Ski Training with Groucho

The three of us were hyped. Ski season was finally here, the snow was sparkling below our boots and we were just seconds away from sliding down the mountain on our new skis. While the first day of a new season typically arrives with a bit of trepidation, this year I was really ready. Hours on the Stairmaster were finally going to pay off. I performed the mandatory double whack of the ski poles before jabbing them into the snow and prepared to push off. Then, with all of the warning of a heart attack, both of my legs seized into crippling muscle cramps, dropping me to the snow, while my friends flew away. So much for great preparation…

The Right Stuff…
Exercise professionals have long touted the concept of “specificity of training”. What that means is that the best way to prepare for a winter of skiing, boarding or skating is a winter of skiing, boarding or skating. Tough, when it’s August and 95 degrees outside. But unless you’re capable of spending your summer in Portillo, Chile, you’ll just have to make due with what you have available: exercises that reasonably emulate your winter sport.

To adequately address fitness and how our body moves during sports, you need to be aware that muscles contract in four different ways; two of them are commonly used in sports. Concentric contractions occur whenever a muscle shortens. An example would be when your thigh muscle extends your knee, or when your bicep flexes your elbow joint. Conversely, eccentric contractions occur whenever a muscle lengthens. Examples would include flexing your knee joint while descending stairs (which lengthens the thigh muscles). Most anti-gravity sports, like snow skiing predominantly use eccentric muscle contractions.