Training · · 2 min read · Fredrik Kaada
Training through the dark season
From November to March the daylight in western Norway shrinks to a few hours. Here's how I keep mountain training honest through the dark months, without burning out.
Living in Stavanger means accepting the dark season. By midwinter the working day starts and ends in the dark, and the mountains I train in are cold, wet and often iced over. Every year I used to fight it. Now I plan for it, and the winter block has become the part of the year I trust most.
Lower the bar, not the standard
The mistake is trying to copy summer training into December. Shorter days and slippery ground change what a good session looks like. I keep the structure — easy days easy, one long day a week, one harder session — but I let the pace go. Effort and time on feet matter; the watch can wait for spring.
Make the dark work for you
UTMB asks you to keep moving through the night, so the dark is practice, not an obstacle. Once a week I run after work with a headlamp on familiar trails. It builds the quiet confidence of moving well when you can't see far, and it turns a November Tuesday into useful race preparation.
Safety is the plan, not an afterthought
Winter raises the stakes. I tell someone my route and when I'll be back, I carry the same emergency kit as in summer plus an extra warm layer, and I check the mountain forecast for the highest point, not the town. When conditions are genuinely bad, the treadmill or the stairs by the coast road are not a failure — they're the session.
Protect the reason you run
The dark months are where motivation quietly leaks away. Two things keep mine: a weekly long day I actually look forward to, with a café or a viewpoint at the far end, and the field journal. Reading back a good day in January is worth more than any resolution.
What I'd tell anyone facing the same winter
Don't chase summer numbers in winter conditions. Keep the rhythm, dress for the worst part of the day, practise with the headlamp, and write down what worked. The runners who arrive at spring fit are rarely the ones who trained hardest in January — they're the ones who never stopped.