Tag Archives: Ski Fit

Get ski fit for your ski holiday

Get ski fit for your ski holiday

Ski for longer and ski better

Being ski fit for your ski holiday is essential for several reasons. It enhances your performance by improving your strength, endurance, balance, and agility, allowing you to ski with control and efficiency.

The biggest impact that being fit for your ski holiday will be that you will enjoy your time on the slopes even more. You will be able to take on bigger challenges, explore the whole of the Three Valleys and not get the midweek energy slump. 

To help we asked our friends to make us a fitness video to ensure you are ski fit. So get ready for skiing and improve your muscular endurance, flexibility, strength and mobility so you can ski for longer and ski better.

Alpine Action Ski Fit Video

10-minute ski fit workout for Alpine Action from fitness guru Bay Fitness.

Start these exercise 4 weeks before your trip and do each exercise for 1 minute every day.

If you’re not too fit to start with you can perform each exercise for 20 seconds and build up until you can manage the full minute.


Take a look at all our chalets for 2023/24


Ski fitness breakdown

Exercise One – The Running Man
Exercise Two – Curtsey Lunge
Exercise Three – Side Step Squat
Exercise Four – Yoga Long Lunge
Exercise Five – Parallel Ski Jump
Exercise Six – Lunge and High Kick
Exercise Seven – Forward Diametric Jump
Exercise Eight – The Hindu Squat
Exercise Nine – The Dance of Warrior Two
Exercise Ten – Lunge and Rotate
Ski with www.alpineaction.co.uk

Get ski fit with www.bayfitness.co.uk

Ski Fitness app and workout

Ski Fitness Apps and Online workouts

There are plenty of other ways to get your fitness ready for skiing, like a fitness app. You may be using one to help you train and stay fit already, so check to see if you can tailor your workouts to improve the muscles and endurance you need for skiing.


SnowFit:

Prepare yourself for the upcoming skiing and snowboarding season with SnowFit workouts. These tailored exercises target your legs, arms, core, back, balance, mobility, and cardio fitness, ensuring you are in top shape. With seven workouts available, each offering multiple levels of difficulty, you can customize your training to suit your fitness level and goals. With over four hours of exercise in total, SnowFit provides a comprehensive fitness program to get you ready for the slopes.

Download the app

SkiFit:

SkiFit is designed specifically for skiers to improve their fitness and performance on the slopes. They also offer customized training plans, workout videos, and exercises targeting ski-specific muscles.

Watch SkiFit Videos

SkierFit:

The SkierFit app, available at joinfitapp.com, offers a specialized program designed to improve your fitness for skiing. The app provides a comprehensive training plan with exercises targeting the specific muscles and movements used in skiing. SkierFit focuses on enhancing your strength, endurance, balance, and agility to optimize your performance on the slopes. The program includes a variety of workouts and training sessions suitable for different fitness levels. By following the SkierFit program, you can enhance your skiing abilities, prevent injuries, and make the most of your ski adventures.

Try the SkierFit app

Get ski fit

Ski Yoga

We are big advocates of Yoga or Snowga here at Alpine Action. We know that it helps strengthen muscles used for skiing and makes you more flexible, which is a big bonus for skiers.

Here are two of our favourite ski-focused yoga sessions on YouTube.

The first is this gentle one from the Ski improvement app Carv.

The second is a more intense yoga session from Erin at Five Parks Yoga. Quite a few of us in the team have been known to do this one religiously every week before and during the ski seasons.

Olympic skiers workouts

Bode Miller

If you’re looking for something more hardcore, you could check Bode Miller’s hardcore skiing workout.

Bode Miller’s workout

The workout includes a combination of exercises targeting the legs, core, and upper body, with an emphasis on explosive movements and functional training. Miller incorporates various activities such as weightlifting, plyometrics, balance exercises, and cardio workouts to improve his overall fitness and skiing performance. By following his rigorous routine, skiers can gain inspiration and ideas for their own training programs, aiming to enhance their skills and excel in the thrilling world of skiing.

