Two Exercises To Start Getting Snow Ready

As we move into October, I am currently writing this with a temperature of forty-eight degrees outside. And it makes me think about skiing! Both downhill skiing and snowboarding require lower body strength and endurance that must last for a short-term, explosive run. For our purposes, let’s say somewhere between two to four minutes. Distance running at a sub-maximum heart rate will not do much for what is needed here. Instead, try these two exercises to start getting snow ready.

We can start our conditioning with two simple exercises that require zero equipment. We are going to use a double low contraction split squat and a double low contraction squat. You can perform a double low contraction repetition on either exercise in this manner: Go all the way down, then go up one quarter of the distance traveled down, go back down to full depth, then go all the way up. That is one repetition of either exercise.

For our starting routine, we are going to perform a working set two times a week for two minutes, not counting transitions.

1. Split Squat: Body weight x 30 seconds per leg

Also known as a stationary lunge, you’ll begin this exercise by getting in position with the front knee over the heel, rear foot on the toe, and center of both knees tracking in line with the second toe. Go all the way down, up a quarter of the way up, all the way back down, then all the way up. This is one rep, and we will do this for 30 seconds each leg.

2. Body Weight Squat: x 60 seconds

With the feet in a shoulder width position, drop into a full squat to ninety degrees in depth. Go up one quarter of the way, all the way back down to ninety degrees, then all the way up. Do this in a moderate tempo do 60 seconds.

For weeks one and two, perform these exercises for a total of two minutes. In weeks three and four, perform them for a total of three minutes by adding 30 seconds to each split squat. For weeks five and six, perform these exercises for a a total of four minutes by adding 60 seconds to the squat.

This may seem very simple, but it will work well by letting the body become conditioned to working with lactic acid. This will allow you to prepare your legs for the appropriate energy system required for skiing and snowboarding.

Questions? Interested in a personalized program suited to your needs and goals? Contact us today for a complimentary consultation.