The Norwegian Game: Top Coaches on Creating Effective Endurance Training Sessions

Despite being a small country with just around 5.5 million people, Norway still catapulted itself to one of the leading countries in endurance sports with outstanding performances in middle-distance running, triathlon and cross-country skiing. 

But how did they do it? Well, you might immediately think about the Norwegian model of lactate threshold training that uses lactate analyzers and all other kinds of sensors to guide training. If I think about it, I can’t help myself but only see Kristian Blummenfelt vomiting. Maybe Blummenfelt signed a deal with Weasleys Wizard Wheezes promoting the puking pastilles and I just missed the announcement. 

So for now the Norwegian training method doesn’t seem like a bullet proof training approach. In fact, Santara Tech, the company Blummenfelt and Iden promote, is merely a marketing company. They offer their reach to market products like lactate analyzers and sensors for other companies. In my opinion this leaves a false impression on the real training approach in Norway. 

Now, regular readers of my blog know that I’m interested in general patterns across world-class athlete populations that can be transferred to other athlete populations.

This is exactly what I found in a recent article by Dr. Stephen Seiler and colleagues who collected in-depth data from best practice training sessions of world-leading coaches in Olympic endurance sports. For comparison, the coaches selected were involved in 370 medals won in international championships in biathlon, cross-country skiing, long-distance running, road cycling, rowing, speed skating, swimming and triathlon. 

In today’s article I will focus on the results regarding road cycling. 

Here are my key notes from what I think is the real Norwegian training method… 

How Top Athletes Train

To understand the findings, it’s important to understand how endurance intensity was assessed in the first place. Down below you see the 6-zone scale developed by the Norwegian Top Sport Centre, used in this study. The scale is based on max-heart rate, mean blood lactate data, and the Borg scale of perceived exertion. Take a look at the draft and come back to it when you need it. 

Now, with professional road cyclists training insane volumes it shouldn’t come as a surprise that low-intensity training or LIT accounts for 75-80% of all yearly training sessions. In fact, the road cyclists presented in the mentioned study trained 1000-1200 hours yearly, spread across 300-350 sessions, with 50-80 race days, and a total of 110-130 intense training days per year. 

Due to cycling’s low-impact nature and long race day duration, all LIT sessions were performed as continuous rides and the athletes surveyed performed the vast majority of LIT sessions in zone 1, with only a limited amount of time in zone 2, which can be attributed to terrain variations like climbs, for example. 

Regarding LIT session duration, these ranged from 3-7 hours with very easy days only lasting about 30-90 minutes. 

Looking at the remaining training sessions, MIT sessions account for around 10-15% of all sessions annually. Regarding MIT, these are your typical tempo or threshold intervals done around 90-100% of your FTP. As stated in the study MIT sessions are mainly performed as intervals in the range of 5-20 minutes at a total accumulated work duration (AWD) of 45-60 minutes per session. AWD used in this study represents total time at intensity. The authors, however, also noticed continuous MIT sessions ranging from 40-60 minutes, think one long climb at MIT pace. 

Noteworthy, competitions in road cycling account for a significant amount of overall MIT. 

Finally, we have the HIT sessions that represent 5-10% of all sessions which are exclusively done as intervals. AWD for HIT is in the range of 20-50 minutes per session in zone 4, 10-30 minutes in zone 5, and 4-8 minutes in zone 6/7. Again road races contribute to a significant amount of total HIT.

Next, we will look at the individual sessions prescribed for cycling, before we get to the key findings of the article. 

Training Sessions From Some of The Best

When you think about pro cyclists, initially, you might think that the best cyclists in the world complete the hardest and most complicated workouts there are. 

But this isn’t the case, at least for the surveyed Norwegian coaches. Instead, an important finding of this study is that these coaches apply only a limited set of interval session models within each zone and rarely prescribe all-out sessions to allow week-to-week calibration and control of performance development. 

In place of creating harder and harder and more and more complicated workouts, Norwegian coaches simplify to identify improvements in their athletes. 

So let’s see what these sessions look like in reality. I will walk you through every zone with example workouts that Norwegian pros use in their training.

Zone 1: On average 3-6 weekly sessions, prescribed as continuous rides at 3-7 hours in length with small parts in zone 2 due to terrain variation. Great parts of races are also done in zone 1 depending on role, terrain etc. 

Zone 2: 1-2 weekly sessions done infrequently as low cadence intervals like 8-10x 3-6 minutes at 40-60 rpm implemented in easy rides. Again parts of racing are done in zone 2. 

