Fitness experts offer tips for building a strong core and preventing common injuries – New England Ski Journal

With freezing temperatures and some areas ready to open, the turn to ski is just around the corner. That also means it’s a good time to get into ski shape before the season starts to help prevent injuries and maximize your days on the slopes.

As a ski instructor, I try to stay in good shape during the off-season by cycling and hiking, and adding special skiing exercises near winter, relying on other things that I favorites from my college ski club days like wall sits, hops and lunges. However, no matter what kind of shape you are in, the first day on the slopes can be taxing, with thigh burn and breathlessness all too common. A few weeks of exercises that work on the muscles of the ski and the movements of the hill can go a long way for more power on your ski trip.

I’m not a fitness professional and my workouts aren’t as disciplined as they could be, so I asked a few pros to share some of their favorite strategies to help build strength a good base for the ski season.

“Even if you’re biking thousands of miles, you’re not working the same muscles as you are skiing,” said “Ski Fitness” author Sue Kramer, who has a master’s degree in kinesiology to better understand how the human body moves. when used in a ski area.

As a training evaluator for the Professional Ski Instructors of America and a racing coach at the Bromley Outing Club, he has evaluated the skiing styles of the elite for decades. In other words, it can be someone who gives me and other instructors like me the thumbs up or down on technical skiing.

In skiing, he says, it’s important to incorporate isometric and eccentric movements as your muscles lengthen to resist force. For example, going down a set of stairs would not go smoothly if you did not resist gravity.

“It’s very important to what we do in skiing — every time you turn using your outside leg, you’re resisting the force,” Kramer said. “Think about how many shifts you do in a day – often hundreds,” he said.

Kramer’s main recommendations

By working on key muscle groups such as the quads, glutes, hamstrings and abdominal muscles, you can have a good foundation to be able to ski harder and longer this season. It is best to do the exercise in sets of three, with five to 10 reps per set, depending on your fitness level.

Here are some of Kramer’s top tips:

Squats they are great for training and working important muscle groups. Do the squat slowly on the way down and come up quickly to work the fixed or fast-twitch muscles, which produce strength in a short period of time.

Side lung: Jump down with the right leg to the other side by pushing off and generating power. “Side lunges are also very important because when we skate, we move from side to side pushing from left to pressure and move left leg to right,” he said. he said so.

Jumping jacks they are also loved. “When you land, you’re using muscle control, so landing has a purpose,” Kramer said. Also try to hop and jump by making a 4 meter wide box and jumping forward and backward, left and right. It’s a good workout because it works your legs the same way you do when you skate. Even hopscotch is great and something the whole family can enjoy together.

Balance it is important to develop sensory awareness in joints such as knees, hips and ankles. Kramer suggests incorporating balance exercises into your daily routine. For example, stand on one leg while brushing your teeth or stirring the stove. The balance can help beginners feel less intimidated by the slippery effect, he said.

The best. When working the core muscles, Kramer said to build a good core base around the spine. “People only think about the abs, but everything that supports and protects the spine is important,” he said. For example, the “Spiderman” plank or push-up can engage more muscles than normal movements.

ACL Power tips

If you’re looking for the home trainer equivalent of a ski-specific workout, you might consider the ACL Strong injury prevention program, which has been on my radar since it came out a few years ago.

“This program is designed to give you the strength and stability to ski for longer periods of time without getting injured or covered in knees,” said Dr. Leslie Desrosiers, a physical therapist who also specializes in kinesiology. After seeing an increasing number of high school athletes suffering from ACL tears, he developed injury prevention programs, including the ACL Strong program to help skiers and snowboarders avoid accidents on the slopes. “It’s important to do the right exercises with good form, and have the right progression to increase the potential of your game,” said Desrosiers.

ACL Strong’s quick and easy workouts are designed to streamline one’s day and cover strength, mobility and stability. The goal is to give people 15- to 20-minute segments of exercise they don’t do to improve neuromuscular control, which helps prevent injuries and performance. ACL Strong emphasizes using small, stable muscles that teach the brain and body to communicate quickly.

It’s an eight-week, progressive program that will improve reaction time, agility and body control. The exercise involves more planes of motion (ie, a lunge with a twisting motion) rather than just standing (like running and walking), because when you ski you’re shifting your body weight and rotate through many planes, especially in trees and moguls.
Exercise is also designed to keep the muscles strong to protect the knee joint. “The program starts with building basic movement patterns, then builds on that with strength and balance, then adds a variety of sports to help you train more like an athlete,” said Desrosiers.

While it may seem a bit pricey at $397, the price is for lifetime access. There are videos and explanations of all the learning methods, and Dr. Desrosiers has an “Office Hours” program if members need additional assistance. As someone who has dealt with an ACL injury myself, this is something I wanted to start using in my team.

If you do not train before the season, be aware of the limitations and do not exceed them. “The best thing to do is start easy and get used to the equipment, the snow and the altitude,” Kramer said.

After speaking with several fitness professionals, I’m motivated to add a more structured approach to my pre-season training. Kramer’s advice to do a few things while watching TV is also a good idea, and I’ve started the ACL Strong program. Stay tuned for my results.