Get in shape with these tips
Tips for fitness are never going to go unused, we all need a little encouragement and help sometimes.
We have top tips from Ellie Koyander from the Ladies Ski Club about getting into shape and staying physical.
1: Plan Progressions
If you have a trip booked, it’s important to make sure you are fit and healthy. You want to make the most of it. Start early with your planning and respect that your body needs gradual changes over time to get fit. A burst of last minute training a week before you go will not achieve very much. So work backwards from your trip, build your fitness in stages starting from your current level and getting progressively more and more challenging the closer it gets to your trip. The week before your trip lower the intensity again! This should guarantee good energy levels when you get away and avoid any last minute injury! This is how I plan my training around World Cup competitions to ensure I can compete at my optimum level and it will really make a difference to your holiday if you have a plan in place.
2: Quality over Quantity
Don’t think you need to spend hours and hours in the gym or working out. Think more quality over quantity. This allows your body to advance quickly and leaves time for it to recover in between sessions too.
3: Balanced mixture of workouts
Remember not to focus completely on one thing such as strength. Strength work is important but you also need some cardio vascular work too, especially if you’re headed for higher altitude. A nice range of impact free workouts such as cycling, swimming, free weights and core work outs, will help to ensure your body is ready for anything!
4: Little and often
Do your exercise ‘little and often’ to ensure you are working towards quality over quantity. Find out what works best for you, maybe 30 mins in the morning and 30 mins in your lunch break. Everyone works to different schedules but ‘little and often’ is the way forward. Increase the intensity the closer it gets to your trip and then back off again the week before you go away.
5: Strong core is essential
All movement is controlled by our core muscles which include the lower back. It’s important to make sure you have a strong core so that you are in complete control of your limbs on your skis and can dominate the mountain! My favourite exercises include a simple plank, Russian twists and cycle sit ups- all great exercises that can also be performed in a hotel room as I travel on the World Cup Circuit.
6: Eat a Rainbow
Recovery food is really important after a full day of exploring the mountain. Protein ( fish, meat, eggs, dairy products) is the building block for repairing muscles and you should try to ‘eat a rainbow’ with lots of different coloured fruit and veg that are packed full of vitamins and minerals which will keep your immune system high and help you to stay fit and healthy!
7: Eat within 15-20 min after exercise
Eating in this zone helps to prevent fatigue and allows your body to recover quicker after exercise. My favourite snack after exercise is a banana ;)
8: Protein before vigorous exercise
Eating protein before a hard training session can again help your body to recover faster. When you fatigue your body it uses protein in your muscles. Eating Protein beforehand will give your body something to replenish your stores quicker and help to keep your recovery time lower.
9: Stay Hydrated
Staying hydrated is really important, especially high up in the dry-aired mountains. Keeping hydrated will help to keep you focused and enable you to ski for longer.
10: Don’t forget to rest!
Finally…rest is important too! Make sure you give your body enough time to repair and recover. Sometimes if you’re feeling exhausted it’s better to take a step back and do an easier workout so that you can easily take three steps forward again next time!
Ellie Koyander will at the Ski and Snowboard Show with The Ladies Ski Club at Earls Court from 31st October.
Femalefirst Taryn Davies
Tagged in Health exercise Healthy Body fitness tips Workout