Zone 3: Threshold or tempo intervals done 1-3 times weekly at 4×10-15 minutes or 6×8 minutes, for example. Rest between intervals is 1-2 minutes. Continuous work stated as a 1 hour ride at threshold/tempo. This is a pace where long climbs are done a lot at in long stage races. 

Zone 4: Long VO2max intervals from 4-8 minutes done only 0-1 time weekly for a total of 45 minutes or done as a pyramid, i.e. 2-4-6-8-10-8-6-4-2 with rest of 1-3 minutes in between. A third example is a motor-paced session for 1 hour from z2-z5 with a total amount of 10-20 minutes in z4.  

Zone 5: Short VO2max intervals like 10×1-3 minutes or intermittent intervals like 30/30s for a total of 15-25 minutes. Once again applied quite rarely at a frequency of 0-1 times weekly. 

Zone 6: Lastly, we have the anaerobic-sprint style workouts done 0-1 time weekly like 4-5x 30-90 seconds all-out repeats. A common example in pro cycling is a sprint lead-out, where the lead-out train rides all-out with the sprinter drafting behind and sprinting all-out for the last 15 seconds. 

Now that we looked at session examples in road cycling, I want to mention two notable findings I made. 

Firstly, zone 1 training is fairly easy but not too easy at 60-72% of maxHR. For illustration, my maxHR is 194 bpm, meaning I would ride z1 at 116-140 bpm. From my experience I know that 120-130 bpm transfers to a solid zone 2 endurance pace in watts for me. In power terms that means 55-60% of your FTP should not be too low of a pace for your everyday rides to be an effective LIT session. 

Secondly, take a look at the low frequency of high-intensity sessions with just 0-1 time weekly. It might sound counterintuitive at first but this is in line with the literature on HIT training frequency. Billat and colleagues, for example, found that in trained runners doing 3 times HIT weekly vs 1 time didn’t further improve VO2max but only increased fatigue. And as already indicated the Norwegian top coaches in this study are careful with the high costs of high intensity . 

Interval sessions should be clear now, but which patterns of the top coaches can we incorporate into our own training and planning. Let’s talk about that now.

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Key Patterns Found in All Endurance Sports

Although every endurance sport has different characteristics, there are common features that the scientists found between all the coaches which also includes the coaches’ focus before, during, and after the session. We will look at each one before I discuss some related facts in more detail.  

Hard-easy rhythmicity: Hard days like interval sessions or long rides are methodically alternated with easy low-intensity training days in between. Most coaches prescribe two to three hard days or so called key sessions weekly during base training usually on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. 

Double intensive sessions: 7 out of the 13 interviewed coaches make use of the popularized double-threshold days, where one threshold session is done in the morning and one in the afternoon. This is more typical for the other endurance sports, though. 

Cross-training: Most sports use cross-training to optimize training load, i.e. XC-skiers use cycling to do so. And this is a key for the coaches here. The cross-training modality should reflect the sport-specific adaptations. Therefore, cross-training is rarely used in runners. 

Few session models: Most of the mentioned coaches only apply a limited set of session models to allow predictability and week-to-week calibration and control of performance progress. 

Mostly controlled, very few all-out sessions: All-out and tough sessions are used sparingly. Instead, controlled sessions with a reps in reserve approach, known from bodybuilding, are applied. Essentially, you should leave 1-2 intervals in the tank. All-out sessions are only used in the month prior to an A-race to trigger a peaking response.

Progressive intensity increase throughout the session: Key sessions are performed with a slight intensity increase. For example, the mentioned cyclists start the intervals at the lower range and then increase power from interval to interval. This may result in a watt difference of 10-25 watts from the first to the last interval set. 

Combination of Intensity Zones: The coaches also like to combine intensity zones in one session. Combinations of z1/2, z3/4, or z5/6 are most often used.

Altitude training: Most of the coaches prescribe altitude training. At altitude camp the power or speed used is lower for rides and intervals, and the rest periods between intervals are longer to allow sufficient recovery and reduce the stress response. 

Tapering strategies and easy weeks: In easy and tapering weeks session duration is cut to half of typical duration to reduce fatigue. For example, instead of a typical 6×10 minute session, a 3×10 minute session is applied. 

Coach’s focus before: Coaches spent significant time with the careful planning of key sessions. These sessions are planned in cooperation with the athletes and presented at least 1-7 days prior to allow mental preparation of the athletes.

