Kicksledding serves fitness enthusiasts as well as competitive athletes. It suits men as well as ladies. Any healthy individual can enjoy the activity without problems. You can start kicking already after a two-minute introductory course. Kicksled is at its best on long distances, where a kicksledder can easily move faster then s/he could run.Kicking is a more diverse and softer physical activity than running, but equally effective training. Kicksledding employs all big muscle groups in your body. Besides aerobic capacity, kicksledding improves elasticity, so you can use it as supplementary training in many sports while recovering from injuries.The kicksledder is responsible for 90 % of the speed, the vehicle only for the remaining 10%. In order to be successful in races, you have to concentrate on improving your sport-specific capabilities at homeostatic, muscle and technique levels.
Technique
Kicking is a natural way to propel oneself forward. Kids tend to learn it without almost any effort. A good, efficient technique makes kicksledding easy and enjoyable.Concentrate on you technique and apply power to each kick, letting rather kick frequency decrease. Try consciously to get rid of extra muscle tension. If you kick properly, you employ only the working muscles. While kicking, you need not act hastily. You won't tumble on your nose even though you take a moment to ponder your next move. Soon you will find out, that it is relatively easy to consciously alter one's technique. Be relaxed and keep your weight on the supporting foot. Don't lean on the kicking foot or hands.
Start phase
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The kick begins by bending the back while keeping the torso horizontal. Imagine that you are an assaulting cheetah. The movement is efficient when lower back muscles are strong enough. Lift the foot high in the front. Don't swing your leg straight, lift the knee instead. Be careful that you don't hit your nose with your knee. Your weight moves slightly to the arms, but not leaning. When taking your first kicks or at slow velocities the knee lift is less imminent. Note that kickstart from standstill is most efficient when you begin the first kick from the ground. |
Kick phase
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Bend the support leg and use your weight to add power to each kick. In a full-effort kick the heel of the support foot detaches from the runner. The kicking foot touches the ground sharply with the forefoot like in sprinting. The knee and the leg extend almost completely. At high speed the kicking foot detaches from the ground immediately after the pendulum momentum has been transferred to the surface. At slow velocities the push phase might be remarkably longer. |
End phase
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The end phase of the kick is especially important. Kicking ankle should extend completely. Deficiencies in this can be detected as the foot rising too high in the back. When the kick directs backwards, you should spare the strained quadriceps thigh muscle of your support leg by bending at the pelvis instead of the knee. In this way also the centre of gravity of your body remains quite level. On the other hand, you should not try to keep your knee completely straight, but flex moderately. While kicking longer distances you shall for sure find out when the leg gets tired too fast. |
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As the speed approaches maximum, the free pendulum movement is not enough for bringing the kicking foot to the front. You have to speed up the leg with hip and thigh flexors. The kicking movement begins to feel like rotating. In order to perform a rotating kick efficiently you need highly adapted muscle fitness. A hypertrophic tensor fasciae latae of an endurance athlete is a sign of good kicking muscle condition. |
Everybody doesn't kick best with completely same technique. Your muscle capabilities and limb lengths are highly individual. Thus, don't single-mindedly imitate the kick technique of the champions. A sharp and strong kick suits some people, others find a more tranquil pendulum movement most efficient. Don't compel yourself to any certain technique or speed.Take long kicks, let the kicksled glide. On flatland it is more efficient than fast short kicks. The kicking frequency should be proportional to the friction between the runner and gliding surface. You should always try to make maximal use of the glide.
Swapping feet
As the kicking distance gets longer, you should remember to change the kicking foot often enough to avoid lactic acid accumulating locally in the most strained muscles. Most often the frequency is about 5 kicks with one foot. A good rule of thumb for feet swapping is
- High effort -> high frequency
- Low effort -> low frequency.
Uphill
Against common misconceptions you can kick also uphill quite easily. However, you have to possess a certain level of fitness and technique in order to conquer a mighty slope. When the road begins to ascend, the kicksled slows down remarkably between the kicks. You feel the terrain contours clearly while kicking, although the velocity might not change drastically. Don't push too hard, it's better to adapt uphill technique.Increase the frequency and shorten the kicks. Change the pendulum-like kick into a rotating one. With the knee slightly bent you can bring your foot quickly to the front ready for a new kick. In the kicking phase, however, try to keep your knees straight avoiding the up-down pumping motion. In order to increase kick frequency further, you need to introduce the jump swap. Jump immediately after kicking while you are bringing the kicked foot to the front. Descend with the kicked foot on the runner and the swapped foot already on the ground pushing you forward. A low, inconspicuous kick does not waste energy.If the hill proves too steep for your fitness or skill, don't become depressed. There are hills difficult enough even for the kicksled champions. It is simple to step off the runners and start walking or running. For a beginner, this is often the most convenient alternative.
