This weekend sees one of the world’s toughest triathlons take place, the Isklar Norseman. It’s a unique unsupported triathlon featuring a 3.8km swim in the frigid waters of the Hardangerfjord, a 180km bike ride, and is followed by a full marathon with a sting in the tail – an ascent of 1,800 m Gaustatoppen. The total ascent is 5,000 meters. Entrants are warned that they may get ‘unusually emotional’. On the start line will be pro-triathlete and elite Ironman athlete Teemu Lemmettylä. And he’s going out to win. One day before the race, he gives us the race lowdown. The Norseman proves too much for one competitor. ©agurtxane concellon Why do it? The history and the fame of the race… it’s the most challenging xtri competition! Physically, how much more challenging is it than a regular Ironman? It’s hard to say because Ironman is always an all-out effort. Pushing too hard at the beginning is much more costly in this type of race. I expect that the bigger difference compared will be on the mental side. You have to keep your head together. The marathon ends with a brutal ascent of Gaustatoppen. ©Jóse luis hourcade How have you had to prepare differently? On cycling I have had to spent more time in up-hills during the training camps and generally put more focus on cycling because the bike leg is challenging and takes a long time. I have been working on my uphill running and used much more trails. However running hours have been similar to previous years. Teemu Lemmettylä is an elite Ironman athlete. ©Teemu Lemmettylä Are you concerned about conditions? Weather can range from beautifully sunny to blizzard? Training in Finland contains enough cold and bad weather which should not be a problem! Do you think you can win? Anything is possible. On regular triathlon I should be the best from the pack. But this is my first Norseman – it’s just impossible to say for sure. The race begins with an early start – and a cold one! ©Dag Oliver Main header image: ©Jóse luis hourcade

What is the best way to recover after a race, adventure or just a hard effort on your own? We asked our ambassadors how they do it. From eating pancakes to paragliding, from secret smoothie recipes to stretching, their answers will help you get back on form more quickly. KILIAN JORNET Stay fresh by doing other sports I like to do some mountaineering activities to feel different feelings than just running. I ran less than 200 km in the build up to Hardrock because I was climbing instead. I was keeping myself fit through mountaineering so when I came to the race I was mentally fresh and physically prepared. Kilian stretches ©jordo canamerasAvoid over-trainingIf you focus too hard on one thing for too long you can get tired of it. You see people who are doing a lot of long races and who keep this up for one or two years and then, boom, they’re down and injured. It’s important to never do too many long races every year because after one, two or three years it can be really hard to recover. For me, 200 or 300 miles a year is the limit. Kilian Jornet is a multiple record breaking trail runner, endurance athlete and world champion ski mountaineer. EMELIE FORSBERG Rest! Normally I rest the day after or if it is an ultra at least. If I do a 2-4 hour race I normally go for a small run just to get the circulation going. I also like to treat myself after a race, like foot bath, compex [electrostimulation] take time for yoga, things that are easy and good for the body. Then my mind feels recovered and is soon ready for another hard training week or racing. I think the mind is very important for recovering. Emelie likes to practise yoga and eat pancakes. ©Emelie Forsberg Eat pancakesAfter an ultra, where you empty your body quite a lot and also eat chocolate or gels, I like to eat fresh and healthy, at least the first and second day. But pancakes is a standard the morning after, and yes I think pancakes can be pretty healthy..! Specially if I make banana pancakes :) Emelie Forsberg is a European and world Skyrunning champion CONRAD STOLTZ Forget ice baths I don’t go in for compression or ice baths. I used to jump in a cold rivers after training but I'm over it! Compression socks don’t fit well and science hasn’t really proven that ice baths work. Old school fan: Conrad Stoltz doesn't go in for ice baths or compression. ©zooom.at/markus berger Refuel properlyBut there are things that are proven to make a difference, fueling and rehydrating properly. Within the first half an hour of training you need to have so many grams of carbs and so much protein to start the recovery. [Advice varies but many sports nutritionists recommend following the for 3:1 carbs to protein ratio.] Conrad Stoltz is a four-time XTERRA World Champion triathlete ÅSA LUNDSTRÖM Easy rideGo on a very easy bike ride. It helps the circulation going and speeds up the recovery. If the weather is bad or biking is too much trouble (mentally), I sometimes go for an easy walk or stroll. © Åsa LundströmMassage In big blocks of training, a massage every now and then is very good for recovery, muscle relaxation and preventing injury. It can also be considered a treat for your body after some hard work and helping you relax. I get the massage after a big day of training, as the thing of the day. UELI STECK ElectrostimulationI use compex electrostimulstion and try to stretch a lot. Rest days are also good. I just had a rest day so I ran easy the vertical km up to Brevant in Chamonix. I had a drink with a friend then went paragliding. Ueli