Björn Andersson
The Swedish MonsterBear
I love this picture.
It sums up my experience riding with Björn.
He’s pulling away, effortlessly.
He offers zero draft and is sitting on 300w, while riding Swedish Easy Pace™.
I’m going to let Colting introduce Björn.
Jonas wrote this after Clas, Björn and I went 2-3-4 at Ironman New Zealand.
From my archives, Colting’s Voice
The first time I got an experience of Björn’s cycling prowess was during a Swedish Cup race in 1997, oly distance. The entire Swedish elite was there and I found myself in the lead when something big and hairy on a yellow bike (Hotta) comes flying by like I was standing still. Very demoralizing as I thought I was having a good ride.
A few weeks after that race we had a gathering with the national team preparing for the upcoming Euro-champs. It was held drafting-style to practice pack riding. We did this hilly circuit where we would sprint at certain points for primes. The juniors were in attendance so Björn was on this workout.
Well, the guy doesn’t know how to sprint but he rarely needs to since he knows how to grind! You could imagine our surprise as we were sprinting towards the top of a hill and on the left Björn is passing us riding in his aerobars! He beat all of us to the top.... I nicknamed him the "monsterbear" right then which was fitting since he sported a heavy metal hair-do and he refused to shave his legs.
During those years Björn would lead basically all races through the swim and bike in Sweden, even the elite ones, although he was barely a junior.
We would get a kick out of watching him race the junior champs that were held drafting style. Three years running Björn would get out with the leaders, and make a characteristically slow T1. He would outride the bike packs and cruise it in on the run. One year his Mavic Mectronic gears went haywire so he was forced to ride the entire bike in a fixed 12-gear. Not that it was much different from his normal riding.
Björn’s training was mind-blowing.
His Basic Week contained 7 key workouts:
Three Endurance Rides of 5, 6 and 7 hours (~19,500 kj)
One Long Run
Three Tempo Rides of 2, 3 and 4 hours (~10,000 kj)
Björn on The Week…
I didn't do the Basic Week year round. It was mostly something I did as much as possible late winter/spring/summer so there were periods where I did less during fall/early winter.
I never wrote anything down and my power files from that era are gone (wko+ on an old crashed hard drive) so I'd say my memory on everything is probably 95% correct but I don't remember all details. Also, the tempo workouts were mostly continuous but always with a hint of warm up so I'd say around 7h (maybe 8h) per week was actually at tempo power.
Before I used a power meter, and rode with low cadence, I did all long rides without shifting from 58x12 - 58/13. All tempo without shifting from 58x11 - 58x12, except for real climbing.
A few weeks into training in NZ 2004, when I rode with you guys, was when my power would have been the highest I ever sustained for a training block.
In the early years of his elite career, Björn rode on feel.
Eventually, he decided to have a look at his power and discovered:
The endurance rides were never done less than 300 watts (3.7 w per kilo)
The tempo segments were done at 350-375 watts
At 78-86 kilos, the energy demands of this program were extreme.
When we wasn’t training, he was flat on his back, listening to Nordic metal.
Early Season Peak
Björn noticed he was peaking in February.1
Unusually early for a Nordic athlete.2
Early Peak
High Energy Demands of Basic Week
Single-Sport Dominant Program
The powermeter data enabled Björn to see his threshold power fading across the year. This enabled him to adjust his program.
Today, his athletes receive the benefits of what he learned.
Stay under energy limits
Use power/pace metrics to track progress
When top-end declines, back off
MonsterBear’s Kryptonite
Björn’s Kryptonite is heat. It’s the only thing I’ve seen crack him.
All that bike power produces a lot of heat.
If he cooks himself then he is DONE, and he isn’t coming back.
If only there was a cold race… enter the Norseman Extreme Triathlon.
In 2005, Björn put Norseman on the map.
He rode 47 minutes faster than the 2nd fastest athlete and ran strong to the top of Mount Gaustatoppen.
Conditions were atrocious. Perfect for a Swedish MonsterBear.
Lessons From Björn
The best thing Björn taught me was with my freestyle swimming.
He convinced me to ditch my gear and focus on:
Stroke Mechanics
Swim Frequency
Volume
At the time, I did a lot of band work3. The band removes the swimmer's ability to kick and increases the force per stroke required.
Björn told me that if I needed a challenge then I should swim faster.
Simple But Effective.
Just like Björn.
More Björn
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FTP of 450w, legit (5.5w per kilo)
Noticing your natural peak is an important part of Smart Season Planning. Video here.
You tie your ankles together using a thick rubber band. Sometimes you combine with a pull buoy, sometimes not.
Bjorn was definitely known for his amazing power and one of the most extreme aero positions ever seen. His cycling was so noteworthy, it was often overlooked how fast of a swimmer he was with relatively low swim training volume.
He and I are similar height/weight, so I was always pulling for him to hold off the smaller guys chasing after him.