Training for a military adventure
Imagine spending 26 months on the edge of the world. You’re deep inside the arctic circle. You won’t see the sun for nearly three months in the winter. The average temperature is 25 below zero with a brutal wind.
We won’t talk about the cold days.
It’s just you, a partner and a team of sled dogs. Your job is to patrol the border of Greenland, support the scientific installations and monitor wildlife. Best of all, you get to do this while dodging polar bears and trying to minimize frostbite.
Because 9mm rounds only irritate polar bears, your side arm is a 10mm Glock. Because conventional military rifles won’t work in those temperatures, you have a WW I era bolt action rifle.
DOES IT SOUND LIKE THE ULTIMATE OUTDOOR ADVENTURE?
Welcome to Sled Patrol Sirius, an elite Danish naval unit, with roots stretching back to WWII. The patrols primary mission is the maintenance of Danish sovereignty by patrolling roughly 18,000 kilometers of coastline.
As you can imagine, the physical and psychological testing is extremely intense. Only about 5% of applicants are selected for training, and not everyone who makes it to training gets selected to patrol Greenland. In the entire history of the unit, there have only been a few hundred patrolmen.
SO HOW DO YOU TRAIN FOR ONE OF THE WORLD’s MOST ADVENTROUS MILITARY UNITS?
Over the past few months, I’ve been working with Lasse Andersen, who was recently selected for Sled Patrol Sirius training. I put together a strength and conditioning program, a nutrition program, and a series of water confidence drills for him. Along the way, he told me stories of working as a sled dog guide; I gained a running and swimming partner; and he took me on my first orienteering run. It’s been a privilege and adventure.
Here’s the unique set of experience, skills, interests and training that helped propel Lasse into one of the world’s most adventurous military units.
AN OUTDOOR ADVENTURE ATHLETE
Lasse is an adventure athlete with years of experience. He spent two and half years as a sled dog expedition guide on Svalbard. Svalbard is an archipelago midway between Norway and the North Pole, so he’s no stranger to sled dog expeditions, the arctic circle or polar bears.
He’s also skilled at orienteering and trail running. I got a first-hand experience of some of his unique skills and conditioning, when we went on an orienteering run on Mariager Fjord. It was an outstanding experience surrounded by beautiful views of the fjord and forest.
At the start of the run, we received a topographical map with 26 waypoints. Each waypoint was a standard orange and white flag, and they were scattered throughout the forest and along the shoreline. Each waypoint was numbered, and the goal was to move from one to the next in a specific order.
Lasse spent 5 minutes explaining the basics of orienteering, and then we took off at a jog. Using the map, we ran as straight a line as possible from one waypoint to the next. It was mostly impossible to keep up with the orienteering, although I did navigate one of the segments. Slowly.
Lasse, on the other hand, often read the map while maintaining a steady jog. At times we would slow to a walk, or even spread out to scout out a landmark or waypoint. But for the most part, he’d simply read the map while jogging through the dense forest.
Ultimately, it took 1 hour and 45 minutes to find 26 waypoints. My watch claimed, we covered 6.5 miles and climbed 1200 feet.
I asked how he developed his map and land reading skills. He said that he signed up for one of Denmark’s orienteering clubs, and he was taught by an old timer of the club. In the beginning, Lasse would simply walk the short courses with the club veteran showing him how to read the land, look for landmarks and follow the map. From there it was just a matter of putting in the practice and building up his speed.
LASSE’S ONLINE COACHING
STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING
In anticipation of the fitness tests, training and patrol, Lasse wanted to build as much strength and muscle as possible. I set him up with my online training. It’s app-based and 100% online, so he continued to train at his gym and on his schedule. For each exercise, he had a video demonstration or tutorial. He also knew exactly how many sets and reps to do on each day.
I started by estimating his Maximum Recoverable Volume (MRV). He wanted to push the envelope and train as much as possible. MRV varies from person to person. It’s based on things like stress level, sleep quality, diet quality and training history.
From there I built a volume equated full-body program. This would ensure that he was working his hamstrings and rhomboids as fully as his chest and biceps. He also focused on exercises that would improve his performance in the testing, training and patrol. This meant improving things like grip strength and core stability rather than just focusing on glamour muscles.
Lasse was already an experienced runner with a solid plan in place. He did four runs per week. He did a tempo run, an interval run, a long run and an orienteering run. Needless to say, he didn’t need any guidance.
Finally, as part of his testing he needed to do a pile of burpees within a specific amount of time. To achieve his goal, I had him start doing Tabata burpees. He did these every other strength training day.
NUTRITION
For Lasse’s diet, I created a Precision Nutrition inspired program, designed to build muscle and fuel his training. Most clients build their diet skills gradually, but Lasse was highly committed and on a compressed schedule. Consequently, I started him on a full nutrition plan. It had three components.
Food spectrum favoring whole foods. My clients often use Precision Nutrition’s three food categories. Eat More, Eat Some and Eat Less. The EAT MORE category is full of healthy whole foods. The eat less category is full of less healthy foods that you should minimize. And the Eat Some is right in the middle.
Hand sized portions. I often recommend PN’s hand sized portions to track calories and macros. It’s easier than counting calories, and you don’t need to weigh or measure food. Using a PN calculator, I converted an estimate of his macros to hand sized portions. This told Lasse exactly how many palms of protein, cupped handfuls of carbs, fists of veggies and thumbs of fats to eat to reach his goals.
Supplements. I like to keep things simple. I recommended some Magnesium, Zinc, Fish oil and Creatine. Everything a growing boy needs to wrestle polar bears.
SWIMMING
As part of his testing and training, Lasse needed to become very comfortable in the water. We worked on a variety of drills and swam a bunch of laps. He hit the pool 2-4 times per week.
In addition to the laps, we did some water confidence and breath hold drills. We exchanged wristwatches on the bottom of the pool and practiced under water swims. We spent 30 minutes treading water while taking turns diving down and pushing a weighted dummy back and forth across the bottom of the pool.
Ultimately, Lasse made through the selection process. He was one of the 5%. Now the real challenge begins. He’s got 6 grueling months of training, including a month of ‘survival’ training in Greenland. His reward for all of that will be two years of dodging polar bears deep inside the Arctic Circle. It will be one hell of an adventure, and I’m looking forward to following his progress.
LASSE’S REVIEW
Chris has been coaching me for the last 3 months, and I am incredibly grateful for the help I have received. I wanted extra guidance for my entrance exam for the Sled Patrol Sirius*. (Only 5% of the applicants make it to the school.)
Chris put together an online fitness and nutrition program that was exactly right for me, including clear and easy instruction videos via the app. My fitness test scores improved, and I got help with my diet. We also met at the pool to practice breath hold diving and swimming.
I highly recommend Chris, as a trainer who will help you with your goals. He has an arsenal of knowledge that he always likes to share. Thanks to his help, I got the last push and was accepted to the school.
—Lasse Djernæs Andersen (Randers, Denmark) Age: 24
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