Steck during his mission to climb all 82, 4000 m mountains. ©PatitucciPhotoWarm down after exercise I move between 7 and 14 h per day. You start easy the first 30 min and you end the same way. So you have your warm-up and cool down. If possible I try to get my feet in a cold stream. MATTHIAS SCHERER Respect your body I really have to say that in the adventure world at the moment recovery and nutrition is not taken seriously. People are strange about hydration. They wear a Suunto Ambit, have the best equipment and then they drink snow water and don’t take things like this seriously! Take electrolyte capsules with minerals to rehydrate properly. Matthias front lifting weights. ©Tanja SchmittAvoid processed foodsTry to go as long as you can on normal food and then you can start to eat energy bars etc. People push the limits of eating concentrated food which can cause stomach problems. Eat a peanut butter sandwich. Bring it down slowlyFor recovery it’s important not to stop right away after an ice climbing season. I used to become ill in April when I stopped. Now I continue with skiing and in June and July I keep going to the mountains. I've found cycling helps me to mentally digest everything I've done over the winter. In a week I try to do at least 20 hours on the bike. I work on my films. That's my way of recovery. Matthias Scherer is a professional ice climber GREG HILL Smooth operatorAs a ritual I always have a smoothie after my sporting activities. As quick as I can I am at my blender mixing in my ingredients. Bananas, blueberries, protein mix, raw cacao, milk. That is the base for the majority of my shakes, each food is strong in its own way, combining for a strength building, body recovery, tasty beverage. Greg making a smoothie at home ©zooom.at/Markus Berger Cross TrainingAnother bit about an ageing body is balance. If over the course of your life you have created imbalances, they become more problematic in later years. To counter act I have been going to the gym to create an overall body fitness not just one designed for peddling a bike or skinning up mountains. Back problems, IT-band issues, all come from unbalance, so cross training is key. Take some time outAlso to truly have days off. Not partial days off. But couch surfing, suntanning, doing nothing days. You can get away with just one but at least every two weeks to take 2-3 days completely off. This truly helps my body as well as my mind. I come back and feel so much better than if I had pushed through on that extra day of exercise. Greg Hill is a pro skier. In March 2014 he skied 100,000m in a month WILLIAM TRUBRIDGE Sleep and eat right “Recovery is as equally important as training. In freediving when you hold your breath it generates a huge amount of carbon dioxide which makes your body very acidic and means all those free radicals cruising around doing damage. Being able to target that with diet that's very rich in antioxidants and making sure you're sleeping right is important.” Drink this: Will Trubridge's recovery smoothie My go-to recovery drink after deep training is a green smoothie, with the following ingredients: 1 frozen banana (makes the smoothie cold and creamy) 1 cup almond milk + water added to get the right consistency 2 tbsp Manitoba hemp protein (the best vegetal protein source) 1 tbsp cacao powder (great antioxidant qualities) 1 tbsp Hawaiian spirulina (nature's multivitamin, with many other superfood ingredients like chlorophyll, omega 3,6,9 fatty acids and more) 1 tsp beetroot extract powder (great for blood-building)Everything is blended together, and topped with a dusting of granulated bee pollen. Will Trubridge is a multiple record breaking freediver Still need tips on how to recover? Well go explore the recovery options available with the Ambit3

We all know proper recovery is an essential part of any training regime, but what exactly happens in our bodies while we rest, how does it impact our performance and how can new recovery features released to Ambit3 watches support our recovery? To get the answers on the science of recovery, we talked with Tero Myllymäki, who leads the physiological analytics development at Firstbeat Technologies. Tero, can you talk us through how recovery impacts our performance? The role of recovery is not only crucial to an athlete’s development, but to overall health and wellness; without sufficient recovery, it is impossible to build one’s endurance and stamina. In sports, the whole exercise philosophy is based on the fact that while exercising, body balance, so called homeostasis, is placed in a state of imbalance which lowers our body’s performance level. By taking the time to rest (referred to as “recovery”), this performance level is gained back, and, thanks to this recovery process, it is possible to gain a higher performance level. What about the role of a good night’s sleep? A really important fact in recovery is the need for a good night’s sleep. Sleeping well at night is really crucial to recovery, since it is a repetitive, long period of time, during which all body functions can relax. If recovery is successful, all the stress caused by strenuous exercising, along with other factors in your daily life, is reset at night (while you rest), and the body’s resources are replenished. Body stress and recovery can be compared to batteries: you can only use them or charge them once in a while. Suunto Ambit3 watch offers two tests for measuring my recovery level, but what are the tests measuring in practise? Recovery