Five exercises to get you ready for the slopes this winter - from an Olympic snowboarder

Forget the summer bikini body – now it’s nearly winter, we all know that’s long forgotten. The snow has started to fall and it’s all about getting fit for the slopes, building up strength, being mobile and ready for the season ahead so you can make the most of the time you have on your skis or snowboard this winter.

It’s exactly what I’ve been doing for the past few months ahead of the first competition of the season in Europe.

This weekend I’ll be competing in the Big Air World Cup in Milan, and with less than 100 days until the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, it’s never been more important for me to be in the best shape for the slopes. For me, that means being versatile and adaptable to any conditions.

Skiing and snowboarding are really a mixture of components when it comes to fitness. No matter at what level you enjoy the sport, it’s about being as ready as you can be to charge the course or the piste.

This means a really great all-body workout plan that not only gets you ready for the slopes but also puts in the best shape of your life.

My top five exercises

1. Best for balance

BOSU balls

Single leg balance work on a BOSU ball or balance trainer is great for glute (bottom) activation and stabilising all those small muscles in your ankles. I do a variety of movements on the BOSU as part of my warm-up before a lower body session in the gym.

It’s all about moving your body around the BOSU and challenging your stability, not only through your lower body but also your core. This one's tough – have fun with it and try it as part of your warm-up in the gym, and you will be surprised how much it works your strength as well as stability.

2. Best for your bottom

Glute band exercises

It doesn’t matter if it’s summer or winter, I always incorporate a series of glute band exercises into every specific training session or warm-up. With the band around your thighs or ankles there are lots of quick exercises you can do to prepare your body to perform, resisting big landings and powering through those deep powder turns.

I find that this type of activation helps prevent those nigglesome injuries throughout the winter. Having strong and active glutes protects your knees and hamstrings on impact. Enjoy this video I made in Switzerland of some of my specific favourite exercises.

3. Best for power

Jump squats

Slopestyle and Big Air snowboarding and skiing are explosive sports and require extreme power output when you’re performing a trick off a jump or on a rail feature. If you’re planning on taking it to the next level and you want to try that first ollie or jump, you’ve got to be nimble, and light on your feet.

Jump squats keep your legs and glutes firing and help improve explosive strength, a huge component when explosively powering off a jump and also when trying to stomp a big landing. I incorporate these in my warm-up or after each set of squats, with the emphasis being on how high and fast I can generate that lift-off from the floor.

4. Best for stability and strength

Pistol squats

These ones require a lot of strength and are great for improving stability through the knees. A killer on the glutes and hamstrings, pistol squats are a great exercise to build overall leg strength – a no-brainer for improving your snowboarding.

To aid the exercise, either get some assistance from a friend or grab a TRX band and use it as the balance point. I started to build up my single-leg squat using the TRX and then moved it over to the floor unassisted. Once you gain control of the balance, the strength builds up quickly.

5. Best for your core - and a bit of fun

Handstands

Handstands are my favourite exercise – they’re fun, challenging and have many benefits, namely how great they are for shoulder stability and overall core strength. Handstands require a huge amount of strength to stay balanced upside down, and once you’ve managed to get inverted, it increases the blood flow to your head, which stimulates the endocrine system and improves overall recovery due to the increased blood flow.

Find a wall and have some fun practising or grab a partner and challenge yourself. I normally play with handstands at the end of a workout session or even in the airport, a hotel room, or when having fun playing in a yoga class.

And finally... don’t forget the cardio

People often ask me about my cardio routine – personally, I think it plays a huge role in snowboarding. It might be an explosive sport, but having a strong cardiovascular system really plays a huge role in enabling you to spend long hours on the mountain and helps with quick recovery.

I normally do two spin classes a week at Core Collective in Kensington in London, as well as one short run (usually 5km) and two yoga classes and one gymnastics session a week, for range of movement.

When I'm on the mountain I do yoga every day before I start riding to increase blood flow and flexibility, and to focus on the goal I'm aiming for on the course.