Snowboarding is a great form of winter exercise. You can burn anywhere from 300 to 700 calories an hour, depending on how aggressively you are snowboarding, the snow conditions and whether you are hiking or relying on a chairlift in between runs. Snowboarding is a whole body workout, focusing on your legs, your core and your back. To get started toning muscle and blasting calories consider investing in your own board. Once you have your own equipment you can get used to the way your snowboard feels and reacts on the mountain. This allows you to focus on improving your riding and challenging your body more, instead of concentrating on getting comfortable with new equipment each time.
What to Look for
The most important variables in a snowboard are length, flex, and width. Longer boards provide more float over powder but make tight, controlled turns on ice or through trees more difficult. The width of the board affects the amount of float it has over the snow as well, but more importantly the length of your foot should determine the width of your board. Wide boards are good for men with big feet, while women may want boards narrower through the waist (middle of the board) so they can have better control over their turns. The amount of flex you want in your snowboard depends on what part of the mountain you want to spend most of your time on. Boards with a high degree of camber, or up and down flex, are great for riding in terrain parks. The spring provided by up and down flex allows for soft landings off jumps and good bend underfoot as you launch onto rails or out of the half pipe. Boards with a high degree of rotational, or side-to-side flex, are great for carving edgy turns down groomed trails.
For big mountain backcountry riding, you want a stiffer board that is able to withstand the pressure of a lot of snow on top of it. If you are unsure of what kind of riding you will do most, or if you want to split your time and not specialize quite yet, invest in an all mountain board, designed to take you comfortably through all areas of a winter resort.
Common Pitfalls
Don't be pressured by the salesperson into buying something flashy and expensive. If you are just starting out, you may want to consider used gear or one of last year's models. You won't even notice the special extra features that the salesperson calls "so essential," but you will remember the extra hundred bucks you spent when it comes time to buy your lift ticket. Have the salesperson mount your bindings and show you how to adjust your stance before you leave the store.
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