REF-540 · Sandbakk & Holmberg, 2017 · International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, Vol. · Paper
Physiological Capacity and Training Routines of Elite Cross-Country Skiers
Approaching upper limits of human endurance
Key Findings
XC skiing is one of the most demanding endurance sports: protracted competitions on varying terrain, using a variety of skiing techniques that require upper- and/or lower-body work to different extents (abstract)
Race speed has increased more than in any other winter Olympic sport — through more effective training, extensive improvements in equipment and track preparation; new racing events have been introduced, which has to some extent altered the physiological capacity required to win, and the training routines of successful skiers have evolved accordingly (abstract)
The long tradition of researchers working closely with XC-ski coaches and athletes has produced physiological insights showing these athletes approaching the upper limits of human endurance (abstract)
Elite values quoted in the review: VO2max of 80-90 mL/kg/min common in world-class men (70-80 in women), with absolute values above 6.5 L/min in male medal winners; the best skiers train 750-950 h a year (700-850 h endurance), about 80% at low intensity, 4-5% moderate, 5-8% high intensity and 10% strength and speed (full text, checked 2026-09-28: accepted manuscript, NTNU)
Sub-techniques (classic: diagonal stride, double poling with a kick, double poling, herringbone; skate: G2-G5) load the upper and lower body to different extents — skiers change sub-technique about 30 times in a 1.5-km sprint, and VO2peak in sub-techniques other than diagonal stride is often 5-15% below VO2max; upper-body strength and power have become a major interest and relate to double-poling performance (the review does not tie this to sprint events) (full text, checked 2026-09-28: accepted manuscript, NTNU)
Practical Application
Narrative review (Sandbakk & Holmberg): elite XC skiing = whole-body endurance across several techniques, with the fastest speed gains of any winter Olympic sport; the abstract gives no numbers — the full text puts the best men at 80-90 mL/kg/min VO2max and the best skiers at 750-950 training hours a year, about 80% of it at low intensity (full text, checked 2026-09-28: accepted manuscript, NTNU).For a masters skier: develop all sub-techniques; the upper body is a separately trainable engine
Cyclist/runner in winter: roller skis/skiing = whole-body aerobic cross-training, non-impact. Not from this paper; the base's own practice
The skiers' training distribution is consistent with the base's pyramidal/polarized picture (see REF-303 / REF-304 for the TID evidence). Not from this paper
Double-poling develops the upper body + aerobic base simultaneously (partial interference bypass, REF-512). Inference, not tested
Limitations
Elite focus — absolute values (VO2max, volume) do not transfer to a masters athlete
Narrative review; the abstract carries no numbers — the values above are from the full text
Technique/equipment continue to evolve
How this entry was checked and changed
Why this level
regraded 2026-09-27 from A: narrative review without systematic method (leading XC-ski research group)
Content correction 2026-09-27
Sport line "cycling, running, rowing" -> "xc-skiing" (the review is about cross-country skiing)
"~7 L/min / ~85-90 mL/kg/min", "~800 h/year", "~90% low-intensity", "80/20": not in the abstract; kept as full-text values with the label
Level A -> B+ (narrative review); cross-references REF-093/085 (tombstones) -> REF-303/304
Cross-references to duplicate stubs repointed to their canonical entries (REF-093->REF-304); the stubs were emptied on 2026-09-27.
2026-09-28: lines labelled "full text; not checked" read against the open-access full text (accepted manuscript, NTNU Open / NVA hdl 11250/2478796): 0 confirmed, 3 corrected (annual training 800-950 h ~90% low intensity -> 750-950 h ~80% low intensity; 6-7 L/min -> >6.5 L/min in male medal winners; sub-technique list completed, upper-body emphasis not tied to sprint events), 0 removed.