Chemmy Alcott

Chemmy Alcott had a remarkable career as a British alpine ski racer, competing in multiple Winter Olympic Games and World Championships. She specialized in the speed events of downhill and super-G, where she showcased her exceptional skills and daring approach.

You can discover some of her secrets in this short Ski fitness video she made for the Ski Club or Great Britain.

Apres ski fitness

We have saunas or hot tubs in most our chalets. To some they are a relaxing treat at the end of the ski day. But they also have a real benifit for your body after a fun day on the slopes.

Saunas and hot tubs benefit skiers by promoting muscle relaxation, improving circulation, relieving stress, aiding in detoxification, and providing joint and pain relief. They offer a soothing and rejuvenating experience that helps skiers recover faster and enhance their overall well-being.

Ski fit hot tub
Chalet Serpolet

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How to help your body recover from skiing or snowboarding

Our guide to how you can help your body recover from a day skiing or snowboarding : Get the most out of your ski trip.

Do you plan to get ski fit for your next trip only to put it off and then suddenly you’re on a plane and you haven’t done any relevant exercises?

Skiing and Snowboarding work parts of your body that you don’t use in everyday life.

If you aren’t “ski body” ready there are going to be parts of you that will ache after a day on the slopes.

There are things that you can do during the evening in your chalet to make you feel ready for the next day on the slopes.

Meribel ski lift

Stretching

Stretching is one of the best ways to help your body recover after skiing, it will help you to avoid sore muscles the next day.

Stretching after a day of riding helps muscles return to their original position by removing the tension.

During your post ski stretching the circulation of blood will return to your muscles allowing them to recover and repair. Make sure that you focus on stretching your leg muscles, glutes and lower back.

Here is a handy warm down guide from ski expert Warren Smith.

Warm up

Warming your muscles up a few hours after exercises can really help ease the pain and get your body back to it’s full potential.

In most of our ski chalets you will find a hot tub or a sauna. Don’t mistake these for novelties that add a level of sophistication to your holiday, these are important bits of kit that can help your post-ski recovery.

Warming your body in a hot tub or sauna increases blood flow and allows more oxygen get to your muscles.

Experts advise that you wait for several hours before hopping into a sauna or a hot tub after skiing or snowboarding and to make sure that you are thoroughly hydrated.

Many sports therapists also suggest that you should wait until your a few days into your trip before indulging your muscles as the heat can also inflame your muscles and slow down the recovery.

… & in the morning

If you are an early riser or you don’t rush out onto the slopes you may want to use the time to warm up in the hot tub, sauna or shower. Warm muscles are less likely to be damaged during exercises.

Sauna

 

 GET FIT FOR YOUR NEXT SKI HOLIDAY

Massage

A great way to make sure you are ready for the next day on the slopes is to get a sports massage that works on the soft tissues around the most worked parts of your body.

A massage after skiing should focus on your lower back and knee area. Having your body looked after like this will aid your relaxation and increase your recovery.

Ice Bath

Out of all the techniques, this is probably the best at ensuring your muscles recover overnight.

The chances that your chalet will have enough ice on hand to do this is unlikely but don’t worry.

All you need is a bath at normal cold tap temperature, between 8°C and 10°C. The cold temperature will slow the inflammation and help get the recovery process working faster.

You should go for two sessions of five minutes with a warm-up in between. If there is a fresh dump of snow you could always jump in that.

Stay hydrated

All the above will be a waste of time if you don’t hydrate effectively at the end of the day.

We all know that at altitude you lose water from your body faster than at sea level. If you are then taking part in a strenuous activity such as skiing or snowboarding you will become dehydrated even quicker.

Your body needs liquid to help with repairing muscles as well as to extract the nutrients from your food during the digestion process.

Taking a drink directly after skiing will also lower your heart rate faster and ensure that you don’t spend the evening feeling fatigued. Please note that chalet wine is not an acceptable way to hydrate yourself!

As we mentioned at the start one options is to be ski fit for your trip.

Try this handy routine.