Downhill
When your velocity in downhill accelerates to a certain speed, you will notice that there is no sense in kicking any more. Stand on both runners and flex your knees according to the terrain contours. If the speed becomes frightening, you can brake with your heels. Studded heels work quite effectively even on an icy road.Always reserve enough braking distance by adjusting your speed to the field of sight. It is much slower to bring your kicksled to a halt in downhills than on flatland.At the end of downhill let your speed decrease to your normal kicking pace. A beginner often starts kicking at a much higher speed, when putting your foot on the ground only brakes and destabilizes the glide.
Stepping off
Starting and stopping are strong sides of kicksledding. You can change from kicking to walking or vice versa with only one step. You can start running from a relatively high kicking speed. The fastest way to start is to take a couple of fast running strides and then jump on the runners. Note that in races running start is not allowed.
Fitness training
If a kicksled enthusiast wishes to achieve remarkable velocity, s/he needs to have strong engine - the human body. Most people, even active athletes, have inadequate muscle fitness for kicksledding. Strenghthening the lower back, buttocks, hamstrings and hip flexors is the key for delightful kicksledding besides normal fitness training.Innovativity is the foundation of developing muscle fitness exercises that serve kicksledding. Stair/hill running, plyometrics, circuit training as well as speed and flexibility workouts are all essential while optimizing your kicking shape. When planning your workouts, you should consider carefully which sport-specific characteristics you wish to improve. In strength and plyometric training one tries to find coaching approaches that induce a positive workload transfer to kicksledding. You can count muscle fitness workouts as kicksled training, they are indeed essential for good kicking performance. Kicksledding requires a certain adaptation of the muscular nervous system, which you can develop with sport-specific complementary workouts.
Strength training with and without extra weights: squatting is best done with one leg (l + r), change leg as often as when kicksledding, about four repetitions at a time. Another good workout is stepping onto a bench with a bar behind the neck. One session can be, for instance, 4 x (4 + 4) with 50kg extra weight. You should try to do it fast and sharp. It is good to perform back extensions both dynamically and statically. In the dynamic version you attach only one foot to the workout bench and and change sides after every ten repetitions. In the static version you try to keep the vertical position as long as you can, typically 2 reps of 5 minutes each. This improves especially the strength of will that you need in long kicksled races. The kick rubber developed by Hannu Vierikko is essential in order to train hip flexors to the level required in top-level kicksledding. To obtain "Tennis ball muscles" perform short, fast, 15 sec pull intervals with maximum intensity. In the repetitions you should concentrate especially on moving the knee and leg forwards. The kick rubber works well also when exercising hip abductors and adductors. The strength training session is best organised so that you perform the kick rubber workouts and possible hops last in order to obtain a good sport-specific transfer effect. Even better transfer effect can be induced after the strength session by doing a speed session consisting of short 10-15 sec maximal sprints with Kickbike or Kickspark.
One of the most sport-specific workouts is the one-legged squat-jump that is used extensively also in speed skating. As a kicksled exercise you can do it in two ways, but the rhythm is same in both: 4 x right + 4 x left etc. In the first version you lift the heel to the buttocks. It develops the rotating kick needed in sprinting and changing the kicking rhythm. In the other version you erect the jumping leg without rotating it via buttocks. This is not as strenuous and develops more the pumping characteristics needed in the support leg while kicksledding. Stair hopping with one foot is an excellent exercise. The rhythm 4 x right + 4 x left works well here, too. Some times a longer cycle might be more practical; you might hop with one leg one flight of stairs and then change. You ought to supplement your circuit and strength training with familiar workouts exercising various muscle groups: push-ups, sit-ups, abdominal crunches, chin-ups, normal hops with alternating legs etc. It is especially rewarding to improve your weak points. A suitable amoung of circuit and strength training is 30-60 min once ot twice a week depending on the training period. During the racing season a speed or plyometric workout once a week might well be enough. Of the two weekly sessions one might emphasize strength and the other one speed and elasticity. Sport-specific workouts should be included in both sessions.
