Snowboard Workout

Strength Building Exercises for your Core

Knee Side Roll

This is a great torso strengthener. Instead of the standard upper body rotation the lower body is rotated. This can be achieved by stabilizing the lower body with weights or by using a strong stretch across your chest. The muscles being used are internal and external pbliques, quadratus lumborum and upper body stabilizers. You will really notice a difference this exercise makes to your bent knee spinning, control and landings.

1. Lye on your back and bend your knees to a 90 degree flexion.
2. Stabilize your upper body by holding your straight arms out to your sides away from your body.
3. Rotate your knees down to the floor on your left and then on your right.
4. To take it to the next level try it with your legs slightly straightened.




Side Crunches

The side crunch is similar to the ab crunch which everybody knows. It is used to strengthen the mid section of the body. The muscles being worked are the internal and external obliques which help rotate the body to the left and the right. These muscles assist in spine stabilization which will give you better balance, stronger spinning and improved overall performance.

1. Lie on your back and bend your knees to 90 degrees. Place your hands clasped behind your neck.
2. Lift and rotate the left side of your body slightly to the right.
3. Lower and repeat to the opposite side




Reverse Side Crunch

The reverse side crunch is a great one as it creates a muscle 'belt' to help support the spine from the inside out. This exercise will help strengthen most of the muscles in your upper and lower back through a rotative exercise. This will help you stay stable in choppy conditions and solid when landing those big tricks. It is great for building strength to use for initiating big spins.

1. Lye on your front and clasp your hands behind your head.
2. Raise your left side up with the left elbow and keep the right elbow on the floor
3. Lower yourself down and raise the opposite side.




Side Plank

The side plank can be a static exercise for strengthening the abdominal's, back and shoulders. Isometric strength is important for stabilizing the trunk. The abdominal plank is a great exercise for strengthening the transverse abdominus. The transverse abdominus is the deepest layer of abdominal muscle and wraps around the whole midsection. When you contract the abdominals, your waist becomes thinner. This is the action of the transverse. Therefore, a strong transverse abdominus means a smaller, tighter waist. When you are doing the plank exercise or a variation of the plank, make sure to contract your abdominals while remembering to breath. A static plank involves moving to the starting position in the first picture and holding for 1 minute. We are going to step it up and make it dynamic.

1. Lift your body off the ground with one arm and stretch your other arm to the ceiling.
2. Hold this positing with your back straight.
3. Slowly lift your top leg toward the roof and then lower whilst keeping your core tight.
4. Repeat for 30 seconds and then switch sides.



Tip: To increase the intensity do this exercise for 1 minute each side.


Cat Stretch

The cat stretch feels great on your lower back and can be used for relaxation. Think about breathing in whilst arcing your back and then breathing out as you lift your head.

1. Start in a kneeling position, head down and back rounded.
2. Lift your head, arch your back and breath out
3. Move mack to the original position slowly and repeat 10 times.




Clock Face Stretch

The clock face is another great lower back stretch to help loosen up all the tension which builds from riding or lifting weights. It will keep you flexible and uses the weight of your rotating arm to apply the stretch. When doing this exercise the goal is to rotate the upper arm around in a circular motion with your arm stopping at each 3 hour mark.

1. Lye on your side with your arms extend out in from t of you and your right leg 90 degrees to your body
2. Rotate your upper arm to 12 o'clock and then breathe
3. Rotate your arm behind you to 9 o'clock and then breathe
4. Continue the rotation around the body 3 times and then switch to the other side and repeat>

Tip: To increase the intensity of the stretch concentrate on keeping the upper knee on the floor at all times as your rotate the upper arm. To really take it to the next level keep your upper arm straights and make sure your finger tips touch the floor the whole way around and move just 1.5 hours at a time.


Piriformis Stretch

The piriformis stretch works on stretching the lateral rotators of the hip. Anyone who has ever had trouble with pressure on their sciatic nerve will know this stretch. Overly tight piriformis muscles can press against the nerve and cause all sorts of pain in the lower leg and back. These muscles are one of the muscles used the most when ripping it both on snow and initiating spins.

1. Lye on your back and clasp your hands behind your head.
2. Rest your right foot on your bent left knee
3. Slowly lift your left leg up to start the stretch. Stop and hold for 20-50 seconds when your feel the muscle tighten.
4. Lower your left leg to the floor and repeat for 10 reps
5. Switch legs and repeat.




There are way more exercises which you can use for snowboarding . The best thing to do is visit your local gym and I am sure they will be able to point you in the right direction. Try to ask them for exercises which you can do at the gym and at home this way you can do them when you are just hanging out.

Have fun.

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