Most grueling Olympic sport? Marathon or cross country skiing

Runningart2004 wrote:

Hopi wrote:

Skier VO2max is higher than runner VO2 max because skiers are exercising their arm muscles as well. This means more oxygen uptake which means higher VO2max.

I was thinking this too but the vast majority of Vo2max tests conducted in a lab are on a treadmill and probably Bruce Protocol.

So do we know what protocol was used during any of these tests? Many of the older tests were simply a guy in a golf cart on the track as the runner kept up with the cart lol.

Alan

There are special large treadmills you can roller ski on and test vo2. They have one in Colorado Springs. At least some of the tests on skiers were done this way.

Not anymore.

Give Kipchoge a pair of skis and hed probably beat the skiing wr on an off day.

The potential financial rewards must be considered when evaluating how grueling or tough a sport is.

There are many more opportunities to be sponsored, get appearance fees, and win prize money as a runner than as a cross country skier.

Unless you a world class skier winning medals, its tough to find/receive any financial compensation as a skier.

Lots of very good skiers that were also very good runners chose running partially for this reason. Ben True, Glen Randall

https://www.letsrun.com/2012/randall-0418.php

DanM wrote:

CarlyRaeJepsensMalort wrote:I've never tried to ski at the same effort as running but I'm sure it's plenty grueling. 

My experience with XC Skiing is limited.  My form is terrible, so that limits my exertion and allows me to ski long distances at a leisurely pace.  I will always remember the day I XC skied 20K in Jackson New Hampshire. There's something uplifting about being in the snow in the woods.I can't imagine doing a 50K XC Ski marathon.

You saying having good form makes it impossible to ski long distances at a moderate pace? Interesting.

Regarding skiing vs running. You can push yourself to the limit in skiing where you feel like you may die. But it doesn’t have the pounding on the body like running. So you recover and come back for more. Which is why it’s possible to ski multiple events at the Olympics. Unlike running a marathon where you may not reach the muscle burn but no way you can come back and do it again in the same Olympics.

bigmig19 wrote:

GettingFasterDude wrote:

Maybe because they know it's on the snow and not pavement.

Exactly. So the XC people crash to the soft ground and it looks like a more grueling sport (the orignal ?). Thats all im trying to say. I dont know that they have more of a need to fall right down vs a pro cyclist. No cyclist saves energy so they dont fall. They just dont fall. Laurent Fignon aside.

It’s called handle bars to keep you upright while you coast to a stop.

I’m going with Decathlon. Running the 1500 as last last event on day 2, no thanks.

professional male jogger wrote:

Garmin too wrote:

Rowing.

From experience in many sports I did...

Stop it.

Its 6 minutes in the olympics.

You aren't Captain Bligh, rowing back to England

Six minutes at max effort can take to you places 6 hours at a moderate effort cannot. Most athletes training at a high level will tell they fear those all out sprints more than any of the long stuff.

there is overlap wrote:

If Nordic skiers were capable of running sub-26:30 10000m &/or sub-2:03 Marathon, Nordic skiers would do so.

Right. Sort of like if I was capable of running sub 2:03, I would do so too.

XC SKIING.

It's full-body, it engages every single muscle in the body.

It basically consists of hard VO2max efforts uphill and then trying to grasp some air on the downhills.

Many times races are held at altitude, 1500-1800m above sea level, which means that if you go into the red zone, it's very difficult to recover.

I'm not saying that XC skiers are better athletes, but as for the demands of the sport, XC ski is tougher.

Runner10287 wrote:

professional male jogger wrote:

Stop it.

Its 6 minutes in the olympics.

You aren't Captain Bligh, rowing back to England

Six minutes at max effort can take to you places 6 hours at a moderate effort cannot. Most athletes training at a high level will tell they fear those all out sprints more than any of the long stuff.

It's hard to understand unless you've been to that specific place, but it's a bit like an 800 because you are close to a sprint the whole way, just also using your arms and back and for 5:30-6:30. Done to the max, it ruins the rest of your day and perhaps your night.

What made rowing so tough, IMO, is that it wasn't weight bearing like running. Running I was used to recovery runs after each hard workout. Not the case in rowing. I remember doing 20x2:30 with :45 r, which I found akin to 24x400, perhaps harder, and the next day showed up thinking we would have a light row. Nope, we were doing 10min intervals faster than 6k pace.

Not sure which of these three is tougher, as I have only recently taken up skate skiing and do concede that the last 6 miles of a bonked marathon when the muscles are cramping are terrible. Though going anaerobic in a 6k head race and not being able to lift your oar off the water because your arms have seized is no fun either. Given my Garmin/WHOOP stats from only 60-90 min of skiing at a time, without any attempt at intervals or tempo or racing, I can see how cross country skiing could be the most demanding of them all.

oh no, not that again wrote:

^that VO2max list is a load of made up numbers.

Not exactly made up....but those measurements must be taken with a pinch o salt. Cannot really compare values taken at different times, on different equipment and numerous other variables.

Runner10287 wrote:

Six minutes at max effort can take to you places 6 hours at a moderate effort cannot. Most athletes training at a high level will tell they fear those all out sprints more than any of the long stuff.

You don't push yourself to the limit at the end of "long stuff" during training. Racing is a different matter.

All of you have missed it.

Skiing is gliding across the surface of the earth while power is transmitted into the surface of the earth via the arms and legs. In winter the optimized temperature is 20 degrees. In summer you are skiing on wheels. Skiing, like swimming is a year round sport. Swimming uses a pool and all NCAA to WC and Olympic skiers ski all year long. Skiing is full body STRENGTH+ENDURANCE+ BALANCE. ALL THREE mechanisms simultaneously. On land Skiing is the ultimate form of mastery of human kinetics. On water Olympic C1 and K1 are. There too in C1 + K1 strength + endurance + balance and full body all at once. These are extremely complex full body kinetics all while the muscular structure and cardiovascular and balance systems are taxed at full bore. Rare is the sport that requires full body and all three mechanisms on water or land. Everyone speaking here has missed this simple observation described above without judgement. Simple perception of these actions proves the scientific description I have provided. Ski often, paddle often. Master these physical literacies and then come back and explain. That said of course running 4 minute miles for 26.2 miles is a big ask. But then we are not discussing this. We are discussing the most demanding. Running demands nearly no balance at all. Balance has smiley been forgotten as a vital human mechanism which only lives in skiing and paddling as far as endurance sport is involved.

Skiing. No question. Have you ever seen elite skiing in person? I figured not. Whole different level.