time to ski! any suggestions

[admin]

With the weather getting cooler, my mind is shifting from climbing the mountains to sliding down them! Do you have any suggestions for skiing training? Primarily downhill, but I'm also into backcountry/touring!

Thanks

[Courtenay]

Skippy,

The emphasis for downhill skiing should be on leg and core strength, so your particular focus should be on exercises performed with legs close together, such as squats, lateral hops, hops forward at 45 degrees, jumps, wall sits or slides, and the like. I recommend that people start with a base of 4 weeks of cardiovascular endurance (to provide you with the leg endurance you need for a day of skiing; most people who do a summer activity like running or hiking will already have this base) and then move into strength training more specific to your sport.

If your sport of preference is tele or rondonee skiing, your strength exercises will be of the single-limb variety for legs, including walking lunges with a short stride, forward lunges or dips, maybe even some step-ups or step downs. Check out the Body Results ski pages (www.bodyresults.com) for more information, or submit your current program so we can suggest additions/ alternatives. Happy skiing!

Courtenay Schurman, CSCS