Ski Season: Master These 5 Basic Skills to Dramatically Improve
Winter in the Italian Alps isn’t complete without a trip to the slopes. Many guests from our Alpine hotel, make their way out of our doors every day to travel to the nearest Aprica Ski resort to enjoy the snow. Generally, once you learn how the basics of skiing, it is an extremely enjoyable sport to do. But of course, there are some essential skills you may need to develop to perform optimally. So, if you’re keen to improve your skiing, then here are a few things you should get better at:
SQUATS, SQUATS, SQUATS
Leg strength is everything in skiing. It helps you stay balanced, stay upright, do tricks - just everything. Perhaps, you find that steeper slopes feel slightly unbearable, and that is because your legs aren’t strong enough to keep you stable. Just imagine going off-piste courses where you will encounter much more difficult slopes in Alpine Forests - you wouldn’t want to mess up. To tackle this issue, you simply need to build muscle in your legs. Do squats, do lunges - any exercise that will strengthen those muscles, especially your quads. We recommend that you should start exercising one to two months before heading out to the slopes - and if you can, just upkeep your overall fitness level. Just like we mentioned in our blog ‘4 Useful tips for First-Time Skiers’ - The more fit you are, the better you will ski.
MASTERING THE TURN
One of the most essential skills you need to learn is how to ‘turn’. Turning is what helps you manoeuvre through the snow, and allow you to control where you want to go. If you don’t know how to turn, and there’s an obstacle in the way, then it would become quite dangerous for you. There are many turning techniques out there, such as the parallel turn and the carve turn - but the most straightforward method is the snowplough turn. As a simple explanation, if you want to turn right, for instance, you should drop your left shoulder while also shifting a bit more weight on your left foot. Then voila! You should be turning to the right. It does seem very counterintuitive, but it does work. For those who have a bit more experience in skiing, we recommend you keep practising your turning technique until you are more comfortable. This will significantly improve your overall skiing skill and can progress to more complex moves.
IT’S ALL ABOUT BALANCE
The number one priority for skiing is balance. Not only will it keep you upright, but it will allow you to execute many other moves in the sport. If you cannot balance properly, then skiing becomes a lot more complicated. Balancing means the position at which you are using the least strain on your muscles to stay upright. The two essential balancing skills are Fore/Aft and Lateral. Fore/Aft balancing refers to how weight is distributed from the front and the back. To get better at this, you should have some ‘sensory awareness’ on your feet and notice the pressure distribution. You should have full control over this to get better. Then, for lateral balance - meaning the percentage weight on each foot - you can practice shifting your weight and keep doing the same simple drills while you are on skis.
STRENGTHEN THE CORE
One thing that could throw your skiing off is not controlling your upper body. When it comes to skiing, you should always focus the attention and strength of your lower body - in other words - your core. The more your upper body mass moves around, the more it will mess with your balance, this means that executing turns and moves will be much more difficult. So, to counteract this, you should work on strengthening your stomach muscles to remain stable and keep your upper body still. Read our article on ‘Beginner Ski Tricks to Get You Started’ for some moves you might want to learn.
BE BRAVE
Last but not least - be brave! When it comes to learning any sports, especially skiing, it can be daunting to perform new moves or learn new skills. There is always the fear of falling or tripping, but the thing is, if you want to get better, you have to be courageous. Just like Paragliding, it can be terrifying to imagine being so high-up in the air, or with cycling in more difficult roads like the Mortirolo pass - but once you do it, you will feel extremely satisfied. There’s no better feeling than finally achieving something. Whether it is perfecting your turns, doing a complex jump or even a backflip - you cannot accomplish the skill without failing a few times first. With that said, learn each skill one-by-one and do not rush yourself. You will naturally get better and stronger.
We hope that these tips will help you on your next skiing trip! Why not stay at Albergo Miramonti? We are located within the Alps, with a Hotel Spa, relaxing Cigar Lounge and an Italian Restaurant that serves local Valtellina Cuisine.
For more articles about the Italian Alps and Northern Italy, read our blog: