Are you planning to go skiing this season? It's exciting to get away for a change to wintery landscapes and ski resorts for a few days and shoot down snowy slopes. But sustaining a ski injury certainly isn't part of the list of things you want to experience. Cartilage, ligament, muscle, and tendon tears from the knee upwards are still prevalent. Fortunately, you may reduce your risk by strengthening, controlling how and where you ski, and purchasing a few effective supports. And, while contemporary technology has made the sport significantly safer over the years, you must still take precautions to safeguard yourself. So, to assist you in accomplishing this, here are things you need to know about ski-related injuries and our advice on how to avoid them.

What are the Most Common Skiing Injuries?

Although skiing is a high-risk sport, it’s also one of the most popular. Skiing can cause a variety of injuries that affect different parts of your body. The most common injuries include:

•       Rupture or Sprain of the Anterior Cruciate Ligament

•        Rupture/Sprain of the Medial Collateral Ligament

•        Shoulder Sprains, Fractures and Dislocations

•       Fractures of the Wrist and thumb

•        Head injuries; Whiplash and Concussion

•        Torn Rotator Cuff

While anyone can sustain a ski injury, ski injuries are more likely to occur to those who have not been properly trained. Ski injuries can be caused by a variety of factors, such as poor fitness, not warming up, not taking enough skiing lessons, not understanding or not paying attention to safety rules on the slopes and ski lifts, taking too many or large risks on the slopes, poor judgement, incorrect, poorly fitting or damaged equipment, and collisions.

Preseason training is essential for overall strength, balance, and conditioning to reduce the risk of injury. It is also important to learn how to fall correctly, rather than onto an outstretched hand or with excessive knee twisting.

How can I reduce my chance of suffering an injury when skiing?

Physical Preparation:

Get in shape: Skiing demands good cardiovascular endurance, leg strength, and core stability. Start a fitness routine 6-8 weeks before your trip, focusing on cardio activities like running, cycling, or swimming. Include strength training with exercises like squats, lunges, and planks. Don't forget flexibility exercises, especially for your hamstrings, quads, and core.

Ski-specific exercises: Consider exercises that mimic skiing movements, like wall sits, single-leg squats, and leg swings. You can also use balance trainers like wobble boards or BOSU balls to improve your proprioception.

Warm up and cool down: Always listen to your body. Before hitting the slopes, do a dynamic warm-up like jumping jacks, arm circles, and leg swings. After skiing, do some static stretches to cool down and prevent muscle soreness.

 Equipment Binding Settings

Verify with your ski technician that these are configured appropriately for you and operating as intended. Your risk of twisting at the knee joint will increase if you fall and your binding doesn't come off! It is essential to have the right gear setup, especially the DIN setting, on your bindings. If you are a beginner and have the DIN setting too high, you will have a much higher chance of sustaining a knee injury as your boots will not pop out of the bindings.

 Knowing your limits

Ski trails are graded for a reason. Start on slopes that match your skill level and gradually progress to more challenging terrain. Pushing yourself too hard can lead to fatigue and injuries.

 Skiing Approach

You will most likely require assistance from a ski instructor for this. Injury risk will unavoidably decrease with proper form, or for novices, with understanding how to stop and turn.

Don't forget to stay in your comfort zone. The most crucial thing to do if you're concerned about a knee injury is to stay within your comfort zone. This will help you maintain control and lower your chance of an accident.

Prioritizing safety

Give way to skiers and boarders going downhill, and be mindful of your surroundings and pace at all times!

How skiing injuries can benefit from physiotherapy?

In order to set together a strategy for injury prevention, a physiotherapy evaluation in the run-up to your skiing vacation is a wonderful method to evaluate your current fitness and identify any potential risk factors, such as muscle weakness, past injuries, and your current training program. As everyone knows, prevention is preferable to cure when it comes to injuries!

Nonetheless, the most important thing to remember is to get your injuries evaluated if you do end up hurting yourself while hitting the slopes! While most injuries are totally safe to continue working out or skiing with, some aren't.

Don't take a chance — a proper assessment by a healthcare professional is the only way to determine which category you fall into.

Get it evaluated instead of worrying because, in most cases, all you need to safely continue your vacation is a few simple self-management strategies and tips!

If you plan to go skiing this winter, the first thing you should do is schedule a physiotherapy evaluation so that any injury risk factors may be detected ahead of time and integrated into a customized training program that will help you lower your chance of injury.

Booking multiple sports massage appointments in the days leading up to your skiing vacation can help prepare your muscles and joints for the intense physical stress you will soon place on them. These treatments help to alleviate muscle tension, clear out waste materials, and prepare the muscles for strenuous action; it's a terrific complimentary therapy to utilize alongside your skiing exercise training program.

If, however, you were unfortunate enough to sustain an injury while skiing and were unable to have it assessed on-site, schedule an assessment right away. Do not let the injury linger. The sooner an injury is evaluated, diagnosed, and healed, the better the outcome and the faster you can return to full function.

Overall, skiing is an excellent sport to indulge in while taking note of precautions and measures to stay injury-free and enjoy the experience to the fullest. This post provides pre-season advice and conditioning for skiing, preparing you ahead of your trip.

We hope this information helps you have a safe and enjoyable ski season!