Squat 'Til You Drop

Words by:
Mica Heli

There’s nothing like that first run of the season when you think you might die from the burning in your quads. But what if you could head that off by training and going into ski season strong? After all, once fall arrives and things are frosty, days are getting noticeably shorter, you might as well spend that time in the gym strengthening, or maybe at home with weights and the latest ski flick on. (We humbly recommend Children of the Columbia by Sherpas Cinema; in addition to being a rad story with incredible skiing, it was filmed here at Mica).

Here’s our suggestions for a workout plan to make you so strong you'll (likely) leave your fellow skiers in your sweet powder wake:

Wall Sits

These might be the best exercise possible for building up endurance for burning quads on sustained ski runs.

Reps: 3 sets of 1-minute sits.
 

Squats

Classic for developing leg strength. We all know how to do these.

Reps: 3 sets of 20
 

Squat Jumps

Like a squat, but with a quick jump out of the sitting position. This fires into your glutes more, and the explosive movement helps with transitioning between turns.

Reps: 3 sets of 10.
 

Walking Lunges

These are great not just for strength, but for balance – which we all value on skis and snowboards… They’re also effective at strengthening beyond the legs to the front and back of the core.

Reps: 2 sets of 20.
 

Burpees

Most of us have terrible memories of these from middle school physical fitness. But the truth is that burpees are some of the most effective full-body strength exercises out there, working arms, chest, abs, glutes, quads and hamstrings, while also upping your endurance.

Reps: 3 sets of 10.

You can combine all of these into one killer strength workout, rotating between exercises with 30 seconds of rest between each; incorporate some into your existing workout for ski-specific training; or completely ignore this entire post in favor of watching ski porn in all your free time. We won’t judge you.