Best ways to get in mega skiing shape during the offseason?

run down hill.

to reduce the impact, keep the pace smooth (sprinting is not necessary), heel-to-toe and slightly pull the hips back to use the quads more than the knees.

keep it smooth or you'll destroy your knees. But if it's done properly, it will train your reaction time as well as your quads. It also mimics skiing in its use of muscle contractions.

Mountain biking

anerobic a aerobic conditioning
strenght even for your upper body and core
balance
dynamic balance
stability ie hitting rock gardens would compare to skiing crud
how to read terrain
line choice
air awareness
learning to look ahead


also almost no park rats on here and hugo harrision was never aprk rat he got his start in IFSA big mountain comps.

and if you want to see what sage does in the off season check this out.

that's some insane riding bushwacker. Whoever rode that track the first time had grande cujons. Who is Sage?

one ofthe best skier overall i nthe world and all around gret guy, go watch a TGR movie.

Biking is awesome. In addition to biking just doing a few hikes every few weeks seems to hit some other muscles in my legs that biking seems to miss. You can hike with 1-2lb ankle weights and ski poles to help increase the work out.

:

that was insane, thnx for the vid.

Wow... I hope he has a good health insurance and life insurance policy...

Cycling, road or mtb, is great for general aerobic fitness and certain leg muscles, and I like road for fitness, mtb for awareness/balance. Cycling isn't weight bearing though, so I try to do other things to supplement.

Trail running and strength/balance training, i.e. lunges (with/without weights, front and side), Bosu ball, etc are helpful. You could even stand on one leg with your eyes closed (harder than you'd think), use stairs, etc.

Yoga is good for flexibility, awareness of imbalances (which I usually address with targeted exercises like superman for my back). Pilates is more focused on core, but I like yoga better. YMMV

epicski works out the fingers...

Many park rats are actually really strong overall skiiers.

Mountain biking is really good. it seems you like BC stuff, so DH or FR biking will work good, air sense, getting used to airing things, core, and leg strength, but of course nothing is better than skiing itself.

so disagree....

the nopoled park rats realyl cant skis worth a **** at my mountain.

High Intensity Training, also know as heavy duty workout, Mentzer brothers preached it Dorian Yates kicked ass with it. Fastest way to get big and strong. Look it up.

To sum it up you, do one or two warm up sets at a light weight, then with no stops, do the heaviest weight that you can do in perfect form for at least 8 reps, drop down to the next highest weight that you can do at least another 8 reps, then once again with no rest, do the next weight you can do till failure. This is not for the faint of heart, but it is the best and fastest way to put on muscle mass (with or without the juice); that and proper rest and nutrition.

People cant understand how I am able to get so big so fast after taking time off from the gym (always being accused of being on the sauce); this is the way I always train, it works.

Doesn't that build more mass than pure strength?

It does build mass quickly, but you do get very strong very fast as well.

Add to the above:

Backpacking
Mountain climbing
aerobics
roller blading

Repeat of above:

road and mountain biking
trail running
core exercise
weight training
plyometric training
stretching
balance training

I think that it's important to do a broad array of exercises - not just strength. I don't think that the best guys have stregnth alone, rather a combination of endurance, power, strength, balance, flexability, body awareness. Lisa Marie's article suggests the same.

I do a minimum of about 14 hours per week - up to 20 hours per week when specific event driven. (I have a full time job, wife and two kids - today I'll do an easy workout by running with my 10 year old son - I did weight training/plyometrics at lunch - I'll stretch (again) this evening) Just fit it into your schedule. Exercise at lunch or before dinner. Do stretches or core work while relaxing before bed or while watching tv or a movie. Keep a journal or some type of log.

While I am an enourmous advocate of core strength, being overly large in the upper-body can get heavy.

I've never seen an olympic downhiller with a chest the size of a body-builder.

Moe was stalkly, but even he had bigger legs than anything.

Aamodt, if I remember correctly, is like 5'9" 190.

I think richie-rich is right, too. Take some of the sickest lines of your life and it essentially mimics being exhausted for 2 minutes while cranking out reps.

While I think cardio is very important for your heart, sprinting and high-intensity training are closer replicas to skiing.

Aerobic exercise such as the elliptical three times a week, tennis two or three times a week, and lots of stretching.

Inline speed skating.

