There is no time like the present to prepare yourself for your next ski trip to the mountains. To ensure you make the most of every second on the slopes try out some of these easy exercises at home or in the gym. You’ll be amazed what difference a little extra skiing fitness preparation will have on your skiing performance – whilst your friend’s legs are screaming for rest, you’ll be raring to go down the next slope.
There are many ways that you can get ski fit. From virtual yoga to home workouts there are exercises to suit everybody’s schedule. With fitness in mind, we have created our own ski-fit home workout targeting key muscles to aid your skiing.
However, if home workouts aren’t your style, we would also recommend trying yoga. The movement and positions required in yoga can benefit skiers and snowboarders, to help reduce the physical demands placed on your body. You can find great ski-specific yoga sessions on YouTube, some are even filmed in the mountains!
Remember when you’re on your holiday it’s important to warm up every morning as well, to help prevent any skiing injuries that day. Don’t forget you can ask your instructor to give you some warm-up tips to get you ready for a full day of skiing.
Exercises to Help You Get Ski Fit
Squats and squat jumps – The muscles responsible for holding you in place while you ski and protecting your knees are your quadriceps; these muscles work incredibly hard while you ski, so we have a few exercises to help you strengthen them. To prevent knee injury, exercising your quadriceps in pre-skiing fitness is crucial. Start off with static squats and progress to adding a jump when you feel comfortable. Try doing 3 sets of 15 repetitions.
Plank – The plank is a fairly simple exercise, yet it can be testing for even the most seasoned gym goers; building your core muscles, planks will help to both protect your spine from injury and also provide stability when turning or in difficult skiing conditions. Start with holding the plank position for 20-30 seconds and then work your way up to 1 minute, take a 30s break and repeat 3 times.
Lunges – As well as squats, lunges also work multiple muscles at once, and are great for improving your quadriceps and your balance (which will hopefully mean no spectacular wipeouts)! Try doing 3 sets of 10 lunges on each leg.
Criss Cross (core) – This ab crunching and twisting exercise hits your muscles alongside some explosive cardio, training up your core whilst aiding general fitness and stamina. Try doing these for 30s, taking a 30s break and repeating 3 times.
Crab toe touches – Crab toe touches are a great cardio exercise, that helps you improve agility and develop core strength, both very important when skiing. Try doing these for 30s, taking a 30s break and repeating 3 times.
Build Stamina and Strength!
Try to build up these exercises over time, either by adding weight or increasing active time to increase the difficulty. The earlier you start before your ski trip the sooner you can get ski fit so you can be ready for your upcoming ski holiday!
The Independent Instructors on Maison Sport are waiting for you!
