When I was just getting into skiing about 6 years ago, I started adding the leg blasters in. I was an active walker but didn't do any plyo. Yes, at that time, they made me extremely sore. I would not overdo these, follow the progression if you're going to do them.If you want more power in your legs, leg blasters. These are great for ski conditioning. They are extremely challenging... recommend starting with minis.
Leg Blaster - Mountain Tactical Institute
1x Leg Blaster = 20x air squats + 20x in-place lunges (10x each leg) + 20x jumping lunges (10x each leg) + 10x squat jumps “Mini Leg Blaster” = 10x air squats + 10x in-place lunges (5x each leg) + 10x jumping lunges (5x each leg) + 5x Squat Jumps Looking for […]mtntactical.com
If you can do six sets of mini blasters and not hobble around the week following, you will be in good (downhill) ski shape.
To do these properly you need full range of motion (ROM) for squats. This is not guaranteed if all you do is run a lot. I know some runners that have really poor flexibility/ROM. So work up to do doing proper lunge/squats if you aren't there yet before doing leg blaster circuits.
I would say the next step, when you're (edit: fundad, not Seldomski) ready, is to trade in the leg blasters (QUADS QUADS QUADS ECCENTRIC QUADS) for a general strengthening program for your whole body 3-4 times a week with weights. Skiing isn't just quads, and hammering only one body part just leads to imbalances and weakness of the antagonistic muscle groups. Your core gets used a ton in skiing and it's not too soon to start working on it.
I've been doing strength training 4 times a week for 5-6 years now (which changes and gets more and less ski specific based on time of year). I get my programming done by a trainer I trust a few times a year, and as I've learned more over the last half decade, I am influencing the direction my plans go more and more. I won't give specific recommendations because I am not an expert here, but the sooner you get from "I'll spend 10 minutes on this quadblaster a couple of times a week" to "assuming I am physician approved, I will start resistance training at an appropriate level, properly guided by good expertise" I think the better it will be for your long term skiing, overall physical health, and injury-prevention.
/notadoctor
/notatrainer
/thisisnotprofessionaladvice
Last edited: