Skiing well in all conditions requires the maintaining of a body position that's balanced and stable. Altogether your arms equal 10-14% of your body weight; which is a lot of weight we can use to our advantage when balancing on two planks.
Given their weight and ability to move independently of our legs, the use of the arms is VERY important for this sport. Note the arm position used for a "deep carve":
Hold your arms up and out in an athletic stance, and you free up your lower body to move independently of your upper body while keeping your center of gravity stable. Lower your arms, and you become more wobbly / less stable / and generally lose an element of control.
Arms are the first thing to get tired & we don't realize it...
When coaching skiers, the first signs of fatigue we see are evident in the arm position. Arms go from the "attack and ready" position to being lazily held at the side... low hands, dragging of the poles... arms acting like lifeless noodles. Once this happens a skier must overcompensate with their legs to achieve balance. Eventually, the legs will get tired, and that is when mistakes get made, and injuries happen.
To prevent this we must make the arms as strong, if not stronger than the legs. We must be able to hold our arms out and be stable for long periods all day. (Once that day is over, we must then still be able to use our arms to hold drinks and give toasts during Après Ski 😁) Thankfully this is something we can train specifically for skiing...
The perfect arms exercise for skiing = The cable hammer curl
I consider the "Cable Hammer-Curl" the ultimate for training ski-arm-posture as it promotes shoulder stability while also activating the muscles of the biceps and forearm. This exercise also will activate the lower back / traps / lats as you maintain posture while completing the motions (as to do this exercise properly you must have a solid and stable body position).
Try not to "slump" forward, especially with heavier weight. You want your arms to flex through the complete range of motion but have your shoulders stay stable. Notice how my posture is rigid and my shoulders stay engaged in both of the above photos; despite the different hand positions.
Detailed instructions can be found here: Cable rope hammer curl | Exercise Videos & Guides | Bodybuilding.com
You should aim for 4 sets of 10 for this motion (4x10) and perform it 2x to 3x weekly. The first set is a lighter warm-up set, and the next 3 sets should be heavy enough weight to be struggling on the 8th-10th rep.
So get out there, and build those guns! It will change your skiing style for the better, I promise!
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