You like your collarbones, right? Which means you should probably do a little prep before you go skiing or snowboarding this winter, to avoid injury.
“In preparing for the snow, the big ones to work on are joint stability and endurance,” says PT and chiropractor Tim Robards, Deep Heat ambassador and creator of The Robards Method. “Not so much at the ankles, because you’re strapped into a boot, but in your knees, hips and core. So you need to work on proprioception [awareness of your body in space] and balance.”
Robards’ prescription: “Anything single-legged, like this ‘baseball throw’ (see video, below). While leg extensions and bicep curls work one joint, doing this gets your whole body balanced. When you’re skiing – and more so when snowboarding – it’s all about everything working together. Add a few reps of the baseball throw into your normal workout routine.”
Instructions for the baseball throw:
1. Put one arm out in front of you and the other arm (the one with your dominant hand) curved above you, moving both arms and twisting your upper body slightly, as if you were throwing a ball. (Keep your hips facing square to the front.)
2. As you move your arms through the chucking motion, lift your dominant leg back behind you at an approximate 90-degree angle.
3. Still in a single motion, bring your ball-holding hand down to touch a knee – or if you can stay balanced, your grounded foot – raising your leg higher behind and straightening it at the same time.
4. Return back to standing. Repeat.
Do this at least three times a week. Other single-leg exercises – single-leg squats, pistol squats, single-leg deadlifts – plus moves on a Bosu ball are also good.
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