Don't miss any powder day's this season from weak legs or ski injuries!
Every time I sit down to read a skiing magazine or see another so called 'expert' recommending specific workouts for skier's, I have to cringe when I see some of the workouts they recommend! After all, isn't the goal of an effective skier fitness training routine to reduce injuries while also building incredible strength and endurance in your legs and core?
We all want to tear up the slopes as long as possible each day and avoid the dreaded 'jello legs' that might cut our day of skiing short, and even prevent those nagging injuries that might cut our season short.
Here's the problem I see with traditional exercise routines that are being recommended for skiers are that they not only use inefficient exercises that don't carry over that well to actual skiing movements, but also may even be setting you up for an injury. For example, if you've seen exercise routines that are recommending mechanical leg presses, machine leg extensions, and mechanical leg curls, please run screaming from that workout recommendation as fast as you can! It will only set you up for injury, and won't even help your goal of strength and endurance that's actually applicable to skiing mechanics.
The same can be said if you see authors recommending smith machine squats or any smith mechanical workouts whatsoever... they should all be avoided as smith mechanical movements follow unnatural patterns (which are not biomechanically correct) that can create excessive back stress and possible injury here or in your knees.
Now what about wall squat exercises? Although almost every fitness program for skier's in existence recommends this exercise for skiers, I don't find it to be optimal. It's a step in the right direction compared to the machine-based exercises that I previously mentioned. But, wall squats are still not a truly effective workout that carries over directly to strength and endurance throughout the entire range of motion that your legs are using during a day on the ski slopes. This workout can be mildly effective since even an isometric exercise held for endurance in one joint angle will still carry over to a slightly wider range of motion, but I actually have at least a dozen workouts that are MUCH more effective than wall squats.
I have found some major faults with typical exercise routines for the skier is that often they neglect getting a proper joint to strength balance (proper strength ratios between hamstrings, quadriceps, etc). Although skiing demands a lot of work from your quad's and less work from your hams and glutes, it is still really important for injury prevention to maintain proper strength ratios between all of the muscle groups of your body and to make sure the stabilizer muscles around the joints are correctly strengthened. Another factor that's left out in most exercise programs.
Want to know all of the specific exercises that really work in having rock solid legs that will never quit on you while you are out on the ski slopes? Visit us for the best Ski Conditioning workouts and learn the best kept secrets of skier strength conditioning. - 16003
Every time I sit down to read a skiing magazine or see another so called 'expert' recommending specific workouts for skier's, I have to cringe when I see some of the workouts they recommend! After all, isn't the goal of an effective skier fitness training routine to reduce injuries while also building incredible strength and endurance in your legs and core?
We all want to tear up the slopes as long as possible each day and avoid the dreaded 'jello legs' that might cut our day of skiing short, and even prevent those nagging injuries that might cut our season short.
Here's the problem I see with traditional exercise routines that are being recommended for skiers are that they not only use inefficient exercises that don't carry over that well to actual skiing movements, but also may even be setting you up for an injury. For example, if you've seen exercise routines that are recommending mechanical leg presses, machine leg extensions, and mechanical leg curls, please run screaming from that workout recommendation as fast as you can! It will only set you up for injury, and won't even help your goal of strength and endurance that's actually applicable to skiing mechanics.
The same can be said if you see authors recommending smith machine squats or any smith mechanical workouts whatsoever... they should all be avoided as smith mechanical movements follow unnatural patterns (which are not biomechanically correct) that can create excessive back stress and possible injury here or in your knees.
Now what about wall squat exercises? Although almost every fitness program for skier's in existence recommends this exercise for skiers, I don't find it to be optimal. It's a step in the right direction compared to the machine-based exercises that I previously mentioned. But, wall squats are still not a truly effective workout that carries over directly to strength and endurance throughout the entire range of motion that your legs are using during a day on the ski slopes. This workout can be mildly effective since even an isometric exercise held for endurance in one joint angle will still carry over to a slightly wider range of motion, but I actually have at least a dozen workouts that are MUCH more effective than wall squats.
I have found some major faults with typical exercise routines for the skier is that often they neglect getting a proper joint to strength balance (proper strength ratios between hamstrings, quadriceps, etc). Although skiing demands a lot of work from your quad's and less work from your hams and glutes, it is still really important for injury prevention to maintain proper strength ratios between all of the muscle groups of your body and to make sure the stabilizer muscles around the joints are correctly strengthened. Another factor that's left out in most exercise programs.
Want to know all of the specific exercises that really work in having rock solid legs that will never quit on you while you are out on the ski slopes? Visit us for the best Ski Conditioning workouts and learn the best kept secrets of skier strength conditioning. - 16003
About the Author:
Discover the most effective butt, thigh and core exercises with skier Ryan L. Freeman, and grab some free core exercise workouts and download the free ebook, Insider Secrets to a Lean Body.
