Double threshold days several times a week have become a form of training used by an increasing number of elite runners. It’s been much rarer in skiing, but this summer, winter World Cup runner-up Linn Svahn will be adding double threshold days. Here, Svahn’s coach, Ola Ravald, tells us about the plan and the intended approach.

Norwegian runner Marius Bakken was one of the first to use double threshold sessions several times a week for training.

This training method has also been successfully used by the Ingebrigtsen brothers, and during the spring and early summer, Andreas Almgren has set Swedish records in everything from middle distance to half marathons.

In short, the approach is that the athlete runs two speed sessions during the same day at threshold intensity. The aim is to increase the volume of quality training, but not in “interval load.” Many times, lactate meters are used to ensure that the load is at the right level.

Ola Ravald has worked as a cross-country and biathlon coach for several decades, both in Sweden and abroad. He is currently the coach of biathlon’s Team Autoexperten and the head coach of last winter’s World Cup runner-up, Linn Svahn.

“I don’t know how all skiers train, but in general, you could say that we’re a bit old-fashioned and conservative when it comes to training in skiing. And I think what’s happening with training in athletics is exciting. Then, there are clear differences between running and skiing. But I think it’s possible to develop more than we have done,” says Ravald to Langd.se and continues:

“I know that the Norwegian men in the IBU Cup last season ran some double threshold during the season, and it was something that they got a lot of effect from. If we take Johan Olav Botn, who has incredibly high speed in the track, we saw him doing threshold sessions in the afternoons after he competed in the morning,” says Ravald.

Is this something you will test with your athletes?

“Yes, we plan to add double threshold days and possibly even blocks of double thresholds for Linn to try this out this summer. There may be some benefits from “session 2″ in the afternoon based on what you did in the training in the morning.”

What could an arrangement look like?

“As the idea is now, it is about adding this during the build-up period, and then I think we should run two or, in some cases, three “double-training days” per week,” says Ola Ravald and adds:

“This can mean days where we, for example, skate 45-50 minutes of effective threshold intensity time in the morning and then either a double poling session or, for that matter, running or classic in the afternoon. This is also between 45-50 minutes effective time. This means that it will be between 1.5-2 hours per day. Then, the load mustn’t be too high, so in those sessions, it is important that we do lactate testing to make sure that the load is at the right level.”

A more extended interview with coach Ravald about Linn Svahn’s season and the planning ahead will be published here on ProXCskiing.com during the week.

Are you interested in long-distance and traditional cross-country ski training? Click HERE and read more about it.