Skiers should stay healthy all year round

If you want to stay fit to ski over the summer, you don’t have to travel to the Southern Hemisphere or search for snow on glaciers. There are plenty of other things you can do while waiting for winter to return. The experts from The Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead have put together a top 5 of summer activities for snowsports enthusiasts who have packed away their gear for the summer.

1. Mountain biking:

For many dedicated skiers and snowboarders, the summer is mountain biking season. All varieties of cycling are good to exercise leg muscles such as the calves, hamstrings and quadriceps. Mountain biking also increases your balance, agility and core strength because you need to maneuver your bike underneath you. But the advantages of this sport aren’t purely physical: you’ll also improve your ability to anticipate bumps and other irregularities while racing down the mountain.

2. Running:

One of the easiest ways to boost your cardiovascular system while building up your leg muscles is running. For optimal results, go running for at least twenty minutes 3 to 5 times a week. The advantages of a better stamina are many: you can ski or snowboard longer and faster, your après ski performance will be smashing and last but not least, during the summer, you´ll look lean and slim at the beach.

3. Yoga and Pilates:

Increasing your flexibility is just as important as cardiovascular exercise, because it will increase your agility on the snow slopes. Yoga and pilates will not only help you improve your flexibility but are also excellent ways of training all the small muscles that support the bigger muscle groups, which helps reduce the risk of injury.

4. Indoor snowsport lessons:

If you can´t wait any longer for the snow to fall, you could visit an indoor snow slope and make your dreams of skiing come true. If you’re a beginner, you can take out snowsport lessons to save you valuable time on the slopes next season. For advanced skiers, The Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead offers special coaching sessions to boost your skills. These sessions include the Parallel Plus, the Carving Clinic and the Wednesday Night Bumps.

5. Eat healthy and drink plenty of water:

If you want to stay fit, it´s important to avoid dehydration and malnutrition. For example, lack of protein in your diet will lead to muscle deterioration. A healthy diet includes plenty of fruit and vegetables; a decent amount of potatoes, bread, rice, pasta and other starchy foods; dairy products and some meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein.

The Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead has a BASI Centre of Excellence Status and is the most highly qualified snowsports school in the south of England. Skiers and snowboarders of all abilities are guaranteed to receive world class coaching.

For more information or to book, visit www.thesnowcentre.com or call 0845 258 900.