I have traveled to South Africa, specifically a small village 3 hours from Johannesburg named Dullstroom. A long journey to a small town, primarily serving as a "stop" for tourists heading from Johannesburg to Kruger National Park to see wild animals and go on Safari.
So why am I here with one of my good friends and elite runner Kristian?
Altitude Training - Why?
Dullstroom is situated at 2000m altitude and has become a mecca for long-distance runners seeking the positive effects of altitude training, warmer climates during winter, and a cheap, quiet area to go into "training camp mode." The latter is one of the key reasons for attending a training camp, with or without altitude - to escape daily life and its distractions, focusing solely on training and recovery.
It may sound boring, and it certainly can be. For me, it's especially tough this year, being away from my family for 4 weeks. I have a partner and two children aged 2.5 years and 10 weeks - it's a huge sacrifice in my quest to improve and run faster. Facetime saves me.
I will be at altitude for 3.5 weeks, after which I'll head directly to Turkey to compete in the European Cross Country Championship, hoping to perform even better after the stint at altitude and with the adaptations that come with it. Altitude training is widely recognized by endurance athletes for several reasons.
Altitude Training – More Oxygen
At higher altitudes, oxygen saturation is lower, which puts additional stress on the body. This stress is evident in training, sleep, resting heart rate, and HRV – at least during the first few days/weeks.
Afterwards, one adapts to the new climate and upon returning to lower altitudes where oxygen saturation is higher, you may feel better running – at least that's the idea.
One well-known adaptation is the increase in red blood cells, which are tasked with transporting oxygen throughout the body. It makes sense, more oxygen = better performance.
However, altitude training comes with a price –The journey is long with health risks, and the body stress is greater, impacting initial training. Hence, Kristian and I were tested before departure and will be upon return. This checks how altitude training affected our body composition and red blood cell count.
For me, the EM in cross-country also tests the altitude training effect - if I run well and feel good, the training was beneficial for future use.
If not, I must reassess the approach and decide if it's right for me.
The first few days, it's crucial to rest. As mentioned, the body is stressed, and this is evident during calm runs and all objective measurements we use.
After a few days, it feels better, and running moderate or intense training as at home becomes possible. More on this in the next article.
