Ms. Namita Nayyar:
Introduce us to a day in your life, preparing for the Olympics.
Ms. Aino-Kaisa Saarinen:
I am traveling a lot. On average, I have around 200 traveling days per year, so a typical day in my life can be a day at training camp.
On a typical day I wake up around 6:30 and I will do around 40 mins morning run + functional training before breakfast, to wake up by body and make it prepared for the coming workouts.
After breakfast, I will have about 30 mins time to relax before starting the workout. Morning workout is usually the main workout, so it can be hard or long training. Long training can be for example roller skiing 3 hours uphill with different speeds.
After first training I typically eat lunch and have a 1-2 hours sleep. After the daysleep, I will eat snacks.
There is some time to relax before the second workout. Second workout can be easy recovery workout or strength training, depending what I did on the morning. For example running and active strength stretching is a good example of a training which helps body to recover.
After training, I will have dinner and after dinner I usually do stuff like give this interview 🙂 or sponsor related stuff, doing emails or just relax and read a book. Then, before going to sleep, I will eat evening snack. That’s pretty typical day. Main things in the normal day are to run in the morning, to practice twice and eat 5 times. Breakfast-lunch-snack-dinner-snack.
Ms. Namita Nayyar:
What exercises comprise your fitness regime or workout routine that you may like to share?
Ms. Aino-Kaisa Saarinen:
I do have special functional training routine, which I do every morning after morning run which I’d like to share.
The routine combines stretching and movement so that one needs to have focus to keep balance and activate correct muscles. Routine is something that replaces regular stretching for me and is also something which would be first thing for me to promote for people who work in office and sit long times during day.
One can do it anywhere, it requires no extra equipment, good for outdoors or indoors. Surely something which is quick and fun way to activate the body and avoid stiffness. Prepares body and mind for the day.
Ms. Namita Nayyar:
Do you take some special diet or have a strict menu that you follow to remain healthy and physically fit?
Ms. Aino-Kaisa Saarinen:
I don’t think I have a very strict menu, but I do follow strictly few principles, which someone might thing is strict though.
1) I avoid saturated fat.
For example cheese and butter I avoid and favor oils and nuts.
2) I eat 5 times a day
Eating often avoids you to feel too hungry and enables you to feel comfortable all the time instead of too hungry or too full. I eat something about every 3 hours.
3) I eat a lot of berries and fruits
Berries and fruits are the best form to get vitamins in their natural form, which your body can use most effectively and helps me to avoid getting sick.
4) I avoid bread
For me, the most important source for roughage is morning porridge, fruits and berries, greens and other veggies. I eat a lot of those, so there is no reason for me to eat bread.
5) I eat a lot of carbs
Endurance athlete needs a lot of energy, so carbs are important to have a lot. But the main thing is here, the quality of carbs. Dark rice and pasta over white, the less processed, the better, Bio/Eco food over “normal”, local over imported.
Overall I favor everywhere organic food. For example meet, I also try to find either from organic farm or from wildlife.
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