Opening the Hips
Most people who come into the gym to work with us want to move everything with their arms. We want everyone to learn to use their hips.
A classic quote is;
“When the arms bend the power ends”
If you want to develop strength and power applicable to any sport…even table tennis you need to develop your hips and stop trying to move everything with your arms!
Any sport at its most powerful point will have the hips opened.
Firstly what do we mean by “hips opened”?
If you squat down your hips are closed if you stand tall your hips are opened. Another way to think of it is you are in a straight line.Here is a link to a broad jump with the hips open;
For you to develop the most strength and power applicable to skiing we want you to focus on core to extremity movement. For this purpose we will think of your core as from the top of your knees to the shoulders, and the extremities beneath the knee and from the shoulder to the hands. If all of the movement initiates from the big strong core muscles and joints and is finished at the extremities with the smaller muscle groups and joints you will maximise your time and get the biggest fastest return for your hard work.
This all develops your Posterior Chain. Your Posterior Chain is the group of muscles running down the back side of your body from the top of your head to the underside of your foot. Because our body curls forward and opens up by developing the Posterior we develop the most applicable strength and power for our body .
How can I develop my hips and posterior chain?
When you are considering weights you need to focus on Deadlifts, Power cleans, Squat Cleans and Squats,(Front for developing more stability and core engagement and Back Squats for more strength). If not in a gym using Box jumps, Broad jumps and Squat jumps are a great way for developing the hips and posterior chain.
Here is a video on the Deadlift. Master this movement and then move onto the Power Clean afterwards.
Instagram @train2ski
Train 2 Ski is an online program designed by Turner Moyse and Stephanie China. We are based in Revelstoke BC we own a gym CrossFit Revelstoke and own and run Train 2 Ski. This is a training program delivered 3 times per week to your phone by app to get you ready for the mountains.
