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Cited by 113Sports Performance and TrainingCardiovascular and exercise physiologyHigh Altitude and Hypoxia

The elite cross‐country skier provides unique insights into human exercise physiology

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Holmberg, H.‐C.·2015·Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports
DOI 10.1111/sms.12601
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Abstract

Successful cross‐country skiing, one of the most demanding of endurance sports, involves considerable physiological challenges posed by the combined upper‐ and lower‐body effort of varying intensity and duration, on hilly terrain, often at moderate altitude and in a cold environment. Over the years, this unique sport has helped physiologists gain novel insights into the limits of human performance and regulatory capacity. There is a long‐standing tradition of researchers in this field working together with coaches and athletes to improve training routines, monitor progress, and refine skiing techniques. This review summarizes research on elite cross‐country skiers, with special emphasis on the studies initiated by Professor Bengt Saltin. He often employed exercise as a means to learn more about the human body, successfully engaging elite endurance athletes to improve our understanding of the demands, characteristics, and specific effects associated with different types of exercise.

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  • Elite cross-country skiers exhibit some of the highest documented aerobic capacities: V̇O2max ≈80-90 and 70-80 mL kg−1 min−1 for men and women, respectively; maximal ventilation up to ~200-250 L min−1; stroke volumes exceeding 200 mL; and cardiac output greater than 35-40 L min−1 during race-specific exercise.

    “Physiologically, elite skiers exhibit some of the highest documented aerobic capacities: V̇O2max ≈80–90 and 70–80 mL kg−1 min−1 for men and women, respectively; maximal ventilation up to ~200–250 L min−1; stroke volumes exceeding 200 mL; and cardiac output greater than 35–40 L min−1 during race‐specific exercise [19, 20].”

    From Carbohydrate Storage and Supplementation Strategies for Peak Performance in Cross-Country Skiing (2026) · cites this paper as [19]

    The Oxygen uptake section reports VO₂max of about 80–90 mL/kg/min for medal-winning men and says some women reach about 75 mL/kg/min. The Cardiac output, blood flow, and oxygen extraction section reports stroke volumes above 200 mL and cardiac outputs above 40 L/min in elite skiers. The lungs section does not give the claimed maximal ventilation of 200–250 L/min, and the cardiac figures are not specifically identified as measurements during race-specific exercise. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.88)

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  • Competitive cross-country ski races are characterized by high whole-body energy turnover, varying loads on upper- and lower-body muscles, and fluctuating physiological demands determined by course profile, snow conditions, sub-technique, and race format.

    “Competitive cross‐country ski races are characterized by high whole‐body energy turnover, varying loads on upper‐ and lower‐body muscles, and fluctuating physiological demands determined by course profile, snow conditions, sub‐technique, and race format [19].”

    From Carbohydrate Storage and Supplementation Strategies for Peak Performance in Cross-Country Skiing (2026) · cites this paper as [19]

    The Abstract describes demanding, variable-intensity exercise involving both upper and lower body, while Performance links changing terrain to frequent sub-technique transitions. Energy production reports very high metabolic energy turnover on a steep uphill section, and Training in a physiological context distinguishes the demands of different race formats. The passages do not establish snow conditions as a determinant of fluctuating physiological demands. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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  • Fatigue secondary to loss of muscle fiber function may impact skiers' technical efficiency, stride length, cycle rate, and force-time characteristics, while loss of anaerobic power is relevant for race performance, particularly on climbs where mechanical power must be increased for optimal pacing.

    “Fatigue secondary to loss of muscle fiber function may further impact the skiers technical efficiency, stride length, cycle rate, and force–time characteristics, while loss of anaerobic power is relevant for race performance, particularly on climbs where mechanical power must be increased for optimal pacing [19, 23, 26, 27].”

    From Carbohydrate Storage and Supplementation Strategies for Peak Performance in Cross-Country Skiing (2026) · cites this paper as [19]

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  • The physiological demands of elite cross-country skiing include exceptionally high V̇O2peak and efficiency across multiple sub-techniques, capacity for repeated supramaximal bursts, and physiological resilience to maintain technical precision and tactical execution under metabolic fatigue.

    “In summary, the physiological demands of elite cross‐country skiing (and similarly of the endurance component of biathlon and Nordic combined) include: (i) exceptionally high V̇O2peak and efficiency across multiple sub‐techniques; (ii) the capacity for repeated supramaximal bursts; and (iii) the physiological resilience to maintain technical precision and tactical execution under metabolic fatigue”

    From Carbohydrate Storage and Supplementation Strategies for Peak Performance in Cross-Country Skiing (2026) · cites this paper as [19]

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  • Double poling imposes distinct metabolic loads on specific muscle groups, altering cardiorespiratory and neuromuscular demands, reinforcing cross-country skiing's status as a whole-body endurance model that taxes both central O2 delivery and peripheral metabolic energy turnover.

    “However, this also imposes distinct metabolic loads on specific muscle group—particularly in double poling, which alters cardiorespiratory and neuromuscular demands, reinforcing the sport's status as a whole‐body endurance model that taxes both central O2 delivery and challenge peripheral metabolic energy turnover [19, 29].”

    From Carbohydrate Storage and Supplementation Strategies for Peak Performance in Cross-Country Skiing (2026) · cites this paper as [19]

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Authors
Holmberg, H. ‐.
Affiliations
Swedish Olympic Committee (SE)
Corresponding author
Holmberg, H.‐C.
ORCID
Holmberg, H.‐C.
Venue
Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2015-11-19
Volume
25
Issue
S4
Pages
100-109
ISSN
  • 0905-7188 (ISSN-L)
  • 1600-0838
DOI
10.1111/sms.12601
OpenAlex
W2178604620
Semantic Scholar
6ecdbd3309cd8b42ab3afacda66b230506cf853c
Cited by
113
References
91
Citations by year
2026: 12 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 14 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 1
FWCI
1.50
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor)
Locations
  • Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Publications (Mid Sweden University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Orthopedics and Sports Medicine › Sports Performance and Training
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › High Altitude and Hypoxia
Keywords
cross-country skiing, elite endurance athletes, human exercise physiology, endurance training, cold environment, altitude, hilly terrain, exercise monitoring
MeSH terms
Adaptation, Physiological, Cardiac Output, Energy Metabolism, Physical Exertion, Humans, Lung, Mitochondria, Muscle, Oxygen Consumption, Physical Endurance, Regional Blood Flow, Skiing, Exercise, Muscle, Skeletal, Neovascularization, Physiologic, Athletic Performance

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