Exercise Your Way to a Stronger Heart
But if you love to play in the snow, you need to do more. Exercising a little longer than usual is what the doctor orders for injury prevention. You're probably in the habit of doing cardiovascular exercise three or four times each week already. But if you've been doing the same workout for weeks, months or years, you may not be getting the results you deserve for your time and commitment. Cross training - doing more than one activity per week - is key to avoid boredom and injury. Get rid of the burn
Aerobic activities prime your body for winter play by alleviating aching muscles. "A problem many winter sports enthusiasts encounter even during the first hour of activity is severe burning in the muscles," says Daniel Kosich Ph.D., exercise physiologist and president of EXERFIT in Denver, Colorado.
Kosich said two factors cause this burn - not being used to a higher altitude and inadequate cardiovascular conditioning. You may not be able to prepare for higher altitudes, but you certainly have control over your conditioning. "Optimum fitness can be visualized as a triangle with cardiovascular endurance at the top, and strength and flexibility at the bottom corners. Combined with a strength and flexibility base, cardiovascular conditioning increases the muscle's aerobic abilities to produce energy, enabling them to continue muscle contractions," Kosich explained.
If you take time for aerobic conditioning, even at sea level, your chance for less burning during winter sports is very good. You won't get out of breath as much and you'll feel like taking fewer breaks throughout the day. You'll be able to perform at a higher level and for longer time periods before you get tired.
Aerobic vs. anaerobic cardio conditioning
Cardiovascular conditioning is either aerobic or anaerobic. Aerobic is characterized by a duration of nonstop, moderate-intensity activity. As you breathe, your heart pumps oxygen via your blood vessels to your working muscles to produce energy for movement. This energy-production system is dependent upon a strong beat of your heart.
Anaerobic is characterized by short, powerful bursts of effort (such as skiing or snowboarding). The muscles are only able to perform for seconds at a time before needing a brief recovery period to replenish. The heart isn't able to pump oxygenated blood into the muscles quickly enough. Muscle burn happens as a result of little or no oxygen available in the working muscles to produce energy.
The more aerobically fit you are, the less "anaerobic" winter sports become. Therefore, you'll experience less burning and soreness the next day.
Mental focus and concentration improve when your heart is fit. As your ability to concentrate on form and technique goes up, risk of injury due to lack of concentration goes down.
Cross country skiing and snowshoeing are excellent examples of aerobic conditioning activities. You can perform these sports for long periods of time at a steady, moderate pace without stopping. If you use these sports for exercise, do them at least 20 minutes without stopping, four times each week. (Work up to this level if you're just starting.)
Do interval training
Interval training mixes intense bouts of exercise ("work") with less intense exercise ("active rest"). With inline skating, for example, skate hard for one minute, then easy for one minute, repeating that sequence for several minutes. You can even apply interval training principles to cross country skiing and snowshoeing.
Why interval train? When you begin to feel burning in the muscles caused by lactic acid, you've most likely reached your anaerobic threshold. The "rest" part of the intervals gives your muscles time to rid themselves of waste products.
Is it too late to get in shape?
No, it's not. Any amount of aerobic exercise you choose to do will improve how you feel in the altitude, regardless of your winter activity choices. Be sure to progress slowly. Give yourself at least six weeks to build intensity to a moderate level. Your key to success is to monitor the intensity, frequency and duration of your workouts. Keep a simple workout journal. Monitor the intensity by checking your heart rate during workouts. The simplest way is to use the Scale of Perceived Exertion. Based on a scale of 1-10, you rate your own effort. Using this scale for aerobic conditioning, beginners would rate themselves between 3-5; intermediates between 4-7; advanced between 6-8. A heart-rate monitor is the best way to measure intensity. For around $100, you'll know for sure how easy or hard you're working.
Determine your maximum heart rate (beats per minute) by subtracting your age from 220. During advanced interval training, you shouldn't exceed 90 percent of that number. For aerobic conditioning, stay between 60-80 percent of that number for at least 20 minutes, four times a week. After four to eight weeks, depending on your fitness level, begin interval training to improve your anaerobic capacity. If you already participate in stop-and-go activities such as tennis, you'll be able to work a little harder. Take your heart rate at least twice during workouts. (The next time you're out on the hill, measure your heart rate, then match it during workouts.)
Article by Suzanne Nottingham from Winter Feels Good
