Wintry skies, freezing temperatures and snow-covered terrain are no reason for a moratorium on outdoor fun. Winter offers the opportunities for activities that can burn calories, enhance cardiovascular fitness and elevate your mood. By following some basic precautions, you can ensure that your cold-weather workouts are safe as well as invigorating. Consult your doctor before beginning a winter exercise regime, particularly if you have been sedentary.
Skiing
Historians believe that skiing originated as early as 4,000 B.C., with the first primitive skis fashioned from animal bones. Today, competitive skiing events are a mainstay of the Winter Olympic games, and recreational skiing serves as an exhilarating winter activity for many. This physically demanding activity provides both aerobic and weight-bearing exercise, while strengthening ankles, legs, abdominal muscles, chest, back and arms. According to Healthstatus.com, a 150-lb. person who skis cross-country for an hour can burn a whopping 773 calories; he'll burn 594 calories an hour bydownhill skiing. To get started with skiing, you need ski, poles, and bindings, as well as specially-designed clothing to prevent the loss of body warmth. Experts recommend renting skis before investing in them; beginners should also take an introductory course with a qualified instructor.
Ice Skating
Like skiing, ice skating is an aerobic, weight-bearing exercise that promotes balance, flexibility and strength. According to The Skating Club of Wilmington, Inc., a 150-lb. person burns about 400 calories in an hour with moderate ice skating. An hour of rapid skating -- over 9 mph -- can use up 640 calories, and a competitive speed skater blazes through more than 1,000 calories in an hour. In addition to its physical benefits, ice skating can help alleviate stress, increase self-confidence and improve mood. To get started ice skating, all you need is a pair of properly-fitted ice skates and access to an indoor rink or thoroughly frozen outdoor pond. Wear warm clothes that provide some padding in the event of a fall; a safety helmet can help reduce chances of head injury.
Snowboarding
Snowboarding -- which combines elements of skiing, surfing and skateboarding -- is among the fastest growing sports in the United States. Weather.com reports that snowboarders make up 24 percent of the snow sports population. This strenuous cold weather activity -- which became a Winter Olympic Sport in 1998 -- offers stellar cardiovascular exercise, while conditioning and toning the hamstring, calf and quadriceps muscles, the large group of muscles in the thigh. A 150-lb. person can burn his way through 588 calories in an hour-long snowboarding session. To decrease the chance of injury, beginners should take at least a few days of lessons from a qualified instructor, with emphasis on learning how to fall properly.
Precautions
Winter sports carry the risk of injuries from the cold, including hypothermia and frostbite. Clothing -- including gloves and hat --should be both waterproof and windproof, and worn in layers. Sunlight reflected from snow can be surprisingly strong, and lead to sunburn and snow blindness, which causes pain and vision problems. Wear protective goggles and sunscreen to block ultraviolet rays, as well as any protective helmets, equipment or clothing recommended by your instructor.
Member Comments