Spenst: Goal, Exercises, Organization and Placement

 

Spenst training involves ski specific plyometric exercises that develop power, explosiveness, balance and strength. If you are looking to gain that extra snap in your technique, learn to accelerate over the tops of hills, around corners, sprint to the finish, improve balance and strength, or just impress your friends at parties, then spenst training is for you.

Ski technique has always demanded a quick, dynamic kick, for both skating and classic, and spenst training is a great way to develop it. Often it is the skiers who seem to be skiing with the least effort that have the most dynamic kick. Their secret is a dynamic push and then relaxation of the pushing muscles.

Spenst is a great addition to training and it yields noticeable results with a fairly small time investment of 10 to 15 minutes a week.

GOAL: DEVELOP POWER AND BALANCE

Means: several short repetitions of the following exercises with full rest. Gaining maximum distance with each jump – going as far as possible in the shortest number of jumps. Generally one takes between 10 and 20 jumps in a row (10-20 seconds of work) followed by a good recovery (about 2 minutes should suffice).

TYPE OF SPENST EXERCISES

• One-Legged Hop

This is a spenst training staple. As the name suggests you will be hopping on one leg – up a hill. Start with a tame grade and build toward a steeper hill. Take 10-15 jumps on one leg moving continuously up the hill (don’t stop between jumps, but keep your momentum going); walk slowly back down the hill and take the same number of jumps on the other leg. Repeat 2 to 3 (or more as you build up to it) times.

• Stationary Skate Hop

Simply jump sideways back and fourth as if skating from leg to leg aiming for max distance with each leap. Make sure you have your balance on each leg before you leap again. You can use your arms as if you were skating. You shouldn’t move forward, but should leap directly sideways off the whole foot, side to side, in the same place. Take 10-15 leaps per leg, rest, repeat.

• Bunny Hop

Return to the hill where you did the one legged hops. This time hop with both legs at once. Unlike the one-legged jumps, hesitate slightly between jumps so that energy must be regenerated with each jump. This is a killer, and can cause soreness as well as loud guffaws, snarks, snorts and general hilarity among spectators.

ORGANIZATION OF WORKOUT

Warm up very, very well. Stretch thoroughly and begin slowly to make sure you are warm enough. The goal is not to work out your aerobic system, so take your time and recover well between each set of jumps so that you can make maximal efforts with each jump and each set of jumps.

PLACEMENT OF WORKOUT IN THE WEEK

It is best to place spenst training after a bit of rest because for it to have maximal effect you should be fresh enough to perform the work maximally.

EXAMPLE

Midway through an easy distance run or after warming up (the Jr. team I trained with in Sweden for a year did spenst as part of an interval workout) stop at a nice grassy hill. Stretch out some; perform a few easy one-legged jumps, side jumps and bunny hops (bunny hops can make your whole body sore if you’re not careful). When you are ready, take 15 one-legged jumps up the hill. Walk slowly down the hill and then take 15 jumps on the other leg. If it is your first outing take not more than 2 times up the hill per leg. The idea is to try to get further up the hill with the same number of jumps each time. Do the skate jumps, and bunny hops and be creative with jumps of your own creation. Just remember it isn’t spenst if it isn’t explosive – more isn’t better. If you are too tired to jump far, or if you feel any twinge of pain or pull, stop (start slowly to avoid injury!) Warm down well. The whole spenst routine can take as little as 10 minutes and so on a day when time is limited spenst is a great workout option.

If running and jumping is not in your repertoire, power can also be built on a bike with 15 to 20 second sprints up a very steep hill. Do some sprints seated and some standing, some in a tough gear and some spinning in an easy gear to work all the muscles. Explosiveness of this kind is more difficult to build on rollerskis, but like on the bike, sprints of 15-20 seconds on a steep hill are effective.

An Outline of Nordic Training Modes

Skiing and Rollerskiing
Used for:
– endurance, intensity, speed, recovery, racing.
– strength (no poles skating, double-pole and single pole only sessions)

Running and Cycling
Used for:
– endurance, intensity, recovery, racing

Bounding
Used for:
– intensity, speed, strength

How: Bounding can be done with or without poles. The motion should closely imitate classical skiing. To focus on strength and explosiveness do shorter intervals focusing on getting maximum distance with each bound. For intervals try to use the explosiveness, rhythm and intensity that imitates ski racing.