Weight training is not necessary for general fitness.

crossfit.com
follow the WOD (workout of the day),do their warm up.
add a few ski specific exer.if you have anything left.

are you kidding me?

Ski Fitness has 3 elements:

Core Strength - Do Pilates
Muscle Strength - Do weight training
Cardio - Run

Great suggestion to keep you honest/motivated.

No, I am quite serious.

If it was required, children would also be doing it.

Inline speed skating is all you really need:

http://www.amazon.com/Speed-Skates-C.../dp/0880117214

It has all the elements: Sprints for exposive power, long steady distance for endurance and overall body strength -- including core. Dynamic balance on one foot. Timing/coordination. Interval training for weight loss and cardio. Agility training, knee stability, back strength, leg strength it's got it all.

Learn to skate well enough to skate 10km on a flat track in under 20 minutes, or do a standing 500m under 1 minute. You want variety? Skate hilly trails.

Then tell me you need weights.

BigE,


This is crazy.....basics. I dont really know all the background, but you never put kids on a weight program until after puberty....somthing to do with development...CSCF Level 1 stuff.

Plus kids dont have the skill to pull the gs, nor do they run courses long enough...to say kids dont have to wieght train, therefore neither do adults is ludicrious.

Remeber this guy is asking how to get into "Mega Skiing Shape".

First, kids can and do lift weights, and a lot of bodyweight activities they do also put a LOT of load on their bodies. Handsprings, anyone? But, active kids generally don't need to lift weights, BigE's right.

The o.p. did ask for "Mega SKiing Shape," but also indicated that he thought the difference between say, Seth Morrison and a "park rat" is in large part strength. He should reflect on the fact that a strong racing background in Seth Morrison's case, for instance, may have something to do with it.

I would add to Big E's prescription of inline speed skating some vert inline skating (or quads, since quads are cool again and inlines, not) at a skatepark since it seems the o.p. is interested in freeskiing. Or, DH/freeride/pumptrack MTB/bmx as noted already in this thread (you think the arms on those guys comes from the weightroom?). Or, skateboarding plus some pullups and pushups. Yeah, trail running too.

Basically, any of these will condition you very well for the demands of skiing or riding. The .01% of people who already do one of these activities regularly at a high level and are going to derive some real training benefit from hitting the weight room pretty much already know who they are.

Or, one can always try sitting on a Swiss ball and Tai Chi, it's all about slow martial arts done on flat surfaces, the crossover to skiing is obvious.

: Seriously.....I have spent a fair amount of time in gym's and have yet to see an 8 year old pumping iron....teenagers, sure, but again that is after puberty....

That is true Seth and Hugo also have huge skill sets to match their power...park rats tend to have limited skill sets....good aerilists..but lacking in just about everthing else, where as Seth and co, are the full package.

Just biking hard, may replace weights, as that is a very physically demanding...but skateboarding? Most are so skinny that they if they turned sideways that they disappear....that is not to say they dont have skills, but it is to say they lack raw power...something that is undenably valuable for true expert skiing.

Fair enough.

OTOH, kids cross train a lot, gymnastics, soccer, swimming, inline skating, ice skating, bike riding, running, jumping, playing ball.....they have more endurance than most adults, and don't weight train. I do know they should not until the bones stop growing. So for whatever reasons they do not weight train, they still can get in remarkable shape without it.

Remember the OP said he did not want the muscles he built up over the winter to go away in the summer? I'm thinking that since skiing alone is not a great strength building sport, he'd do better to develop endurance, which inline skating does in spades.

Competitive athletes have different needs. For them, weight training is a must. They are in fantastic shape, are young, and can handle that training regime. But for those older folks that are in marginal shape, weight training will take a VERY LONG TIME to acheive lasting benefits. There are many pitfalls along the way.

A total body workout -- under supervision -- during the off-season may be ok. But there are problems with developing muscular imbalances, and problems with lifting style contributing to injury, and problems with a person's health that can reveal themselves after they begin.

Weight room injuries to adults are very debilitating. IMO, If you are new to the weight room (ie, have never been in a supervised program) then unless you find competent supervision ( which can be hard ), you should not bother with it. Lifting with improper technique, to many reps, and too much weight will do FAR more harm than good.

The number one requirement to get in shape is to stay healthy. So, choose a training regime that will ensure you will. Weight training is not for everyone.