So you have decided to get ready for the start of the snow season and want to make sure you can walk after your first day back?
Well, maybe I am jumping the gun – you might have just been going up on weekends and are getting pretty dern sick of having rubbery leg syndrome every monday.
So, the top three exercises that I do with my athletes/real people who like to ski:
Number 1:
with twist:
With every turn, your body rotates in an extremely complex arrangement of bones, muscles and everything else inbetween. If you have trained your body to be strong just in a classic ‘up-down’ phase, then you are failing to train your body the way you naturally move on skis – in rotation.
Number 2:
1- leg deadlift:
Stand on one leg. Reach down and touch your toes then stand up again. Feel the hamstraing and glute muscles kick in? What is it that makes you fall over? Could it be your body is off balance (weighted on one leg) and in a position it cannot recover from? This exercise gives you a fighting chance to not only be stronger, but to be more in control.
Number 3:
Standing cable woodchops:
Grab a cable and rotate with the arms straight as if about to chop down a tree with an axe. Do it from low to high, high to low, left to right and vice versa. Get your body twisting against resistance because with evey pole plant your body is responding to the ful body load in rotation!
POST UPDATE 09/01/2010! New Location for Classes (including Ski Conditioning): see www.fitnessbyatlas.com to read about the new setup for ski conditioning – it’s totally awesome!
Your Exercise Program is Getting You to the Halfway Point of your ‘Ski Potential’ – At best!!!
Regardless your skiing preference, your glutes are a crucial part of your turning power
The butt is the most important part of your ski turn.
These muscles must absorb the majority of shock and distribute it down the thigh and calf before exploding out to create the ‘ski turn’. Without these muscles working properly, your front thigh muscles (the quadriceps) must do even more work which puts your knees and other joints at risk.
The exercises you will see makes use of my fifteen years of personal training experience and numerous consultations with various body-shaping coaches, physical therapists, movement specialists and other fitness professionals. The exercises you are about to see can help you develop and tone your glutes for the action of skiing like nothing you have seen before.
Before I reveal to you my secret weapon, here is a quick and relatively painless explanation of how our muscles work (Warning: This next section may make you smarter than your personal trainer!)
Our muscles are like cables that pull – they are attached at two ends, and when we want it to achieve a movement they pull together to achieve a movement.
If you think about the line in which we move the bicep doing bicep curls, it is a straight up and down movement. We shorten our bicep through a full range of motion in a straight line (funnily enough, in line with the fibers of the muscle – this is your first clue). To get the most out of a muscle we must exercise:
In the line in which the fibers are oriented
Through a full range of motion
If you missed ‘advanced human physiology 301′ in college (I loved this class, but all of my others… well, lets not talk about me – lets keep the focus on you
Here are some visuals to work with. Your biceps fibers run in a mostly vertical direction
Your glutes… do not. They wrap around the butt at an angle.
If you look closely (go on, soak them in… I wont tell) you will see that the fibers run in ANYTHING BUT a vertical position. It becomes plain to see that the fibers of the glute run at almost a 45 degree angle!
By this understanding, if we want to work the butt in the same way we work the bicep (through a full range of motion), would it make sense to work the butt in a different way than straight up and down? Think about the motion of the bicep curl being up and down, and the motion of a lunge being… well, up and down. This guys problem (apart from having misplaced his shirt) is that he is only working the glute through half of its range of motion and therefore half of its potential.
Now look at the pictures above. I agree that the muscle might be working, but is it working the way YOU want it to be working? At full range? To full effectiveness? To give you the full potential?
Can you see how the everyday lunge (shown above) is only working our glutes through PART of the range of motion? Can you see how when you rotate your hips you use even more of this angulation? Does it make sense that your butt is the most important part of your ski turn? If you said yes, then print yourself off a personal trainer badge and pin it on. You’re hired.
