This Week's Workout Plan

As of today, there are just 26 training days left 'til the OSCR (which stands for Ovando-Seeley-Cross-country Race; several friends and I will be skiing the 25k portion of the route); so, skiing is definitely in the forecast for this week, which is good because we've been getting some great snow.

This week I'll be focussing my workouts on endurance & strength. And actually, for the next several weeks those will be the goals of my workouts (i.e. I won't be doing much speed work, since I don't expect to race the OSCR, but rather to endure the mileage). For the strength training, I'll be working on my legs, of course, since they'll be doing the brunt of the work. But the upper body (especially the shoulders/delts and upper back) gets a good workout from skiing, too, so I'll be working those muscle groups on alternate days from the legs. And, of course, core strength is always important. Balance is key when you're cruising along on little sticks, so I'll be making sure my core is up to the challenge of stabilizing me as I wobble along for 25k.

In addition to making sure my body parts are up to the challenge, I also want to prep the heart and lungs for going strong for that long. So I'll be doing some longer skis and runs over the next few weeks, and will add in a few tempo runs (and maybe skis?)

So here's the plan for this week (Dec 31- Jan 6):

Monday: ski 6-8 miles at Lolo Pass (with Craig & OSCR-buddy Amy)

Tuesday: Power Yoga dvd, to stretch & strengthen all muscle groups

Wednesday: swim (endurance ladder-- 50, 100, 150, 200, 150, 100, 50; 1000 yd total, including warm-up and cool-down) plus Pushup Pyramid

Thursday: 30 min hill repeats on treadmill + 30 minute elliptical machine

Friday: 20 min easy run plus Power Pump class in am; short swim (500 yd) in afternoon

Saturday: long ski or long run

Sunday: rest