FEATURE ALTITUDE TRAINING
This year's men's and women's Ironman World Championships might be split between Nice (10 September) and Hawaii (14 October), but both genders will remain linked by the top athletes heading to altitude in the build-up. Current men's champ Gustav Iden often heads to Sierra Nevada, though mixed things up in Morocco this January, while 2022 women's victor Chelsea Sodaro headed to the luxury resort of St Moritz earlier in 2023 in search of peak performance. But how much of a boost are the likes of Iden and Sodaro seeking when hitting the heights? And what exactly is happening beneath the physiological bonnet that's so goddam alluring to endurance athletes? Breathe easy and find out…
INCREASE IN PERFORMANCE
Stints at altitude are an ever-increasing strategy for professional triathletes and the occasional top-end age-grouper for one very good reason: studies show a period sucking in rarefied air can realise a 2% lift. How? We'll dig a little deeper shortly but, broadly speaking, by exposing yourself to an environment that's low in oxygen, your body will generate more red blood cells in
