Friday I will meet back up with the team for another week of training here in Ruhpolding.  After that, we head up to Oberhof, Germany for a few more weeks of training before returning back to Lake Placid on October, 4^th.  Training in Oberhof should be especially exciting because we will be taking part in biathlon summer World Championships.  Although we won’t be specifically preparing for these races, it will be fun to race against a full international field.  The organizers of the race have announced that 30 nations will be participating, so these races will surely have a strong field.  This will be a great opportunity for me to put my summer and fall training to the test.  In Oberhof, we will also take a week to utilize the new indoor “ski hall”.  This is the latest indoor skiing venue and it is suppose to be a step up from all of the others with a longer track and better snow conditions.

Thanks for checking in!

I just finished up my first real summer races of the season here in Ostersund, Sweden.  We competed in a 12k cross race on Friday, sprint race on Saturday and a pursuit on Sunday.  Overall I was pretty pleased with my performances here.  I was able to work on some of the new techniques that I have been training both on the ski course and in the range.  I would like to have shot a little better, but this was still better shooting than I have had here in the past.

These races were very helpful in evaluating what I need to work on over the next few months in the lead up to the season.  My only real complaint about the events is that the “matched” skis were not even close to the same speed.  It was like playing the lottery at the start of each race when they handed out skis.  During the cross-country race I actually had a ski fall off on one of the downhills.  Luckily, I was able to stay upright before going back to fetch my ski.  For the sprint race I had great skis, probably better than most.  And for the pursuit my skis were an absolute joke; I could not even stay in the draft of some of the others on the big downhill.  I think if the IBU wants to continue with this summer racing series, then they at least need to make a test with the skis, which was not done here.

I will be in Sweden for one more week of training before heading down to Germany on September 1^st.   Thanks for checking in!

I’m packing up my bags today and am taking off for a seven week Europe camp tomorrow.  I will spend the first two weeks of the camp training in Ostersund, Sweden and the next five weeks training in Germany.

My last block of training went pretty well in Lake Placid, minus one sizeable mistake at the end of the training cycle.  Everything had been going extremely well for the first 2.5 weeks of the training block; I was feeling great in all of my intensity sessions, setting many PR’s, and I was able to put quite a bit of volume in as well.  Along with feeling good, we finally were receiving the summer weather that I had eluded us all summer.

Ironically, it was the heat that I had been asking for all summer that ended up giving me problems.  I went out for a 4.5 bike ride and seriously miscalculated my fluid intake.  By the time I realized what was going on, it was too late.  I ended up losing 7.5 pounds (3.4kilo) in 4.5 hours.  I had never experienced such crazy dehydration before, and I surely hope to avoid it in the future.  After my ride I completely lost my appetite and I was freezing cold, even though it was over 80 degrees outside.  I spent the rest of the day in my bed under every blanket that I could find.  My body was so shocked that I was pretty messed up for a few days and I really had to cut back on the training.  I had planned on competing in two summer races in Jericho, Vermont but I decided to play it safe and recover back to 100% before trying any hard efforts again.  I would say that it took me about 4 to 5 days before I stopped getting headaches everyday and feeling sluggish.  The worst part about this experience is that it was totally my fault!  It was definitely a rookie mistake that I should have avoided.

Anyway, things have come around and I am back to feeling 100%.  I am really excited for our camp and I look forward to being back with the rest of the team and the coaching staff.  I will also get a chance next week to compete in 3 different summer races in Sweden.  The first will be a 15k skate race and the next two will be a sprint and pursuit biathlon races.  These races normally have a strong international field so it will be a great opportunity for me to see where I stack up.

Check back soon for updates from Sweden!

I just finished up my first week of a training of my three-week training block.  I was back to Jericho for a few days in the beginning of the week to get a little more time training on the loop over there. When I’m in Jericho, my training is really ski-specific so that I can take advantage of the awesome roller loop.  I lucked out and had really nice weather over there and had a great few days of training.  I also want to give a big thanks to Sarah Lehto and Travis Voyer for helping me out in Jericho.  These guys helped me out with everything from scoping shots to taking lactates, which made for some high quality training sessions.

After two weeks of training in Lake Placid, Armin, Lowell, Jeremy and I moved over to Jericho, Vermont for our last week of camp.  Jericho is home to the Ethan Allen firing range and possibly the best roller loop in the country.

