Warming Up For Winter Sports: Sure-Fire Ways to Get Fit

Whether skiing on fresh powder on a mountain slope, ice skating or snowshoeing, winter recreation offers new opportunities to get in shape and a specialized focus for fitness.

“Preparing your body should be on top of your list of vacation details,” says physical therapist Linda Scholl, of the University of Utah Orthopaedic Center. Her ski fitness classes in Salt Lake City focus on developing four muscle groups: quads, hamstrings, glutes and core. “Ideally, you should take six to eight weeks to prepare for a ski vacation, but three weeks’ prep is better than nothing,” she says. That also goes for most winter pursuits.

Sean Sewell, founder of Mountain Fitness School, in Denver, concurs. “People tend to think that these sports are mostly quad-dominant, but it’s not necessarily the case. I believe the body works as a unit, and is therefore only as strong as its weakest link, so all muscle groups are important in the big picture.”

Winter-Ready Workouts

Lunges, single-leg dead lifts and lateral-motion exercises are all well-suited for tailored training. Winter fitness prep classes offer ideal benefits, but simple walking or running up and down stairs can also do wonders. “Stairs are the closest thing to a hill, and you can get creative with stairs—skipping a stair or hopping. It also has a cardio component which helps you adjust to the altitude of a ski destination,” says Scholl.

Preparing your body should be on top of your list of vacation details.
~Linda Scholl

Maggie Lehrian, owner of Roots Yoga Studio, in Hawley, Pennsylvania, attests to yoga’s benefits for conditioning, “The standing sequences in yoga practice, especially hatha yoga, are tremendously effective at increasing balance and strength in the legs and glutes needed for cross-country and downhill skiing, skating and snow shoeing.”

She recommends adding 30 minutes of cardio, such as walking or running, three times a week to a balanced yoga practice that includes components of strength-building and stretching. Yoga fosters concentration and endurance and offers unrealized benefits. “Breathwork can be extremely helpful when traveling to higher altitudes,” says Lehrian. Yoga also scores high for attaining a confident, healthy beach body for a winter Caribbean getaway, with strength-building, core-focused styles such as vinyasa or power flow.

Avoiding Injury

Experts agree that the body’s core muscle groups are not only key in getting fit, but play a major role in preventing common injuries. “The core should always be activated during heavy exercises. This keeps the back safe and allows for better power output,” says Sewell. “The core is not just the abdominal muscles. I like to think of the core as an area from the shoulders to the knees and both the front and back of the body.”

Links to Learn From
General Preparation:
Ski Ready
Winter Fitness
Balance Exercises
For Snow Sports
For Skiing

Last-Minute Beach Body:
Shape Up

Proper alignment is paramount. “Skiing involves absorbing a lot of force. It’s literally controlling a fall downhill, so leg alignment is everything,” says Scholl. This applies to many winter sports—including skiing, hockey and ice skating—to avoid injuries to the anterior cruciate ligament, which stabilizes the knee.

Body Basics

Being winter-ready also means eating well and staying hydrated, both on and off the slopes. “Eat well and take recovery seriously,” says Sewell. “If you are serious about performance and recovery, then do not skip out on eating.”

Scholl recommends drinking plenty of water, avoiding alcohol before hitting the slopes and consuming a good balance of protein and carbohydrates, especially post-workout or after a day of skiing.

Perks of Winter Sports

Choosing a winter sport is ideal to help combat cold weather blues and the all-too-common winter rut. As a bonus, skiing and snowboarding burn a surprisingly high number of calories. In essence, getting outside just makes winter more enjoyable. “Whether it is a solo powder day or a mellow spring day, being in the mountains is empowering and rejuvenating,” says Sewell.

Scholl agrees. “It’s important to stay active, regardless of how cold it is outside. Enjoy winter and where you are.”

Marlaina Donato is the author of Multidimensional Aromatherapy and several other books.

 

Winter-Worthy Workouts

According to Mountain Fitness School founder Sean Sewell:

• Stretching and warming up are a must for mobility, recovery and most importantly, to maximize all exercises. Using foam rollers or a lacrosse ball and yoga and massage are all recommended.

• Kettlebell Swing is the best bang-for-your-buck exercise for glutes, core, calorie-burning and endurance. If this is too advanced, a deadlift can replicate many of the same benefits.

• Squat for healthy knees, strong quads and core, and better motor control. Try the goblet squat, offset squat, double kettlebell squat or body squat, or whatever else might be more comfortable.

• Lunging is a good starting exercise; step-back, front and side lunges are three options. Add weight when proficient with a kettlebell, dumbbell or even a backpack.

• Press for upper body strength and a strong core; pushup, chest press, overhead press. Start off with a TRX or a high box for pushups to reinforce good form. Once proficient, progress to floor pushups.

• Core exercises are for quicker results, safety and reinforcement for the back. Try planks and hollow holds.

 

According to physical therapist Linda Scholl, the following are recommended for three days a week for six to eight weeks to build strength and skill without overtraining. Repeat each exercise with a 15-second rest.

• Hamstrings focus: dumbbell dead lifts standing on one or both legs (three repetitions, 10 each side)

• Squats: body weight squat (10, three repetitions progressing to 10, three repetitions each leg)

Tip: Technique matters. Squat with good form: knees over your ankles in both the frontal and sagittal plane (knees in line with your first and second toe and never in front of the toes throughout the entire squat).

• Buttocks/Lateral Motion: speed skater hops (three repetitions of 20 seconds each from side-to-side)

• Core focus: plank/side plank (three repetitions of 30 seconds each)

Check with a physician before beginning an exercise regimen.

Photo by baranq/Shutterstock.com

This article appears in the February 2019 issue of Natural Awakenings.