Warming up prior to training sessions is one aspect of conditioning that is often overlooked.. Warming up refers to the raising of body temperature or, more specifically, muscle temperature. Injury prevention is the reason to focus on warming up. Increasing the muscle temperature can increase the elasticity of muscle tissue, reducing the risk of tears and strains. Preceding a strength, or conditioning session, incorporate ten to thirty minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity. It is best that the warm-up ends no more than ten minutes before you begin the training session. A longer lag time will result in a cooling of the tissue. After a ten to thirty minute warm-up it is recommended that you stretch-out.

When, and how you incorporate stretching into your program are the keys. Generally, I do not recommend stretching before the warm-up routine of the training session. The likelihood of injury may increase if stretching is initiated before the muscles are properly warmed up. Strength training strengthens the specific muscle groups associated with the training activity. However, the muscle groups and the connective tissues surrounding the trained muscle groups usually become less flexible as they strengthen. The decrease of flexibility is accompanied by an increase in the probability of injury due to an increased muscle fiber and connective tissue tension. So, we want to stretch to maintain joint elasticity, and promote blood flow too the muscles, tendons, and ligaments. Stretching following workouts also appears to increase the muscle cells uptake of amino acids. This aids in the recovery process, by promoting protein synthesis within the muscle cells.

A good guideline for stretching has been established by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM). They suggest stretching a minimum of three days per week. With the intensity of the stretches being done to a position of mild discomfort, with the duration lasting ten to thirty seconds per stretch. It is recommended that each stretch is repeated three to five times, then move onto a different muscle group. The type of stretching that should be done is static stretches. A static stretch is one that is held with no movement while stretching. Avoid ballistic, or bouncing-type stretches; which, increase the likelihood of overstretching and straining the muscles and connective tissue. The areas of the body that should be emphasized are the lower back, legs, and the muscle group being trained that day. There is an ample supply of books available on this subject. Two sources that I would recommend are the ACSM and the NSCA. Both of these organizations publish texts and periodicals.

Lets move onto strength/resistance training. One purpose of strength training for a skier is to be able to resist, absorb, and redirect energy that is imposed upon them. One benefit is an increase in bone strength, by repeated stress; which, causes bone cells to migrate to the region of bone that is stressed and leave deposits of protein to increase bone density (strength). Another benefit is that tendons and muscles are strengthened. Tendons attach the muscles to the bones, and ligaments attach bones to bones. Tendons and ligaments are tissues that consist of collagen and elastin fibers. These tissues give our joints elasticity and strength. The stress that is put on the tendons and ligaments through strength training promotes the growth of collagen fibrils in diameter and number, which results in an increase in strength. This can lead to a stronger joint.

While setting up a strength training program a primary goal of the program is to develop total body strength in a relatively time effective manner. Always including the body core exercises. Body core exercises focus on the abdominal and lower back. We do this because the forces that are applied on and by your legs must pass through the core of your body. If the body core is weak, much of the force is dissipated and lost. While working-out, we should target an hour in duration per workout session. Programs lasting longer than one hour per session are associated with higher dropout rates. The ACSM recommends a minimum of eight to ten exercises that train the major muscle groups. Perform multi-joint exercises whenever possible. Free-weight lifts are best for performing these exercises. This type of lifting not only target’s the major muscle groups, but work the stabilizer muscles. Stabilizer muscles are the small muscles that aide in supporting the joints along with the major muscle groups. As stated earlier, consult a training specialist before starting a training program. It is essential that proper lifting technique be implemented, especially with free-weights, to avoid possible injuries. The recommended number of repetitions for each exercise is eight to twelve, or to the point of willful fatigue. These exercises should be performed at least two days per week. While more frequent training and additional sets and repetitions elicit larger strength gains, the additional improvement is relatively small.

This brings up a question that is often asked in the middle of the season, "Should I be lifting during the ski season? You bet! Don’t let all of the progress that you gained during the off season go to waste.. Also be sure that you are lifting after the spots activity. This will reduce the chance of injury, and promote sound movement patterns while participating in the athletic event. Another, aspect of training that people often overlook is recovery between sets and work-outs.

Recovery is very important, if not done overtraining can occur. Overtraining is best described as a decreased work capacity resulting from an imbalance between training and rest. This is best said that when there is a decrease in performance there is a strong chance of illness or overtraining. This can lead to dropout. A few of the signs of overtraining are: apathy, lethargy, sleep disturbances, weight loss, elevated resting heart rate and blood pressure, muscle pain or soreness, mood changes, retarded recovery from exertion, and appetite loss. The heart rate recovery zone is sixty to seventy percent of maximum heart rate (MHR), which is done by equating the formula HRmax = 220-age. This is the most used formula for establishing MHR. There are other ways to more accurately establish your MHR. This would be done by a conditioning specialist. The recovery time between sets generally varies from thirty seconds to three minutes. This depends on the intensity of the workout, and the condition of the athlete. The higher conditioned athlete is going to have a quicker recovery time.

Finally, we will go over aerobic conditioning. The established guidelines set by the ACSM, is that the intensity of aerobic exercise be between sixty to ninety percent of the MHR. The duration of the continuous aerobic activity is twenty to sixty minutes. There should be three to five activity sessions per week. The benefit of aerobic conditioning is an increased aerobic capacity. The heart increases in size, with a greater contractility; which increases the maximal cardiac output. This is the amount of blood pumped by the heart per minute; which, decreases the heart rate at the same relative workload This means more output with less energy expended. Conditioning also raises our metabolism, increasing fat utilization.

In the last two articles I have attempted to motivate people including myself to be active, or more active. Promoting a healthy lifestyle. I hope that I have painted a picture that shows you don’t have to be training for something in particular, to be in shape. We should want to do it just for the health benefits; with the prolonged high quality life that it can bring in the years to come. This article only covers a small piece of a big pie, and opinions do vary, so ask around. Have a great winter.