A beginner should apply the workouts described above lightly, without excess strain and pain in order to avoid injuries. A fitness program of more advanced kicksledders begins, together with with rising condition, motivation and aspirations, eventually to resemble the training schema of a competitive kicksledder. It is of course not only a matter of muscle fitness, basic principles of aerobic endurance training apply also to kicksledding. Below some excerpts from Ville Vickholm's "Kicksledder's diary" during Christmastime 1998 in which he has revealed the kick-specific quality and quantity workouts that are, however, only part of the truth. The Finnish top level triathlete Ville summed up his training of the autumn / winter season from week 43/98 to week 11/99 (Kickbike-workouts weeks 39-45 = 26 hours): Kicksledding 88 h, swimming 85 h, cycling on rollers 61 h, running 51 h, cross-country skiing 38 h, resistance & circuit & plyometric training 19 h = total 351 h which gives an average of more than 15 training hours / week.
21.12.
One millimeter snow on the lake. In the morning I went searching for my lost horse kicks, 2 h 5 min including 6 * 2.4 km in tailwind 5.07-4.58. That is across Lake Lapinjärvi from north to south. Quite a nice feeling despite the flu. I tried to get such ease into my kicks as Alpo has. Mine seem currently much more mechanical and angular. I won't probably never reach Alpo's level in technique. In speed, however, I might succeed, especially on ice tracks that favor my capabilities.
22.12.
The fantastic weather continues. In the morning 2 hours 50 mins enjoyment, six laps around Lapinjärvi, in the end 5 * (20+20) kicks with full effort. The dawn of the shortest day of the year was just as fine a visual experience as the most beautiful sunsets of the world.The narrow straits between the lake weeds and the shoreline are the most interesting kicking routes. After sunrise at the northern shore one could analyse one's own kicking technique from one's shadow cast on the shore bank. Afterwards, 30 min running and 30 min circuit training. In the evening 3,3 km swimming.
23.12.
At 8.30 AM 1 hours 35 mins on the lake. The sky has split in two, a dark cloud cover occluded the other half of the sunrise. A rainbow appeared at the edge of the gloomy sky. In the end 2,4 km in 5.01. The finish was located at the end of the rainbow. Afterwards half an hour running. In the evening my kicking muscles received their regular massage service. Christmastime was dedicated to other physical activity more lenient to the kicking musculature.
27.12.
In the morning one hour cross-country kicksledding on Heikinkylä road in tacky conditions. Flegmatic and tired feeling, no push at all, maybe due to the flu causing Christmas tiredness.
29.12.
In the morning drove to Vantaa where I performed some media kicks for TV with Hannu and Jan. The road was fast and icy but perhaps a bit too uneven in the forest where most of the shots were taken. Afterwards we kicked two loops on the 5 km motion circuit and passed a pretty female cross-country ski athlete while exceeding our lactate thresholds. We had snow runners and the trail was quite heavy. Even my hip flexor muscles got a bit sore although our effective kicking time was only about 50 mins. Before the training I had my blood picture taken which proved to be OK. Hence, my tiredness is not due to anemia. No reason to stop kicking !
30.12.
50 mins kicksledding on the lake. At the end 2,4 km in 5.07. The kicking foot tends to penetrate the surface ice layer now and then. There has not been enough frost lately. Afterwards 1 hour 15 mins running.
31.12
At 10.15 AM the toughest ice training of the season if one does not count the races. Total 2 hours 45 mins on Lapinjärvi. 7 * 2200 m in tailwind (4.45, 4.35, 4.35, 4.33, 4.35, 4.32, 4.27!!!). The last interval was faster than my own record on the 200 m sprint. Only three seconds from 30 km/h average speed. I could push myself quite hard today. The intervals felt bad in the right way. The last one and a half minutes felt almost like eternal hell each time. Same feelings as the end spurt of Balck 1996. In the last interval I had misty eyes and a rage of an ape. It just had to go under 4.30.Today I found out also that I have adjusted my steer too high in races. In the first interval I lowered the stem to its extreme low position and did not get the same power in my kicks as in subsequent efforts with the stem raised a bit. In the higher position you can raise your knee higher which gives you a "higher gear". This is essential especially in tailwind. This training left me with a great feeling. Tomorrow my muscles will most probably be more or less jammed.
