The Visma Ski Classics podcast series Orsa2Levi, hosted by Teemu Virtanen, continues tomorrow as Team Ramudden’s coach Mattia Reck reveals his secrets of success. Reck is a renowned cycling coach overseeing Team Trek Segafredo, a successful cycling pro team, and he has now stepped into the world of skiing as the coach of Team Ramudden. He has brought some new ideas and influences from cycling, and the Ramudden gang has greatly benefitted from his input. Now, you have a perfect opportunity to learn all about training and incorporate some of Reck’s methods into your personal workouts.

“There’s so much racing in cycling, but it has gone down a bit recently. Now, pro athletes have about 70-80 days of racing per year. But then they have training camps and such, which means that they are away from home. As a cycling coach, you need to know how to combine racing, training and recovery. That’s a tricky balance,” Reck describes the cycling world.

He continues by saying that there are some profound differences between cycling and skiing.

“Pro cyclists use races for building up shape. It’s like block training where you have many intensive days and then rest. The worst thing for shape is to have one-day races on back-to-back weekends because you have a lot of travel and a lot of rest before and after the race. And that’s what’s happening in skiing. Then, you can’t get a big block of training in, and your shape goes down.”

Traditionally, the Nordic ski world has been somewhat relentless in adopting new ways, and many fresh ideas are not necessarily welcomed with open arms. Reck acknowledges the fact and says that he is not here to change everything.

“I don’t want to change too much because I just want to change. When I came to cross-country skiing, I didn’t know how skiers were training. When I look at things now, I think that cycling has a bit more systematic approach, and in cross-country skiing I don’t always see the red thread. Maybe there is one, but I just don’t understand it.”

Reck is also quick to admit that cyclists could learn from skiers as well since they are often too afraid of trying out other sports, which is quite common among skiers. He also says that the importance of equipment and waxing in skiing is something to adapt for cyclist as they tend to use the same tires in all conditions.

On tomorrow’s podcast you will learn about Reck’s three-day training method and find out what tips he gives to a goal-oriented skier on his or her way to the top. You will also get to know Reck as a person since he is much more than a sports coach. Orsa2Levi can be heard on all podcast platforms and on the Visma Ski Classics site.