Below is a 4 minute video that explains and demonstrates how your glutes move (put together by Jamie Atlas, master trainer for Back Bowl Ski Conditioning), but also shows a couple of exercise variations that you can do to REALLY work the butt. Watch this video to work your butt to the max like never before!
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lHU50G0tmA if it doesnt show up on your browser)
If your gluteus maximus has been a little too much on the minimus side, then these exercises are what you have been looking for. These lunge variations (if done correctly and with good form) are your new best friend – or worst enemy, depending on how you look at it If you don’t normally do lunges, then just do the basic ‘perfect lunge’ version – 2 sets of 15 reps each leg, 3/week (add weight if it gets too easy) for 4-8 weeks. Then email me to say thanks – send me a thank you e-card if you would like
After you have gotten better at the basic version, try the intermediate version – but make sure you are feeling confident with the basic version first and have good form and no pain as you go through the movement.
If you have done all that and are ready for the advanced version, watch this video:
Get working with with this workout as part of your skiing routine and you will find yourself ruling the mountain in no time!
Jamie Atlas
Interested in attending a Ski Conditioning 4 week Program? Live in the Denver area?
POST UPDATE 09/01/2010! New Location for Classes: see www.fitnessbyatlas.com to read about the new setup for ski conditioning – it’s totally awesome!
I showed this video to a few friends and realized a strange aspect of human nature. Why is it that whenever a guy gets whacked in the package, the guys watching cringe in horror while the girls laugh out loud?
Of course, would getting whacked at high speed make it more hysterical? Check this poor guy:
Are you in need of ski conditioning? Do you live in the Denver, CO area?
After completing one of the specially designedBack Bowl 5 week programs, you will experience the following:
Improved speed and turn control
The endurance to take turns all day and be ready for night skiing
Be able to power through deep powder easily and effortlessly
Greater core strength and upper body control
Better coordination in unfamiliar territory
Less falls
Decreased risk of injury
If you are interested in being part of the next class, you can call now to book a place for classes through the month of October and November.
5 week programs start up every two weeks.
Call/Sign up today, because this class is only offered for a limited time!
Need convincing? Have questions? Like to get in on the next group? Call 720 203 3084 or email jamescatlas@yahoo.com to check on availability for the next class.
When?
Classes happen through the month of October and November. 5 week programs are scheduled in two week increments.
Where?
Classes are run in the highlands area from an indoor studio or -weather permitting-a nearby park
How much?
2008 pricing is $360 for a 5 week, 3/wk program. Classes are held before and after work
How do I sign up?
We recommend you call for a brief consultation so you can be placed in a class that best reflects your skiing and physical abilities to ensure maximal results and satisfaction. Please contact Jamie Atlas on 720 203 3084 or email jamescatlas@yahoo.com to arrange your initial meet/phone consult.
To find out more please contact:
Jamie Atlas – Master Instructor, Double Diamond Ski Conditioning on 720 203 3084 or email jamescatlas@yahoo.com
Did you swear last year that you would get in better shape for this years ski season?
If you are like most people, your ski season last year preparation probably consisted of a couple of deep knee squats next to the car before you head up the Gondola.
Hopefully you didn’t start off your first day anything like these guys:
If you recall, you probably had trouble walking a couple of days after your first few runs.
You might also have found yourself falling, gasping for air, apologizing to others and generally not enjoying yourself too much at all.
You might even find yourself injured or somewhat hobbled at some point – in part thanks to your poor preparation.
The first day of ski season doesn’t have to be a rite of passage.
There can be many things to hold you back from enjoying your day at the mountain:
Chance of Injury
Fatigue
Lack of endurance needed to get through the day
Inadequate balance to navigate tougher runs
Tired legs
If you find yourself struggling to perform at your best as the day goes on, you may benefit from a conditioning program. However, you should not settle for just any old workout. Here’s a few things to consider:
As you land though a turn, you counter-rotate the upper body. This upper body rotation lengthens the same-side gluteus muscle.
