If you’re a well-organised skier or snowboarder, you may well have already booked this winter’s ski holiday. Or maybe you're planning to go skiing at Christmas or for the New year? You’ve thought of everything! Whether you’ve booked an all-inclusive trip or a private chalet or self catering apartment; the dog is already booked into the kennel, you've updated your smartphone with all the latest ski apps and you’ve even serviced your skis… But have you really thought of everything?
Have you thought about your physical condition - are you as ready as you could be for your next ski holiday? If you’re familiar with those frustrating first days on the ski slopes when you just can't find your rhythm, your legs and your nerves are shaking and you feel like you're holding everyone up, then read on… We’ve put together some top tips to avoid the burn and the embarrassment!
Have you thought about your physical condition - are you as ready as you could be for your next ski holiday? If you’re familiar with those frustrating first days on the ski slopes when you just can't find your rhythm, your legs and your nerves are shaking and you feel like you're holding everyone up, then read on… We’ve put together some top tips to avoid the burn and the embarrassment!
Ok, well if you have a gym membership, don’t read on… However, if like many people (myself included), fixed hours, over-heated and rather perfumed fitness centres packed with perspiring bodies, are not your thing, and regular exercise just doesn’t seem to fit in with your lifestyle, then with a little motivation and creativity you can change your routine and find the time and the space to get in better shape. It’s best to start about two months before you leave on your ski holiday…
The most important areas to focus on are:
Muscular strength - mainly legs and torso
Flexibility
Good cardiovascular condition
Ok, so you’re starting to lose interest as this all sounds very serious – not at all! The good news is you can do all of the above without any special equipment - at home or in your local park! The first and most important thing to do is to speed up your normal rhythm!
• If you have a dog, don’t take him for a walk, take him for a short run - or a longer walk if running seems impossible!
• If you live in a hilly area, go for a walk and choose the steepest possible paths keeping up a steady speed going up AND down – you’ll feel the benefits of this in just a few days!
• Kids are a great excuse to get out and about! When you take your kids to the park with their bikes – take your bike too and race them rather than sitting on a park bench chatting or reading the paper!
• If there are steps in your park, then do some stepping on the first step – remembering to change leg from time to time! You can do various arm exercises at the same time if you fancy! No excuses if it’s raining – if you have stairs at home, then this is just as effective!
• Find a short hill and do short 30 second sprints to the top, with your head down and pump your arms at the same time – walk slowly back down and repeat several times – preferably do this on grass or your joints may suffer...
• Find a large log in the park or your garden and standing alongside the log, jump with both feet to the other side – this exercise imitates the movement of transferring weight when carrying out short turns or mogul skiing! You’ll feel the affects rather quickly!
• Borrow your children’s toys! This might sound strange but space hopping around the garden or skipping for 5 minutes are surprisingly exhausting and very good all round exercise!
• If you can avoid taking the car, walk instead!
• If you live or work in a tall building, take the stairs rather than the lift!
• One of my favourite and most satisfying exercises is punching an inflatable punch ball! Keep your ams high and your legs wide apart – 5 minutes a day will get your arms, shoulders and waist in great shape! These are not particularly expensive (around £15/£20) and the advantage is once you’ve been skiing you can deflate it and store it away for next year!
• If you don’t mind investing a little more money, buy yourself some rollerblades (prices start from around £40) and find a safe smooth area to practise. Rollerblading is a great all-round sport to get in shape for skiing as you use almost all the same muscles and it is an excellent cardiovascular exercise – watch out though as your weight transfer is not the same as when skiing! And, of course, wear wrist, knee and elbow protection as you don’t want to injure yourself before leaving!
• If by now, you’re getting really motivated, there are of course the old classics – sit ups and wall sits! When doing sit ups, make sure your back is not arched – every part of your spine should touch the floor! Wall sits are excruciatingly painful but very satisfying! This involves bending your knees to a 90° angle and leaning your back against the wall – as if you were sitting on a chair – but you’re not!
It’s very important to warm up before and cool down after the more strenuous activities above with a little stretching and deep breathing to eliminate those lactic acids!
If you’re really motivated to get in shape and you want to brush up your skills, then why not try out an indoor ski centre or dry ski slope. If you're a first-time skier, it's definitely a good idea to take a few lessons in the UK first as this will save precious skiing time on the slopes. Some of our favourite centres are SNO!zone real-snow centres in Milton Keynes and Castleford and their partner Snow Factor in Braehead in Scotland. You'll see a range of lessons and refresher courses on offer at very reasonable prices. Another is Chill Factor in Manchester where you’ll find tons of fun snowy activities for the whole family.
Don’t forget, you can join us on
Facebook
and let us know all about your ideas and tips for getting fit for skiing !