is analyzed by measuring the body’s autonomic regulation balance through heart rate variance. At night, one would expect the parasympathetic (so-called relaxing body function) to be powerful and thorough enough to activate the body’s recovery processes. Recovery measurement tests determine how calm a person’s body is during sleep. How does this information benefit an athlete? Monitoring this recovery can make the time used in exercising more efficient, because it is good to know when you can exercise on full speed, and when you should take it more slowly and simply let your body recover. Recovery measurement tests will also tell you when you are training too hard, or when you should work harder, so that an athlete can measure the risk of exercising too hard, or not exercising at all. Recovery monitoring is a learning process for you; it enables an athlete to reflect on how he/she is feeling. What about muscle pain or flue, will the recovery test recognize these? Even though the autonomic regulation has regained normal levels, intense or abnormal exercises done by an athlete might cause muscle damage, as well as risk to the overall body energy levels. These situations cannot be monitored via autonomic regulation tests. Weakened muscle level recovery can be seen during the exercise, although you wouldn’t be able to see it in the recovery tests. Instead, the effect of diseases such as fever which affect the overall body regulation system, can be seen in the autonomic regulation activity, and, consequently, from the recovery test data. Can I analyze my sleep quality with the test? Sleeping badly, and/or waking up during the night can be regarded as a side-effect of the body refusing to slow down, and the heart’s autonomic regulation and/or parasympathetic regulations are weak. This also lowers the recovery levels. The quality of your sleep is influenced by many different factors, and sometimes it may indicate how a person feels about his/her sleep; other times, it may be a direct result of the electrical impulses in the brain which measure sleep phases. Recovery measurements won’t directly measure these sleep phases, but it can reflect on it by measuring autonomic regulation (how relaxed the body is).   Read more about the features: Tutorial Tuesday: Learn how to use Ambit3's recovery features   Tero Myllymäki, M.Sc., Physiology Research, Firstbeat TechnologiesMr. Myllymäki is responsible for physiological analytics development and research collaboration at Firstbeat. He possesses an academic background, and previously worked as a researcher in several multidisciplinary expert teams, combining physiology, psychology, and technology. His goal is to seek innovative solutions for providing meaningful and actionable feedback on well-being, lifestyle, and performance in daily life. Mr. Myllymäki has a Master’s Degree in exercise physiology from the University of Jyväskylä.   Get to know your recovery status with Ambit3 watchSuunto Ambit3 watch offers two ways to follow your recovery. The quick recovery test and the sleep recovery test both measure your heart rate variability to give you an indication of your recovery status in percent. The higher the percentage, the more recovered you are. The tests require a Bluetooth Smart compatible heart rate sensor that measures heart rate variability (R-R interval), such as Suunto Smart Sensor.   The quick recovery test is performed by wearing the Smart Sensor belt for three minutes and then checking the recovery percentage from the Suunto Ambit3 watch. Alternatively, you can run the sleep recovery test which measures your heart rate variability through the night to give you an accurate indication of your recovery status in the morning when you wake up.    

Training a lot and want to power up? Then try cooking up this recipe for high-energy almond and banana pancakes from skyrunning champion Emelie Forsberg.Eating healthy, nutritious food is essential for recovery after intense training. But it need not be boring! Suunto ambassador Emelie Forsberg spends her days running in the mountains and then making and baking delicious, energy rich food to help her recover. The morning after a big race, for example, the world and European skyrunning champion likes to enjoy a big plate of healthy pancakes. "After an ultra, when your body is drained and you've eaten a lot of chocolate or gels, I like to eat fresh and healthy, at least on the first and second day," Emelie says. "But pancakes are my standard breakfast the morning after a race, and yes, I think pancakes can be healthy. Especially my banana pancakes!" Who could say no to these? © Emelie Forsberg Emelie Forsberg's power pancake recipe! Ingredients: 3 organic bananas3 tbsp coconut oil3 eggs1 tbsp honey or 1 tbsp bee pollen ( If you don't have pollen, it doesn't matter, I just like the taste of it)200 ml oat flour100 ml almond flour100 - 200 ml almond/rice/soy milk1 tbsp honey + 1 tbsp pollen1/2 tsp salt1/2 tbsp cinnamon and cardamom if you like that1 tsp baking soda Method: Grind the oat and almonds to flour. Or, if you prefer, use bought oat and almond flour. Add all the dry ingredients. Mash the bananas and blend with the eggs, oil and the honey. Add the milk (or if you want the pancakes more solid you skip the milk). Emelie's favorite toppings: 1. Fresh strawberries, rasberries, blueberries or cloudberries2. Bananas and honey3. Good cheeses4. Whipped cream with jam or fruit

