What Do Bodybuilders Think About Alpine Skiing?

When you think about bodybuilding, the first phrase that pops into your head probably isn’t “Alpine skiing.” You would be surprised at the kind of exercise benefits you can get from an endurance-testing, core-strengthening sport like downhill skiing. But does that mean that downhill skiing is a good idea for body-builders, or would they want to pursue other exercises that develop different aspects of their fitness? Here are some of the questions and issues of the relationship between alpine skiing and bodybuilding:

Developing quick-firing muscles. There is evidence to suggest that Alpine skiing does result in a lot of strength buildup for the skiers who practice it, but that this type of strength isn’t very conducive to the type of exercises many weightlifters and bodybuilders endure. For example, alpine skiers are more likely to be able to endure for a long time rather than have a tremendous output of energy in a resistance training situation without getting fatigued quicker, perhaps, than people who work primarily with resistance training.

An aerobic exercise? There is also question about Alpine skiing and what kind of exercise it is – anaerobic (“without oxygen”) or aerobic (“with oxygen”). Typically, aerobic workouts mean that you have enough oxygen to feed your muscles, while an anaerobic exercise often focuses on performing work without a lot of oxygen levels pumping to your muscles at the time. Generally, an aerobic exercise won’t rob you of your breath, and is clearly more sustainable than an anaerobic workout. Skiing would seem to fall under the “aerobic” exercise category.

Specificity. Bodybuilders are often concerned with isolating different aspects of their fitness – the development of certain muscle groups, for example. In skiing, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of specificity. This can work tremendously well for someone who is interested in cross-training and needs an exercise that challenges the muscle groups that downhill skiing challenges. But for bodybuilders, skiing might be an ultimately inefficient exercise.

Remember: whether or not alpine skiing is right for you depends on you and your individual goals. What do you want to get out of your exercise and hobbies? If you’re a bodybuilder, you might not want to hit those slopes. But if you’re someone who is interest in a hobby that helps you break a sweat and strengthen certain parts of your body, skiing might just be what the doctor ordered.

Photo Credits: aLindquist

Originally posted 2009-11-26 03:47:47.

This post involves:

aerobic exercise, aerobic workouts, alpine skiers, alpine skiing, anaerobic exercise, body builders, bodybuilders, bodybuilding, cross training, downhill skiing, endurance, exercises, muscle groups, muscles, oxygen levels, resistance training, specificity, weightlifters, workout

... and focuses on:

exercise, health, ski basics

Posted by Ski Snowboarder on February 14, 2010 in exercise, health, ski basics. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.