Think snow skiing

I know... do we really need to think about snow? Now is the time to take advantage of our good weather to get out and prepare your legs, core and upper body strength for ski season.

The benefits of training and becoming physically fit will ultimately improve your overall abilities and allow you to focus on technique. Skiing tends to place demands on the same muscle groups and motions, so strength and endurance become the defining factors of a consistent downhill experience.

You will find below six great exercises which will give you the ability to tune your body for a great functional ski routine. Paying attention to these exercises and routines will build strength, burn a lot of calories and improve your anaerobic threshold - think less leg burn - balance and coordination.

Since you need four to six weeks of training at least three times a week to see and feel results, getting started now is key. If you're completely out of shape, be sure to pace yourself as you start these regimens to avoid injuries.

Here are six great tips to prepare to shred some powder!

1. Get your aerobic routine started. Cycling, swimming, treadmill, stair climbing, they're all good aerobic activities. Be sure to push yourself three to four times a week. Try doing intervals with your aerobics - bursts of high-intensity work interspersed with periods of low-intensity work. This level of exercise through the winter months will help those daylong runs on the ski slopes from making you tired.

2. To avoid leg burn and "Jell-o Legs" (slowing you and creating opportunities to stumble and fall often), focus on strength building in your legs for speed and stability. Classic exercises like squats and lunges can help. Be sure to hit your quadriceps hard by performing a static-hold leg press. Load the press with more weight than you would normally press or squat. Be sure to force your leg muscles to do the work. By working your legs hard twice a week, you will have a much more productive and enjoyable time skiing.

3. Be sure to do stretching exercises daily and also stretch before and after every workout. The best stretches for skiers and boarders focus on the lower body - boarders need to also stretch the upper body. One great core stretch is a core twist. Stand with your knees slightly bent and your arms crossed in front of you. Slowly look over one shoulder and let your whole body follow until you feel a good stretch in the back and side. Hold five seconds and repeat in the other direction.

Hamstring and quadriceps stretches are a must for skiers. Stretching will reduce your chance for injury while skiing and you'll be less sore at the end of the day.

4. Both skiing and snowboarding rely heavily on balance and core strength, which help you reduce your risk of falling and give you all-around better posture and form. Your core consists of abdominals, obliques, lower back and hips, so you will want to hit these areas with standard core exercises. Start your core workout by doing abdominal curls on your back with knees up. Then focus on reverse curls, which are done by lifting your legs to perform the curl. Then work some back extensions into the mix. This would be a good starting point.

If you want an advanced core workout, I would recommend a Certified Personal Trainer - they will have you in shape in no time.

5. Although there is not as much focus on upper-body strength training for skiing, it is a great idea to include upper back exercises such as rows or pull-ups and also add some sets of upper body exercises for the shoulders, chest, triceps and biceps to your exercise routine. The more toned your upper body is, the better you will hold up when hitting moguls or plowing through deep powder.

6. One set of exercises which can really help you to develop those fast feet and that agility which skiers want are plyometric exercises. Plyometrics is specialized, high intensity training which is used to develop explosive power with strength and speed. Plyometric training involves explosive muscular contractions which invoke the stretch reflex which stretches the muscle before it contracts, so it contracts with greater force.

The most common exercises include hops, jumps and bounding movements. One popular plyometric exercise is jumping off a smaller box and rebounding off the floor and onto a larger or higher box. These exercises typically increase speed and strength as well as build power in your lower body.

Start your season on the right foot and be in better condition with more strength and agility to get the most out of your day's skiing. Again, being in the best shape means less chance of season-ending injuries and that fun ride down the hill with the ski patrol folks.

Judd Jones is a director for the Hagadone Corporation.