If you’re a well-organised skier or snowboarder, you may well have already booked this winter’s ski holiday. Or maybe you're planning to go skiing at Christmas or for the New year? You’ve thought of everything! Whether you’ve booked an all-inclusive trip or a private chalet or self catering apartment; the dog is already booked into the kennel, you've updated your smartphone with all the latest ski apps and you’ve even serviced your skis… But have you really thought of everything?
Have you thought about your physical condition - are you as ready as you could be for your next ski holiday? If you’re familiar with those frustrating first days on the ski slopes when you just can't find your rhythm, your legs and your nerves are shaking and you feel like you're holding everyone up, then read on… We’ve put together some top tips to avoid the burn and the embarrassment!
Have you thought about your physical condition - are you as ready as you could be for your next ski holiday? If you’re familiar with those frustrating first days on the ski slopes when you just can't find your rhythm, your legs and your nerves are shaking and you feel like you're holding everyone up, then read on… We’ve put together some top tips to avoid the burn and the embarrassment!
Ok, well if you have a gym membership, don’t read on… However, if like many people (myself included), fixed hours, over-heated and rather perfumed fitness centres packed with perspiring bodies, are not your thing, and regular exercise just doesn’t seem to fit in with your lifestyle, then with a little motivation and creativity you can change your routine and find the time and the space to get in better shape. It’s best to start about two months before you leave on your ski holiday…
The most important areas to focus on are:
Muscular strength - mainly legs and torso
Flexibility
Good cardiovascular condition
Ok, so you’re starting to lose interest as this all sounds very serious – not at all! The good news is you can do all of the above without any special equipment - at home or in your local park! The first and most important thing to do is to speed up your normal rhythm!
• If you have a dog, don’t take him for a walk, take him for a short run - or a longer walk if running seems impossible!
• If you live in a hilly area, go for a walk and choose the steepest possible paths keeping up a steady speed going up AND down – you’ll feel the benefits of this in just a few days!
• Kids are a great excuse to get out and about! When you take your kids to the park with their bikes – take your bike too and race them rather than sitting on a park bench chatting or reading the paper!
• If there are steps in your park, then do some stepping on the first step – remembering to change leg from time to time! You can do various arm exercises at the same time if you fancy! No excuses if it’s raining – if you have stairs at home, then this is just as effective!
• Find a short hill and do short 30 second sprints to the top, with your head down and pump your arms at the same time – walk slowly back down and repeat several times – preferably do this on grass or your joints may suffer...
• Find a large log in the park or your garden and standing alongside the log, jump with both feet to the other side – this exercise imitates the movement of transferring weight when carrying out short turns or mogul skiing! You’ll feel the affects rather quickly!
• Borrow your children’s toys! This might sound strange but space hopping around the garden or skipping for 5 minutes are surprisingly exhausting and very good all round exercise!
• If you can avoid taking the car, walk instead!
• If you live or work in a tall building, take the stairs rather than the lift!
• One of my favourite and most satisfying exercises is punching an inflatable punch ball! Keep your ams high and your legs wide apart – 5 minutes a day will get your arms, shoulders and waist in great shape! These are not particularly expensive (around £15/£20) and the advantage is once you’ve been skiing you can deflate it and store it away for next year!
• If you don’t mind investing a little more money, buy yourself some rollerblades (prices start from around £40) and find a safe smooth area to practise. Rollerblading is a great all-round sport to get in shape for skiing as you use almost all the same muscles and it is an excellent cardiovascular exercise – watch out though as your weight transfer is not the same as when skiing! And, of course, wear wrist, knee and elbow protection as you don’t want to injure yourself before leaving!
• If by now, you’re getting really motivated, there are of course the old classics – sit ups and wall sits! When doing sit ups, make sure your back is not arched – every part of your spine should touch the floor! Wall sits are excruciatingly painful but very satisfying! This involves bending your knees to a 90° angle and leaning your back against the wall – as if you were sitting on a chair – but you’re not!
It’s very important to warm up before and cool down after the more strenuous activities above with a little stretching and deep breathing to eliminate those lactic acids!
If you’re really motivated to get in shape and you want to brush up your skills, then why not try out an indoor ski centre or dry ski slope. If you're a first-time skier, it's definitely a good idea to take a few lessons in the UK first as this will save precious skiing time on the slopes. Some of our favourite centres are SNO!zone real-snow centres in Milton Keynes and Castleford and their partner Snow Factor in Braehead in Scotland. You'll see a range of lessons and refresher courses on offer at very reasonable prices. Another is Chill Factor in Manchester where you’ll find tons of fun snowy activities for the whole family.
Don’t forget, you can join us on
Facebook
and let us know all about your ideas and tips for getting fit for skiing !
Being lucky enough to have parents who were crazy about skiing, my love for the mountains started when I was 4 years old on our first family ski holiday to Austrian ski resort of Obergurl. One ski holiday a year was never enough and tears rolled down my face as I looked out the back window of the car on the drive down the valley on the way home!
