There is no denying that, although summer was last week, it’s time to start thinking about the winter. Summers are so short in our mountain towns that we cling to them until the last gasp saying things like “I just need one more week.” But now we can feel winter in the air.
Whether you are a skier or snowboarder, options abound for backcountry skiing in Colorado. This can be anything from a quick easy skinny-ski out behind your house to a full on assault of a beautiful 3000-foot line in the Gore Range. The tricky part, however, isn’t finding the terrain, it’s having the fitness to ski whatever you want to, but how do we make the transition from summer to winter without losing fitness or getting injured?
There are two things that we need to think about as we make this transition. First, we need to keep the aerobic fitness we gained this past summer. Second, we need new sport specific muscle for skinning.
To optimize this transition period, start with three weeks of spending every third day working on the new sport specific muscles by performing short “ski imitation” hill-repeats. Pick a hill that simulates a grade that you would skin up in the winter, and that is 2-5 minutes long. Hike up that hill with poles and your backcountry pack (that’s the ski imitation part), walk back down to the bottom, and repeat until you’ve gotten 20-30 minutes of climbing. If hiking feels too easy, crank it up to a run, but make sure you allow yourself to recover as you come back down.
Second, keep up your summer sport! On the days that you aren’t doing hill repeats, keep riding your bike, or running the trails. Keep these days long, easy, and fun, allowing you to focus your hard efforts on the new sport. By keeping up the volume of your summer sport, you will maintain the fitness that you need to power the long days in the winter. It will also let you enjoy these beautiful fall days!
During this transition period, it’s important to make sure you are taking at least one day a week completely off, and are eating healthy and hydrating well. It can be easy to push a little too hard during this transition and get injured, so make sure you are concentrating on recovery and nutrition.
Once you’ve finished those first three weeks, you may feel tired. If you do, take 3-5 days of very easy training, and an extra day off (or two!). Once you are rested, or if you don’t feel tired, jump right into three ski imitation days per week for three weeks. One of those days should be short hill repeats, one day long repeats (7-10 minutes per climb, 30-40 total minutes of climbing), and one long day of hiking. Again, keep up the long rides/runs on the other days, and keep a day off!
After this six week transition process, you should feel like your new sport specific muscles are now strong enough to use the fitness that you gained from a good summer. Now you should be ready to skin and ski to your heart’s content with new fitness and excitement for the winter to come! If you have further questions or would like some help with this transition, click here to talk to a coach.
