Slow down to go faster#

Thu, 19 Jan 2006 12:00:00 +0000

(Yup, more SF references in article titles)

Posted here to remind myself, really. The virtues of skating slower are:

• If I'm not skating on the edge of my ability, I can concentrate better on good technique
• If I'm skating slower than that, even, I tend to lose the "flow" - gravity has the same force no matter what my forward velocity. But I suspect that with practice I could flow at these speeds - and would have much lower cadence - and therefore I'd be skating a lot better when I return to normal pace
• While I don't have flow, I'm using (and therefore exercising) new and exciting muscles to hold my body position where usually I wouldn't worry about e.g. activating my abs so much.
• usual gubbins about heart rate and exercise zones continues to apply, of course.

Skating lower has the obvious aerodynamic advantage and means I can get a longer push without moving vertically. But in this post I am reminding myself to skate lower than I need to, just because that way I'll start building up better quad strength and lactate tolerance, and thus more comfortably able to skate low when I do want to go faster.

[ skating log: route check yesterday (for my LFNS lead next month), then home; to work this morning ]