June 15, 2009 (Lake Placid, NY) – I apologize for the lack of updates lately but I have been absolutely swamped with training over the last few weeks. I am back in Lake Placid now and will be here for the majority of the summer. Luckily, our next team training camp will be held here, so I don’t have to travel until our August Europe camp. I will spend over 8 months away from home this year, so anytime that I get here is a big bonus for me. 

When I returned from our first camp in Whistler, BC, I started what will be my biggest training block of the year. We break our training down into different periods called “blocks” and each block consists of four weeks. I completed my last block on Sunday and it was both the biggest block in terms of hours that I will do this year and it was also the most hours that I have ever trained in four consecutive weeks. 

This period was a huge challenge for me, and I am really excited to have it behind me now. By the end of the fourth week I was absolutely exhausted. If I was not out training during this time, I was either in my bed sleeping or eating. Actually, it was amazing for me to see my appetite pick up from week to week. I have seen this before but never to this extent. By the fourth week I felt like I could never really get full and if I did get full, it seemed that I was ready to eat again within 30 minutes or so. Even though I finished the block a few days ago, my appetite has still been super high and I would imagine that it will take another few days before it drops back down to a normal level. 

I am now in my first real recovery week of the training year and I am enjoying every second! Although I still have to train during my recovery week, I will train less than half of the hours that I train in one of my “normal” weeks. It’s super important for me to take these recovery weeks; without these weeks I would never make it to the season in one piece. During the first day or two of my recovery week I try and stay away from anything that has to do with sport. After that, I am usually pretty busy catching up on all of the things that I put off during my training weeks. 

Our second team training camp will start in one week. We will have the full coaching staff and six athletes here for over two weeks. It will be great to be back with the team for a few weeks, especially when I can stay in my own bed!