The #1 Mistake even the best skiers make when training:
If you are not training your hips to rotate as they squat, you are not training your legs to ski
Stand with your feet at shoulder width. Bend your knees about 20 degrees. Grab your butt cheeks. Grab a good chunk of muscle of your right and left glute in each hand (try not to do this one in public – the people in the supermarket might wonder what is going on).
Now rotate your body to the left and try to look behind you. If you noticed, your left glute switched on and lengthened a bit more than your right glute. You use each glute differently with each turn, and you use each glute while in rotation. Now ask yourself the following questions:
Have you been training with rotation?
Have you ever done a squat with rotation?
Do you know how to do this exercise safely and effectively?
If the answer is no, you could be missing out on valuable strength, flexibility and power to help you keep those turns crisp and fast.
Abs of steel don’t help if that steel doesn’t twist
Now think about the action of a ski turn. Does it involve rotation? Does your core work consist of any rotational movements, or are they all simple crunches and side bends? Do you know how to safely and effectively train the core to be strong while going through a skiing motion? If you don’t, you may be putting your hips, low back and upper back at higher risk of injury.
What does the ACL do? The ACL serves to control rotation of the upper body as it lands and explodes from the ski turn position.
If your hips and core cannot assist in the acceleration and deceleration of your upper body and hips, then your ACL is left to do the majority of the work.
Talk to your local physical therapist and they will happily tell you the number one ski injury is a torn ACL. With the right type of training, you can give your body the best chance of preventing an ACL injury.
Promo Alert:Back Bowl Ski Conditioning Programs are designed to train the body to be strong, powerful and flexible in all the right places at the right times.
The Back Bowl Conditioning program is the best ACL injury prevention strategy on the market today!
This advanced level of movement science for ski conditioning has previously been the domain of elite athletes and international ski coaches. The new training method now comes to you with all of the science, but has been adjusted such that this program is suitable for skiers of any level. Heres why it works so well:
If you train the legs, hips and core to be strong in a ‘front to back’ sense rather than a ‘rotational’ sense, you have not only worked out inefficiently, you have done little to nothing to help protect your ACL (the guardian of injury for the ‘rotational’ movements).
If you are interested in preparing for your season to give yourself the biggest chance of success and the smallest chance of injury, be sure to look for a program that follows certain foundational principles:
Qualified instructor(s)
Trains each individual according to their specific needs
Only trains small groups – no more than 7
Understands the functional aspects and physiological needs of the body as it goes through a ski turn
Is able to work with all levels of athlete
The next Back Bowl Ski Conditioning Small Group class will embrace all of the above. After completing one of the specially designed 5 week programs, you will experience the following:
Improved speed and turn control
The endurance to take turns all day and be ready for night skiing
Be able to power through deep powder easily and effortlessly
Greater core strength and upper body control
Better coordination in unfamiliar territory
Less falls
Decreased risk of injury
If you are interested in being part of the next class, you can call now to book a place for classes through the month of October and November.
5 week programs start up every two weeks.
Call/Sign up today, because this class is only offered for a limited time!
Need convincing? Have questions? Like to get in on the next group? Call 720 203 3084 or email jamescatlas@yahoo.com to check on availability for the next class.
When?
Classes happen through the month of October and November. 5 week programs are scheduled in two week increments.
Where?
Classes are run in the highlands area from an indoor studio or -weather permitting-a nearby park
How much?
2008 pricing is $360 for a 5 week, 3/wk program. Classes are held before and after work
How do I sign up?
We recommend you call for a brief consultation so you can be placed in a class that best reflects your skiing and physical abilities to ensure maximal results and satisfaction. Please contact Jamie Atlas on 720 203 3084 or email jamescatlas@yahoo.com to arrange your initial meet/phone consult.
To find out more please contact:
Jamie Atlas – Master Instructor, Double Diamond Ski Conditioning on 720 203 3084 or email jamescatlas@yahoo.com
PS Don’t try this at home – or in the subway for that matter:
