The Skier’s Body: Five Tips for Better Skiing

Build endurance.

We’re familiar with the body-types of many top athletes: we know that swimmers tend to be tall, muscular, and lean like Michael Phelps, and that cyclists tend to be smaller, strong-legged people like Lance Armstrong. But when you see skiers on television, you don’t really see what their body looks like. So it’s understandable if you’re a little confused about the type of condition you’ll want to be in case you want to be a more frequent downhill skier. Here are five tips that should help you understand a skier’s body.

Tip #1: Be a flexible runner. By “flexible,” we don’t mean that you should be a runner who can put their elbow behind their head. Instead, be a runner who avoids the narrow-track, treadmill style of running so many people employ today. Go running on a hiking trail, or find terrain that twists, turns, and challenges you. This will help build up the right muscle groups that will contribute to your overall strength when twisting and turning down the ski slope.

Tip #2: Build endurance. Skiing can be a day-long activity, so you can’t expect to go from couch potato to downhill skiing machine overnight. You’ll want to build endurance. Endurance is built simply by pushing yourself to go farther and longer than you did before – eventually, your systems will adapt to the demand you place on them and your endurance will grow.

Tip #3: Keep your legs strong. Mountain biking is a great way to accomplish this, working your leg muscles while putting you through some tougher terrain, similar to tip #1. Since skiing can be an unpredictable way to travel from A to B, you’ll want your legs to be strong and capable of adapting to different bumps and changes along the way. You can also incorporate a number of different leg workouts to build up leg strength.

Tip #4: Build your core. The “core” can be a tricky part of the body to exercise, so you might like this suggestion: play tag. Remember running around, twisting your body, and making sudden shifts in direction as a kid at recess? Playing tag is a great way to get that core going again; you will probably feel sore the next day if it’s been a while. If you don’t have anyone to play tag with, simply simulate it by running around randomly as if you were. You’ll look a little nuts, but you’ll also get in shape!

Tip #5: Practice what you want to become, and ski! If you want your body to adapt into a skier’s condition, there’s only one true way of getting there: you’ll actually have to ski. The other workouts can help you cross-train, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore the slopes.

Photo Credits: William A. Franklin

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