Haven’t made it onto the slopes yet this season?? Well, it's not too late, with the record snowfalls that keeps coming you still have time. You may feel rusty on that first day back on the mountain, and your body may not be physically prepared for the demands. But don't fret, TRX Training has some recommendations to help prepare you for your day on the hill that you can do in your own home. TRX Course Instructor Miguel Vargas recommends adding these four moves to your TRX Suspension Trainer routine.
The first exercise is designed to warm up your ankles and hips through a modified squat. This move aims to open up the hips and ankles, providing enhanced mobility for when you’re locked into your skis or snowboard.
Start with your straps at mid-length and facing the anchor point. Stand upright with elbows bent and positioned under the shoulders. With your feet shoulder width apart, lean back and lower your hips down to a comfortable depth with arms fully extended (hips behind heels). Stomp around or shift your weight left to right to find a comfortable foot and hip position. Next, use the Suspension Trainer to pull yourself forward with a bicep curl.
Holding the arms in that biceps curl position, your position is set. From here we want to work on your ankle mobility. Maintaining that seated position, shift your weight from left to right, and front to back. You’ll notice that your ankles are tracking the same type of motion that is experienced when you are skiing or snowboarding. Spend a few reps playing with that range of motion in your squat, then press into the straps, press up through the heels, extend the hips and knees to return to standing position, and repeat.
The second and third exercises will be a set of TRX Body Saws and TRX Side Planks with a scissor kicks. Coach Vargas notes that falls and back injuries are common during ski season, and this combo will help protect your spine and improve your core strength and stability.
To begin, lower your straps to mid-calf length (handles positioned at the knee), and place your toes in the foot cradles. Facing the ground, next, raise your body into a TRX Forearm Plank. Slowly pull your body forward and back under control, try 30-60 seconds of TRX Body Saws before transitioning to the TRX Side Plank. From the TRX Body Saw, an easy transition to the TRX Side Plank would be to drop the knees to the ground, and slowly roll over to one side, with toes still in the foot cradle, reposition the elbow below the shoulder and raise the hips off the ground. Once the TRX Side Plank position has been achieved, challenge this movement by slowly scissoring the legs apart, and back together. Perform this exercise again for 30-60 seconds, before dropping the hip to the ground, and rolling over to repeat the TRX Side Plank on the opposite side.
The third exercise is a TRX Lunge with a Chest Stretch, which Coach Vargas suggests for opening up your shoulders, hips, and ankles. Start with your straps at the mid length. Stand facing away from the anchor point and step forward into a lunge, raising your arms straight overhead into a letter I-position. While still in the lunge, sweep your arms down—like a snow angel—to a T-position, holding each position for 10-20 seconds. Finally, chest fly your arms back to center to return to a standing position, and repeat on the other side.
The final move is a TRX Burpee to ramp up your strength and endurance. Start with straps at mid-calf, stand facing away from the anchor point and place one foot through both of the foot cradles and centered with the anchor point. Drive the suspended knee back, lower hips until back knee is two inches from the ground, place hands on the ground, hop grounded leg straight back to a strong plank position, then perform a push-up. To complete one rep of the burpee return to standing by hopping the grounded leg forward, explode up to a jump. After you’ve completed a series of reps on one side, switch the foot cradles onto the other foot, and repeat on the second side.
Working on your mobility and endurance before your next, or be it your first ski trip of the season, these exercises on your TRX Suspension Trainer will be sure to help you perform better on the mountain and recover faster.
