ride all day, so their legs and trunk muscles need to be rock solid.
With these clients I always start with some plyometric drills (lateral
box jumps, side steps, jump down with side hop). The explosiveness
will help in faster directional changes, take-offs and landings, and
will also enable them to ski for longer.
The strength phase can be done with any weights, and although
squats and deadlifts won’t do any harm, I prefer curtsy lunges, single
leg lunges (TRX) and step-ups. You should focus on time under
tension with a long eccentric/short concentric ratio to push the
muscle fatigue threshold (Koller et al. 2015). Pistol squats are often
a favourite drill with athletes, but they take time to master. Any drill
that will make gluteus maximus/medius and VMO (vastus medialis
oblique) work together to stabilise the hips and knees is a winner.
Of course, legs aren’t everything, and if your client doesn’t have
a stable trunk, there will be a lot of arm flapping on the slopes!
Obliques are very important to counteract the G-Force effect and
avoid over-rotating when turning (shoulders should always face
down the slopes and arms remain forward). Cable or band drills like
Pallov Press, horizontal wood chop and single arm row work just
fine, and you can increase the difficulty by standing on a BOSU and
increasing eccentric timing. Loaded movement using a ViPR is also
very efficient, as it trains the body for changes of terrain (DeadShifts,
halos and rotations).
I may make a few enemies out there by saying this, but here goes:
I don’t believe in planks. To work my clients’ core I prefer to use
some primal movement drills such as the Animal Flow Static Beast
(with limb lifts), Underswitch, Scorpion Reach and Side Kickthrough.
These work the oblique, anterior and posterior slings to increase
stability while carving the snow.
The 30-second article
• Skiing and snowboarding are not
linear activities, so incorporate the
three planes of motion into training
programs for clients who ski
• Glute activation is crucial for
controlling knee tracking and
alleviating quad work
• Trunk rotation drills will increase
overall stability and balance
• Focus on eccentric loading,
especially for hamstrings and quads
• Ankle dorsiflexion and hamstring
length/strength will reduce the risk
of injury
• Barefoot training increases body
awareness and core activation.
Conditioning for injury prevention
Always remember that snow sports are very different from other
physical activities, particularly with regards the footwear and weight
of equipment used. Ski and snowboard boots lock you in a semi
squat position and totally change the user’s gait. The most common
ski injury is ACL/MCL rupture due to the ski torque force and
hamstring weakness, whereas snowboarders are more often prone
to fractures (ankle, collar bone and wrists).
Because skis and snowboards are controlled through micro-
movements of the feet, it’s important to get your client to really
connect with the base of their feet. For this reason, it’s advisable
to check their ability to dorsiflex, and to implement some barefoot
training.
There is a strong correlation between the deep foot stabilisers
and the deep core stabilisers, so I recommend including barefoot
drills like lateral lunge and single leg deadlift/squat, as well as fascial
tensioning drills using small dumbbells that mimic ski movements. Dr
Emily Splichal (ebfa.com) offers some great advice on barefoot and
fascial training.
Ski training needs to be fun, while focusing on
muscle endurance so clients can ski longer and feel
less sore the day after
Lateral lunge
Another key body part that is often
forgotten during snow sport training is the
hamstrings. They are extremely important
for counteracting anterior-directed ACL
shear forces and for increasing the dynamic
stability of the knee (Aagaard et al. 1998,
Tourny-Chollet & Leroy 2002) when it comes
to breaking a fall and stopping the knees
from hyperextending. Usually when the
hamstrings are weak, the cruciate ligaments
of the knees take the toll and tear during a
fall. One of the best exercises to strengthen
the hamstrings is the Nordic Curls (eccentric
loading of hamstrings).
Finally, a body that moves well is a
happy body, so mobility is very important
when it comes to carving the winter slopes.
Unfortunately, most of our clients are stuck
behind a desk for most of the day and lack
hip mobility and proper spinal rotation. I
always take my clients through a mobility
NETWORK WINTER 2017 | 53