Ski Walking
Used for:
– intensity, endurance, strength

How: Ski walking can be done with poles, but is generally done without them. It should closely imitate classical skiing. It can be incorporated into running endurance sessions on steep and/or long uphills and be used for intervals on uphills. Poles should be about 2 inches shorter than poles used for classical skiing on snow.

Spenst (dynamic ski specific plyometric exercises)
Used for:
– developing explosive power and strength

How: The focus is on getting maximum distance on each of 10 to 15 hops. Do sets of 10 to 15 hops and take full recovery (2-3 mins) between sets. Skating spenst can be done by hopping from side to side in one place, or jumping sideways up a steep hill. Classical spenst can be done by hopping on one leg at a time up a steep hill, or by bounding with both legs up a steep hill. Be imaginative, and warm up and down very, very well.

Weights
Used for:
– developing overall maximum-strength and muscular balance

How: use a wide variety of lifts that cover all major muscle groups.

Circuit
Used for:
– developing overall strength-endurance and muscular balance

How: set up a circuit of exercises that alternate stomach, back, legs, arms. Spend half a minute to a minute and a half at each station and move from one station to the next without stopping.

– Andy at SkiPost.com

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Building Stamina for Climbing Hills

Q: Do you have any advice that would be specific to building stamina for climbing hills when ski season returns?

A: Consistent training throughout the year is your best way at improving your stamina and general fitness for the ski season. You’ll see the biggest changes in your fitness if you get onto a regular schedule with your training. With that consistency in training, doing specific target exercise can help with the areas you are trying to improve on. With you looking for improvement in your climbing, there are a few things I would suggest.

1. L3 hill bounding, ski walking, and moosehoofs (sub-maximal bound). Most ski specific training method you can do. Longer Level 3 repetitions are the best way to improve your climbing skills during the off season.

2. Endurance Strength: In the weight room adding in higher rep (15-20) exercises is a good way to work on endurance strength for ski specific muscle groups.

3. Rollerski Strength: Even though rollerski strength (double pole and single stick only on hills) works solely the upper body, those muscles play a large part in all ski techniques. That is why it is important to work on building a strong upper body. It helps us not to rely on our lower body as much and helps with having balanced technique.

4. Plyometrics/Spenst: Various single and double leg jumps can help us build explosion and fast twitch fibers in our muscles. A lot of times we become bogged down on hills when we are unable to transfer weight quickly from side to side.

Additional Resources:

– An Outline of Nordic Training Modes
– Ski Walk and Moose Hoof Combo

Videos:

–  Ski-Walking and Hill Bounding
–  Ski Walking Intervals – Workout Ideas

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Spenst Training with Justin Freeman

by Justin Freeman for SkiPost

Skiing is generally regarded as an aerobic sport, and rightly so. But it is also an explosive power sport. Unlike running, cycling, or swimming, where power is applied nearly continuously, each individual stride in a cross country ski race is an explosive event-certainly more explosive than in any other endurance sport. It is in order to train this explosive power that we do spenst workouts. This article gives an overview of spenst training theory and practice.

 

Justin Freeman

 

Spenst comes from a Norwegian word meaning vertical jump. A spenst workout is one with the goal of increasing the height of your vertical jump. In America the word has taken on a slightly different meaning; a spenst workout is one where you work on your ski-specific explosive power.

There are two equally important components to training ski-specific explosive power. The more obvious component is simply the muscle power. But it is just as important to train the body position and technique that allow you to apply this power effectively.

One of the best ways to incorporate body position training into your spenst routine is to extend your warm-up. Even if this means a shorter time spent doing jumps and such it is well worth it. To get anything out of your spenst routine you must be thoroughly warm, and you also must see and feel the connection between ski racing and the exercises you are doing.

Note: the workout I am about to describe contains more exercises than you should do in a single session. You might want to do a session with just the classic exercises, or just the skate, or your favorite combination. But don’t do all the of these.

Your initial warm-up should be 20-30 minutes, ending at the base of a hill with good footing and a moderate and consistent grade. Stop here and stretch for a while. Next, do the following classic technique drills:

CLASSIC ARM SWING

Stand with your feet shoulder width apart, flex at the ankles and knees to bring your hips forward, and then roll your shoulders forward so that your spine has a good C-curve to it. Now, swing your arms as if you were classic skiing. Your arms should move loosely at the shoulders, but avoid hyperextention of the shoulders or rotation of the upper spine. You should drive your arms forward with sufficient force that your knees bend forward with each arm swing.

ADD ONE LEG

While balancing on your left leg, swing your right leg forward in sync with your left arm. Focus on driving both your arms and your leg forward. Make sure that your back stays rounded. If you do this right you will almost have to hop forward each time your leg swings forward.

