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Get Fit to Ski

Getting Fit to Ski will not just allow you to enjoy more time on the slopes, but will also reduce the risk of injury. In this blog we will look at how you can get yourself ready for your next ski trip. A good level of fitness for your next ski trip is crucial. For the development of your technique and to enable you to spend as much time on the slopes as possible. Working with our fitness partner Bodybuilding.com we have outlined some useful fitness tips below. In order to help you get on track building a better condition before your next ski trip. Now do not panic! We are not about to start a bodybuilding program. Bodybuilding.com covers many training methods, most of which complement our goal. We often forget how demanding skiing can be on our body. On average you are going to spend 4 to 6 hours on the slopes each day of your trip. And do not forget you’re at altitude, that makes the body work harder than you are used to. And even though we get to rest on the ski lifts, recovery takes a lot longer than normal at altitude.

If you really want to spend more time skiing with a better technique and staying injury free, you will need an all-encompassing Fit to Ski program that includes.

  1. Endurance
  2. Strength
  3. Flexibility
You can combine the 3 elements above into one work out, or do them separately on different days.

 

Endurance

To improve your cardiovascular fitness, you will need to try and do some aerobic work outs. Consisting of aerobic activities, with a total duration of 20 minutes to 1 hour. Ideally you should be working at around 50-60% of your maximum heart rate. An aerobic activity is any exercise which increases your heart rate, such as cycling, running, step-aerobics, etc. Now if you are like a lot of people, you get bored easily. If this is the case, you may want to mix it up a little; jumping from a treadmill to a bike to a cross-trainer. But be sure to move from one to the other quickly, as not to let your heart rate drop too much. Ideally you want to aim to do 3 aerobic work outs a week.

 

Before starting any work out / exercise plan, health experts suggest that you talk to your doctor.

 

Strength

Many people think that you need to be lifting heavy weights to become stronger and in part this is correct. However, we can start by just using our own body weight to help develop our strength. By concentrating on just 5 different exercises, 3 times a week, you will be able to increase your strength in a matter of weeks. And these exercises can all be performed comfortably at home, or in the gym of course.

 

1. The Squat
In strength training and fitness, the squat is a compound, full body exercise that trains primarily the muscles of the thighs, hips and buttocks: quadriceps, hamstrings, and much more! As well as strengthening the bones, ligaments and insertion of the tendons throughout the lower body. 
Squats are considered a vital exercise for increasing the strength and size of the legs and buttocks, as well as developing core strength. Isometrically, the lower and upper back, the abdominals, the trunk muscles, the costal muscles, and the shoulders and arms are all essential to the exercise and thus are trained as well when squatting with the proper form.
To start: try and do 3 sets of 8 to 11 squats while resting for 60 seconds between sets.


Watch the video of how to perform a squat.

 

2. Lateral Bound
With the Lateral Bound you will build strength and power in your legs, and increase their ability to store and release energy. And what is best is it will also challenging your balance and coordination, which is great for your skiing!
To start: try and do 3 sets of 11 bounds while resting for 60 seconds between sets.


Watch the video of how to perform a Lateral Bound

 

3. The Plank
The Plank is a great exercise and it means you do not have to do 100's of sit up's to give your core a great work out. This because it builds strength to help sculpt your waistline and improve your posture. Planking can also work your back, arms, shoulders, glutes, and hamstrings.
To start: try and perform 3 planks holding each for 30 second with 30 seconds rest in between. You can then increase the planking time each session.


Watch the video of how to perform a Plank
 
4. Side Bridge
The Side Bridge is a good way to target the obliques, or to you and me the “outer abs”. Start with a couple of seconds on each side and work up to 30 seconds per side for starters.


Watch the video of how to perform a Side Bridge
 
5. Bodyweight Lunge
Lunge's will increase muscle tissue, develop core strength and make your hips more flexible, as it is a functional, multi-joint exercise. Therefor the exercise is beneficial in more ways than one, when it comes to getting Fit to Ski.
To start: try and perform 3 sets of 8 to 11 while resting for 60 seconds between sets. 


Watch the video of how to perform a Lunge


The above is just one of many programs aimed at the beginner, to help you to start building strength before your next ski trip. Typically, it will take around 4 to 6 weeks to feel the effects. As you work through the work outs, you should be able to increase the number of reps or time holding your plank or bridge.  
 
Remember; you should always warm up before taking part in any work out / exercise. And if you start to feel any kind of pain you should stop.

 

Do not forget to cool down and stretch at the end of your work out. See below for more information on warning up. 

 

Before starting any work out / exercise plan, health experts suggest that you talk to your doctor.
 

Flexibility

People underestimate the importance of stretching. It can speed up recovery after a workout while also reducing the risk of injury when you are on the slopes. Yoga is a great way to not only relax, but also give your body a great 'end of work out' stretch, which will keep you flexible. We use an app on our phone's which means we can do our stretching at home or in the gym. We find the app from Daily Yoga which you can find at Amazon to be the best we could find. It has more than 500 yoga poses with instructions, and you get more than 50 complete yoga classes, all with background music. You can pick from three different intensity levels and several durations. You can find the routine that is right for you.

Warming Up

It is important before you start any kind of exercise to warm the body up, preparing it to take part in a more strenuous activity. So what we need to do is warm up for the activity we are about to do. This will increase blood flow and the range of motion of the muscles. A warm up is just that, a warm up to warm up the muscle temperature. A warm muscle will have a greater range of motion than a cold one. Warming up will also reduce your risk of injury while training. Your warm up should target the muscles you are going to train. If you are going to ride a bike for your endurance part of the work out above, then you need to warm up the legs and the major muscle groups. Active stretching is a good start, while increasing the intensity to get the blood pumping around the body. This should be at a moderate intensity and last for at least 10 minutes. If your following the above suggested program on the build up to your next ski trip, then your warm up can be built into your first 10 minutes of your training. So if you are going for a run before you do your strength work, do some active stretching of the legs, arms, shoulders and hips. Then start your run at a jogging pace until everything is warm and loose. Then followed by building your speed for the 20 minutes to an hour for your aerobic workout. Finish with a short rest in order to take on fluids and get your breath at the end of your endurance work out. You are now ready to start the strength section of your work out. Once you have completed your strength training, which should only take around 45 minutes, you can then go in to your flexibility section. For us this means our Yoga. Spend at least 10 minutes on this part, although if you like your yoga I am sure you will enjoy it a little longer. While also getting maximum benefit from the stretching from this part of your work out. A final word on fluids; you should try to continually sip on water while completing your training each day. This will keep you hydrated and also helps the muscles to function properly. Which then can lead to building muscle tissue and become stronger. And remember; stronger muscles means more time on the slopes!

 

At Snow Camps Europe we want your time in the mountains to be the best it can be. And we can help you plan, organise and book your next winter sports experience to make sure your next trip to the snow is the best it can be. For more information or to book ski lessons, ski camps, just send us your requests via our contact us page. 

 

How do you get ready for your ski holiday? Tell us in the comments below.

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