Summer Training with Andrew Young

What’s your usual diet like while training during the off-season?

“During the start of the off-season I’m fairly relaxed about my diet. I eat what I like when I like. But I try to get enough carbs before a big training session and enough fruit and veg. As we get closer to the winter, my diet gets stricter and stricter. Then I have planned meals before certain training sessions where we are focused on getting the nutrients I need.”

What’s your favourite quick and easy healthy meal/snack?

“I make a big pot of porridge for breakfast and often have the left overs as a snack. I change up my toppings on the porridge. Yogurt, frozen or fresh berries, fruits, nuts, honey and sometimes maple syrup. I pick and choose!”

What’s your typical workout routine in the off-season?

“A lot of endurance work! Over 75% of my training is made up of easy distance training. Simply putting the hours in and building a base. I’ll have 3 hour running sessions and 3 – 4 hour rollerski sessions. Once a month I do a 6 hour session.

“The other 25% of training is high intensity work, sprint work and strength training.

“A standard interval I have is 6x10min at lactate threshold. In the breaks we measure lactate and get feedback on technique.

“In the gym we focus mainly on being explosive and building speed for a sprint finish. So I rarely lift more than 5 reps. A typical plan would be, squats, bench press, pull ups, hamstring curls. 3 sets of 3-5 reps on a heavy load. Then we finish the season with a core circuit.”

What’s your favourite exercise and why?

“Seated row – great for skiers, gets the triceps and the core!”

Any tips for someone wanting to get active this summer?

“Get outside! Enjoy your local surroundings and enjoy being outside. Go for a run or bike ride or a walk!”