Coach’s focus during: Mainly giving feedback and guidance on session execution and intensity control by taking lactate samples.

Coach’s focus after: Analyzing the past session with direct feedback to the athlete on what worked well and what doesn’t to create an environment of continuous learning and improvement.

What World-Class Coaches Focus On

Alright, that was a lot of information. Let’s revise the common features and look at some of the key findings in more detail. 

First of all, interval sessions are carefully controlled and not all out. Instead, these sessions are characterized by a high total time at intensity and a slight increase in intensity. And this is the key here. If I give you an intensity range, you will most probably try to stay at the upper end of the zone or even try to beat the zone by a little bit. However, what we see in this article is that intensity control is a major thing for the coaches. If intensity control is neglected, the session is defined as a failure. 

Furthermore, LIT sessions exclusively done in zone 1 still account for the biggest part of total training in these elite performers. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering the high yearly training volume. 

Moreover, the coaches explained that zone 2 would create too much fatigue and that the goal of zone 1 sessions is also in keeping the athlete fresh enough for the subsequent hard days to be done at sufficient quality. This is because the interviewed coaches consider intensive MIT and HIT sessions fundamental for performance progression and that planning and implementation of training is mainly centered around such key sessions. 

Overall, more MIT than HIT is used annually. This is partly attributed to the Norwegian lactate threshold training movement and the fact of a more conservative approach in general. In fact, the introduced sessions differ considerably from intervention studies, where the goal was always to achieve and maintain intensities above 90% of VO2max. 

The coaches in this study argue that such hard sessions are not sustainable over time for several reasons. Firstly, it might lead to poorly timed and undesired peaking responses. Secondly, all-out sessions limit the use of accumulated MIT and HIT sessions due to lower interval time and a higher recovery time due to the higher fatigue response of such demanding sessions. This in turn makes burnout and overtraining more likely. As a result, the best coaches are especially cautious by using all-out sessions sparingly and avoid introducing them too early in the periodization cycle. 

Lastly, I want to emphasize the importance of using a limited set of interval session models and its contribution to training quality. By applying few interval session models each key session acts as a test where heart rate, blood lactate concentration, speed or power output, and perceived exertion and fatigue can be compared week-to-week. 

The Power of Holding Back 

What I want you to take home from this comprehensive study on Norwegian top coaches and athletes is that becoming a faster cyclist is not a result of who’s working the hardest and squeezing out the highest power outputs. 

Instead, it’s about who’s the most consistent on and off the bike. And besides, about those who trust the process knowing that holding back on key sessions and avoiding the constant need for validation will make them faster in the long run. The way to lead you to outstanding performances isn’t the path of complexity. Rather it’s the path of simplifying planning and execution by following a hard day – easy day alternation and applying a limited set of interval session models that can be repeated week after week. 

If you would ask me to describe the real Norwegian training method in one sentence, it would go like this: The best of the best are the best in the basics.

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Studies Used in This Article

1. Training Session Models in Endurance Sports: A Norwegian Perspective on Best Practice Recommendations
2. What is Best Practice for Training Intensity and Duration Distribution in Endurance Athletes?
3. The Training Characteristics of World-Class Distance Runners: An Integration of Scientific Literature and Results-Proven Practice
4. Interval training at VO2max: effects on aerobic performance and overtraining markers
5. What is the Best Way to Train to Become a Star Endurance Athlete?
6. Critical power is positively related to skeletal muscle capillarity and type I muscle fibers in endurance-trained individuals
7. Critical Power: An Important Fatigue Threshold in Exercise Physiology
8. Training Fast-Twitch Muscle Fibers: Why and How
9. Training Periodization, Methods, Intensity Distribution, and Volume in Highly Trained and Elite Distance Runners: A Systematic Review
10. Does Lactate-Guided Threshold Interval Training within a High-Volume Low-Intensity Approach Represent the “Next Step” in the Evolution of Distance Running Training?
11. Effects of different interval-training programs on cycling time-trial performance
12. Influence of Interval Training Frequency on Time-Trial Performance in Elite Endurance Athletes
13. Validity of using functional threshold power and intermittent power to predict cross-country mountain bike race outcome
14. The Validity of Functional Threshold Power and Maximal Oxygen Uptake for Cycling Performance in Moderately Trained Cyclists 
15. Comparison of acute physiological responses between one long and two short sessions of moderate-intensity training in endurance athletes
    
    
    

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