Norwegian 26 year old Kjartan Roland reduced his training and ambitions after several years of hard training without succeeding to establish himself among Norway's best skiers. He never stopped training completely, however, and its now paying off. Last season he captured a sensational 6th place in the Swedish Vasaloppet, the World's Largest XC ski race. He followed that up with a 5th place in the Norwegian Birkie. He feels that a good mix of strength, intervals, hard and easy workouts is important.
Recovery is also important.
Without proper restitution - no progress. He is also playing soccer frequently all summer.