Prevent injury with ski exercises for knee strength

Skiing can be hard on the knees, especially if you’re looking to pursue it on a continuous basis. Here are some helpful tips on ski exercises for knee strength to prevent injury.

There’s no better feeling than soaring through the air of a mountainous slope with the wind blowing along your face. But just what ski exercises for knees can you do to keep top flight?

Train your body to move in the most efficient way possible. Stand in front of a mirror and focus on lining up your knees. Make sure the knee cap alignment is vertical to the floor in a 90-degree angle. Your knee cap should fall between your second and third toe. If you train your knees to default in this position, you’ll not only ski more efficiently but refrain any chronic problems with your knee joint from developing. Continue to do upwards of 20-30 reps of this on a daily basis to teach your body muscle memory.

Another way to ensure your leg muscles are strong enough to withhold endurance during a ski run is to perform wall sit exercises to strengthen your quadriceps. Making sure your back is flat against the wall, position your feet two feet away from the wall. Slide down against the wall until your legs are perpendicular and in a 90-degree angle. Use your core to maintain this position for 30 seconds or more. Repeat this for two to four sets to maximize the benefit of this ski knee exercise.

You’ll need a little bit more space to perform this exercise but it allows for superior flexibility and strength for your ski activities. Standing upright with feet hip distance apart and your hands on your hips, take a long step forward and bend your front knee until it is perpendicular to the floor. Your back knee should not touch the floor. You can either step your perpendicular leg back to the starting position and repeat this action with the same leg or take it to the next level by performing a walking front lunge.

A walking front lunge consists of stepping forward into the lunge, standing upright leading with your back leg into the upright position and stepping forward with your other leg into a lunge so that you are travelling across the room. You want to be mindful that when you are in the lunge position, your knee does not cross your toes.

These simple exercises will help you maintain strength, endurance and flexibility to prevent injury and reduce the chance of knee pain when you hit the slopes.