NEXT – EASY SKI WALKING

You can do this with or without poles (if you use poles they should be about 10 cm shorter than your classic poles). The idea right now is to stay well inside level one, and to really feel like you are on snow. Keep in mind the same things as in the last two drills: keep your back rounded, your hips forward, and drive your arms and legs forward with a crisp, sharp motion.

Remember, this is still a technique exercise, so don’t try to race, try to feel like you are skiing in level one.

YOUR FIRST SPENST EXERCISE

Your first spenst exercise is single leg classic technique hops. This exercise is very similar to the arm and leg swing exercise from the warm-up. Balance on your left leg. Put your right arm forward, and your left arm and right leg behind, as if you were gliding on your left ski. Now, drive your right leg and left arm forward and jump forward off your left leg. The jump should feel like the kick in classic technique–sharp and powerful, rather than long and drawn out. Land on your left leg, and repeat six to ten times. Do two to three sets on each leg.

VARIANTS OF SKI WALKING

The next exercise is a variant of ski walking. It can be done without poles, but with poles is preferable. The idea is to ski walk with the fastest possible turnover, almost shuffling up hops. This exercise is very similar to the arm and leg swing exercise from the warm-up. Balance on your left leg. Put your right arm forward, and your left arm and right leg behind, as if you were gliding on your left ski. Now, drive your right leg and left arm forward and jump forward off your left leg. The jump should feel like the kick in classic technique–sharp and powerful, rather than long and drawn out. Land on your left leg, and repeat six to ten times. Do two to three sets on each leg.

The next exercise is a variant of ski walking. It can be done without poles, but with poles is preferable. The idea is to ski walk with the fastest possible turnover, almost shuffling up the hill. But don’t start race walking. Keep your hips forward and basically square to the direction of travel. Keep your legs and arms driving straight forward. Focus on feeling as if you were skiing with huge tempo. Keep these and all spenst workout sprints to under ten seconds. Do three to eight of these sprints.

CLASSIC EXERCISE – BOUNDING

The finally classic exercise is bounding. Again, it works without poles but it is better to bring poles. Bounding is in some ways the opposite of the last exercise–here you are trying to minimize your tempo by maximizing your stride length. As always, focus on keeping good body position, forward hips, C-curve in the spine. Also focus on minimizing the time your foot spends on the ground. As soon as you land you should be pushing off, starting the next stride. (This may mean a little less distance with each jump, but it also trains you to set you wax more effectively). Do three to eight total bounds, 6 to 10 seconds each.

SKATING

To train good skating position we start with a static drill. Turn your left leg out at the hip. Place your weight on this foot, which should point about 40 degrees away from where you are facing and bend deeply at the ankle and knee to bring the hips forward. Roll your shoulders forward to properly align your spine. Gently bounce up and down an inch or two, and get used to the feeling of balancing like this on one ski. Do this for about 30 seconds on each side, and repeat at least once on each side. Next, start from this position on your left leg and then step to the same position on your right. Try to feel the weight transfer as if you were on snow.

SKATE – EXPLOSIVE VERSION

Once you are comfortable with this, we can move the the explosive version: Set up in good skate position, hips and shoulders forward, hip turned out, ankles bent. Then jump explosively off of this leg and land in good skate position on the other. You may want to swing your arms in a V-2 skate motion. You may want to take a small hop between jumps to help you set up. Whatever helps you focus on an explosive lateral jump, and allows you to start and finish in a good, technically sound position. Do three sets of a total of about 20 jumps (ten from each leg).

For the other skate exercise, line up so that the hill rises to your left. Then, keeping your hips forward, bring your right foot across and plant it in front of and above your left foot. Jump explosively off your right foot so that you land left (up the hill) from where you started. You should swing your arms as if poling as you jump. Land on your left foot, take a second to stabilize, then cross your right foot over and jump again. Do three sets of 10 jumps on each leg.

As long as you keep the total number of jumps and sprints low, you can add some less specific exercises. Two-legged jumps, running sprints, backwards running sprints, high-knees sprints, etc. I usually add one of these to my spenst routine. But only one. The aim is for quality and for specificity.

Hopefully these exercises will help your spenst routine. Remember, for these to be truly effective you need to be warmed up but fresh, and you need to feel the connection to skiing with each and every jump or sprint. If the connection is unclear, go back to the warm-up technique drills. If you start feeling too tired to execute the workout properly, cool down and go home.

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