I raced at the 10th annual Snowshoe World Championships last weekend.
And the struggle was real.
I had a fierce back and force battle with Brandy Erholtz (multiple US Mountain Team member, and winner of Mount Washington and Pikes Peak Accent). I thought for sure my heart was going to explode. It didn't. I came out stronger and here is why:
Snowshoeing is a great training tool for running because of the similarities in the movement pattern. The added weight from the snowshoes on your feet coupled with the low impact terrain makes for a fantastic way to develop strength-endurance. I would argue that 1 mile of snowshoe running = 3 miles on the road (Kurt Perham, et all 2017). Also, you may be going slower on the snow but you are indeed breathing harder.
One important goal of training is to extend our ability to use a high proportion of our strength over a longer period of time. Snowshoe running recruits more muscle fibers as compared to flat ground running as well as enhances our balance and proprioception.
And the struggle was real.
I had a fierce back and force battle with Brandy Erholtz (multiple US Mountain Team member, and winner of Mount Washington and Pikes Peak Accent). I thought for sure my heart was going to explode. It didn't. I came out stronger and here is why:
Snowshoeing is a great training tool for running because of the similarities in the movement pattern. The added weight from the snowshoes on your feet coupled with the low impact terrain makes for a fantastic way to develop strength-endurance. I would argue that 1 mile of snowshoe running = 3 miles on the road (Kurt Perham, et all 2017). Also, you may be going slower on the snow but you are indeed breathing harder.
One important goal of training is to extend our ability to use a high proportion of our strength over a longer period of time. Snowshoe running recruits more muscle fibers as compared to flat ground running as well as enhances our balance and proprioception.
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| Racing! |
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| Hurdling a log on snowshoes. Did not end well. |
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| #optoutside |
Sample snowshoe workout to replace a winter long run:
30 min easy run on the roads. Stop and do dynamic mobility/stretching and put on the snowshoes.
45 min snowshoe run. Watch the intensity but have fun.
30 min easy cool down run on the roads. Completing a cool down is an easy way to get performance gains because you are already in a pre-fatigued state so any work you do gets supercharged.
30 min easy run on the roads. Stop and do dynamic mobility/stretching and put on the snowshoes.
45 min snowshoe run. Watch the intensity but have fun.
30 min easy cool down run on the roads. Completing a cool down is an easy way to get performance gains because you are already in a pre-fatigued state so any work you do gets supercharged.
