Fall and winter sports require many skills and abilities, including strength. If you’re an athlete preparing for the fall and winter sports season, then it’s vital to start building up your strength now.
Strength training for athletes brings many benefits. These include improving performance and preventing injuries in cold weather conditions. In this article, we’ll explain how strengthening exercises can help prevent injuries and offer some winter sports strength workouts for you to try.
Here at JAG Physical Therapy, our experts offer personalized strength training programs as part of our athletic training services. Get started on a personalized strength training program today. Contact JAG PT to learn how our expert team can help you build strength and prevent injuries this season.
What Are the Best Strengthening Exercises for Fall & Winter Sports?
Typical strength-building exercises for fall and winter athletes focusing on endurance, agility, and power include:
- Pull-ups for grip and upper body strength
- Push-ups for upper body strength and a strong core
- Heel raises for improved balance and stronger calf muscles
- Single-leg hip thrusts for working the glutes
These exercises target the key muscle groups used in sports like football, soccer, skiing, and snowboarding to ensure your strength and endurance this season.
How Can Strengthening Exercises Help Prevent Common Sports Injuries?
Injuries associated with fall and winter sports include sprains, strains, and ligament tears. These can happen as a result of failure to warm up adequately or lack of flexibility or strength.
Thankfully, injury prevention exercises can help. By strengthening sport-specific muscles, tendons, and joints, athletes can lower their risk of injury and continue to enjoy the fall and winter sports season.
Great examples of winter and fall sports exercises to prevent injury include:
- Lunges to improve balance and strengthen the muscles of the lower body
- Squats to stabilize quadriceps muscles, glutes, and hamstrings
- Planks to strengthen core muscles and promote stability
What Are Some Sport-Specific Strengthening Exercises?
Let’s take a look at some sport-specific strengthening exercises step-by-step.
For Fall Sports Athletes
Single-Leg Squats
Single-leg squats are ideal for soccer and football players. They promote a strong core and the balance and stability demanded by these sports.
- Stand on your right foot.
- Lift your left leg out in front.
- Keep your core engaged while lowering your hips into a squat position.
- Your right leg will bend at the knee, then straighten as you resume your starting position.
- Perform 3 sets of 5 to 10 reps on each side.
For Winter Sports Athletes
Side Planks
The side plank works the oblique muscles alongside the core, promoting a strong trunk and flexible spine. It’s ideal for skiers, snowboarders, and ice hockey players, who benefit from a strong and stable core.
- Lie on your right side with your legs straight and feet one on top of the other.
- Place your right elbow under your right shoulder, with your forearm at right angles to your body.
- Lift your hips off the floor.
- Hold for up to 60 seconds, depending on your ability.
- Repeat on the other side.
How Often Should Athletes Perform Strengthening Exercises?
Aim to practice fall and winter sports strength workouts twice a week in sessions lasting 20 to 30 minutes, depending on intensity.
Work strength sessions into your regular weekly routine. Be sure to space them out between your aerobic and sports-specific training.
Don’t overlook the importance of recovery time immediately after your strength sessions, and schedule in one or two rest days a week as well.
Regular strength training is essential for maintaining peak performance throughout the season. Make sure you include it in your exercise program.
Schedule a Strength Training Session at JAG Physical Therapy
Schedule a strength training session at JAG PT for your own personalized strengthening program.
Our expert physical therapists are available to design effective, sport-specific training plans tailored to your exact needs.
Contact us for more information, or make an appointment online with the team here at JAG Physical Therapy.