Welcome to the final week of our six-week program designed to condition your body so that you are ready for the best ski and snowboarding season ever.

During the first five weeks we introduced four important stretches, six strengthening exercises and talked about the fundamentals of cardiovascular exercise. This week we are adding two more strengthening exercises to your routine. If you missed any of the previous five ski/snowboard articles check them out at www.karpfitness.com, as it is never too late to join in on the fun.

Stretching (10 minutes)

After you complete a 5-10 minute cardiovascular warm-up, perform the stretches that were outlined in week one, three, and five.

Strength training (25 minutes)

This week you will add alternating lunges and stability ball crunches to your routine. These exercises are designed to complete the strengthening component of your workout by increasing your lower body strength and overall core stability. Lunges are a great sport specific exercise because they target the gluteal muscles (butt muscles) which are an important source of power and explosiveness when skiing or snowboarding. Stability ball crunches are great for improving the overall strength of your trunk muscles, which will help your balance when making those screaming turns.

Alternating Lunges

Stand with your feet together with your toes pointed straight ahead and your hands at your sides. Take an exaggerated step forward with your right leg. Bend your right knee slowly, lowering your body close to the floor. Keep your right knee directly over the right foot and your back straight. Most of your weight should be over your front foot. When your rear knee is about two inches above the floor, hold for one second and slowly return to the starting position. Repeat the exercise with your left leg. Perform 8 to 12 repetitions with each leg. You should feel your gluteus and thigh muscles, not your knees, ankles or back. Perform two to three sets with a one to two minute break between each set. To increase the intensity try holding weights in each hand.

Stability Ball Crunches

When using a stability ball you must make sure the ball is the correct size for you. To determine this sit on the ball with your feet shoulder width apart. If your knees are at a 90 degree angle the ball is the right size for you and you are ready to start. To perform an abdominal crunch effectively on the ball, start by moving your hips forward and lying back onto the ball. Place your hands across your chest. Once in this position concentrate on raising your chest and shoulders up to a 45 degree angle. Now squeeze your abdominals and return to the starting position. Perform three sets of 15 to 20 repetitions. To increase the difficulty put your feet closer together. If you do not have access to a stability ball perform your crunches on an exercise mat.

Cardiovascular Exercise (30 minutes)

These exercises should be followed by 30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise. If you missed the information in week one regarding cardiovascular exercise be sure to check it out as it contains some valuable details.

Your workout should take approximately 65 minutes to complete and should be performed three times each week with a day of rest in between each workout. Continue to follow this routine right up until the ski and snowboarding season starts. After the season has begun you can continue to follow this workout but reduce the frequency to one to two times each week to prevent over-training and to maintain your strength levels. See you on the slopes!

Shaun Karp is a certified personal trainer in Vancouver. For further information call his office at 604-420-7800.