Being an athlete isn’t all glory and endorphin highs. Just ask champion ultra runner Ryan Sandes. He’s had to pull out of three races recently due to catching glandular fever and struggling to recover. Now he’s taking a break from running to allow his body time to fully heal. We caught up with Ryan and asked him a few questions about how he deals with setbacks. How are you doing after your recent setbacks?I feel pretty low and disappointed now, but I am focusing on switching off from my setback and not overthinking it too much as that just makes it worse. I am putting a plan in place to fix my health and that is all I can do. I have had a crap year racing, but I have had some epic experiences this year, traveled to some awesome places and it is important to be grateful for that! Check out Ryan's recovery tips for before and after the race! Ryan enjoys a soak after announcing he's taking a short break from ultra running to recover. © Ryan SandesHow do athletes often react to a setback, whether injury or illness? It is really frustrating and demoralizing at the time. You think back to all the hard training and effort you have put into a specific goal and then all of a sudden that all disappears. I always try to focus on the positives in the situation and remember that a setback is not the end of the world – it’s just a hurdle on the way to reaching my dreams. Find out how to use the Suunto Ambit3 to help you recover Are setbacks always a bad thing or can they be helpful in unexpected ways? I think it’s actually through our setbacks that we learn the most about ourselves and develop as people. It’s easy when everything is going right, but when you have a major setback it really tests you and when you come out the other side, it makes your achievement that much more rewarding. I find after a big setback I am more focused and determined than ever. Having unstructured fun is important for recovery. © Ryan SandesWhat do athletes often fear most about setbacks and is this fear necessarily true? It’s a common worry that if you can't train you will lose your fitness and not be ready for an upcoming race, but I believe often the body knows best, and the time off from training helps it to fully recover and get strong after all the training. You will often see an athlete come back really strong after an injury because they have taken enough time off. Read more recovery tips from Suunto's ambassadors! Setbacks can make you stronger, Ryan says. © Ryan Sandes If someone gets an injury, they can sometimes get training withdrawal– how do you recommend working with this? Sitting around with an injury is really frustrating and you get 'cabin fever' as you know all your fellow athletes are outside training. It’s important to focus on fully recovering and doing your rehab so you can come back stronger. If you can’t run and are feeling really frustrated then go outside for an easy hike to be outdoors, but don't push yourself otherwise you will just get injured again. What recovery really means – from a physiology specialist What to do if you lose your motivation because of a setback? If you are feeling a real lack of motivation take a complete break and focus on the fun element of your training or just having fun in general. This could be running for fun with no specific time or training goals or even just hanging out with friends and having a laugh. Take your mind off training and the setback to reboot your system and feel inspired again. Don’t take life too seriously and accept that you will have setbacks along the way. It's important to keep the big picture in mind, Ryan says. © Ryan SandesDo you have a favorite quote about never giving up? "If one dream dies, dream another dream. If you get knocked down, get back up and go again." - Joel Osteen

The best way to recover is different for each individual, says ultra runner Gediminas Grinius. He favors a good night sleep, yoga and beekeeping. Ultra runner and Suunto athlete Gediminas Grinius hardly has a moment to spare. He works full time, is a husband and father of two and trains to compete in some of the world’s toughest ultra marathons. The 35–year-old recently won the 125 km Trangrancanaria Ultra Race, breaking the race speed record set by fellow Suunto ambassador Ryan Sandes. More recently he placed fourth at the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run. With so much training for ultra marathons it can be challenging for him to retain enough energy for his job, wife and two sons. This makes good recovery essential for Gediminas. Read more recovery tips from Suunto's ambassadors! “For me, the best remedy is sleep,” he says. “I need between eight and 10 hours of sleep a night to feel good each day. “It's the best and cheapest thing that all runners can do to recover.” He and his wife also do yoga a few times every week. Running for long distances in the mountains has sometimes been stressful for him, but yoga has taught him how to relax. “First I started to do yoga just to improve my flexibility,” he says. “But I found out it's not really flexibility, it's more about understanding your body and learning to relax.” To also help him unwind from his busy life, Gediminas keeps bees. There are about 20 beehives around his house in Lithuania. Bee keeping is like a form of meditation to Gediminas. It’s also a great source of energy. “After training I take two big spoons of honey,” he says. “It's great quality carbohydrates mixed with amino acids. “The pollen is a super food, rich with minerals and vitamins. “It's better than any other nutrition supplement that you can find.”