Despite the daily rains, training has been going well.  Along with our normal training routines, we have been putting a big focus on shooting.  Working with Armin has been awesome and he has definitely opened my eyes as to what is possible on the shooting range.  I now have a huge list of skills that I need to work on before we meet again in August.  No detail gets overlooked when working with Armin.  Sometimes when we look at shooting video, he makes me feel like a complete rookie…

I will be in Jericho until the end of the week and then I will head back to Lake Placid for a much needed recovery week.  After three weeks of camp, my body is craving some down time.

My teammate, Jeremy “Sherpa” Teela, now has a blog and he has been bothering me about linking to him everyday at practice… So here it is!  Check it out for an interesting read!  www.jeremyteela.com

For those of you who are interested why Jeremy is called the “Sherpa”, he earned the name for his ability to hill climb really fast, despite sometimes carrying a little extra weight!  Sorry Jeremy, but that’s the price you pay for the link…

I just finished the first week of our three week camp here in Lake Placid.  We have a good crew of about 12 athletes here.  It’s great to have everyone together again, pushing each other in practice.  It’s also awesome to have Per, Armin and Bernd here.  These guys work nonstop in camp.  Sometimes I wonder if Per actually sleeps at camp… Having such an energetic coaching staff definitely has a huge influence on the athletes.

Max bounding intervals at Whiteface last week.

Walking down after the intervals on tired legs is sometimes harder than running up.

Maybe the most painful part of the day… Whiteface’s natural ice bath.

I apologize for the lack of updates lately but I have been absolutely swamped with training over the last few weeks.

I am back in Lake Placid now and will be here for the majority of the summer.  Luckily, our next team training camp will be held here, so I don’t have to travel until our August Europe camp.  I will spend over 8 months away from home this year, so anytime that I get here is a big bonus for me.

When I returned from our first camp in Whistler, BC, I started what will be my biggest training block of the year.  We break our training down into different periods called “blocks” and each block consists of four weeks.  I completed my last block on Sunday and it was both the biggest block in terms of hours that I will do this year and it was also the most hours that I have ever trained in four consecutive weeks.

This period was a huge challenge for me, and I am really excited to have it behind me now.  By the end of the fourth week I was absolutely exhausted.  If I was not out training during this time, I was either in my bed sleeping or eating.  Actually, it was amazing for me to see my appetite pick up from week to week.  I have seen this before but never to this extent.  By the fourth week I felt like I could never really get full and if I did get full, it seemed that I was ready to eat again within 30 minutes or so.  Even though I finished the block a few days ago, my appetite has still been super high and I would imagine that it will take another few days before it drops back down to a normal level.

I am now in my first real recovery week of the training year and I am enjoying every second!  Although I still have to train during my recovery week, I will train less than half of the hours that I train in one of my “normal” weeks.  It’s super important for me to take these recovery weeks; without these weeks I would never make it to the season in one piece.  During the first day or two of my recovery week I try and stay away from anything that has to do with sport.  After that, I am usually pretty busy catching up on all of the things that I put off during my training weeks.

Our second team training camp will start in one week.  We will have the full coaching staff and six athletes here for over two weeks.  It will be great to be back with the team for a few weeks, especially when I can stay in my own bed!

The official start to the 2009/2010 season is here and I am back to work in Whistler, BC at our first team training camp of the season.  As always, I used the month of April as a break from biathlon and the day-to-day routine of training.  Although I trained some in April, I was not following any specific plan; if I woke up and felt like going for a run, I did.  Taking a break from scheduled training is very important for me and it’s what allows me to keep a high level of focus through the next 11 months of the year.

I spent my first two recovery weeks at home catching up with friends and family and getting back into Alpine skiing.  After that, I went to Puerto Rico with my girlfriend for some much needed time in the sun.  Getting as far away from snow as possible always feels good in the spring and this spring was definitely no exception.  This was my first trip to Puerto Rico and I had a great time.  On vacation I spent some time snorkeling, kayaking and I even spent a day hiking in the rain forest.

After Puerto Rico, I flew over to Germany to attend two weddings.  From there I flew to Colorado with two other teammates to work with one of the coaches from the Olympic shooting team.  After that, I headed to Whistler to join the rest of the team at our first camp.

It feels good to back in the swing of things with training and it is especially motivating training on the same trails that will hold the Olympics this winter.  Despite some warm temperatures, the skiing here has been surprisingly good and we have taken advantage of that by putting in 2 to 3 hours of skiing every morning.

After Whistler, I will fly to LA for one day to do some promotional stuff for the Olympics and then I will finally return home on May 15th. I have not spent so much time at home this spring so I am really looking forward to getting back into my own bed and unpacking my bags for a few months.