Determining how alpine or downhill skiing affects the heart rate poses numerous challenges for the exercise scientist. Unlike cross-country skiing, which is continuous, alpine skiers do a run, then spend time on a lift line. Terrain, ski equipment and altitude as well as the skier's cardiovascular health, fitness and technique also play roles in predicting heart rate during alpine skiing. Discuss skiing and its effect on your heart rate with your doctor if you have any concerns.
Fear
The sight an exceptionally steep, icy or crowded slope, deep powder conditions or a mogul field may inspire fear in less-experienced skiers. When faced with these challenges, your adrenal glands pump epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol, the stress hormones that accelerate glucose production, heart rate and breathing, Texas A& M University psychologist Mary Meagher tells "Outside" magazine. Fear's ability to elevate your heart rate does not improve the aerobic value of skiing, however. In fact, while rational fear is healthy, excess fear tenses the muscles and impedes performance, Jim Taylor and Gregory Scott Wilson write in "Applying Sport Psychology: Four Perspectives."
Backcountry Skins
Your ski equipment may affect your performance and alter your movement patterns, and altered movement patterns affect your heart rate, explain John Seifert and Dan Heil, instructors at Montana State University's Department of Health and Human Development. Seifert tested the climbing skins that backcountry skiers use to ascend the slopes on foot. He reported that if the skins didn't give the skiers enough traction, they had to bend their knees to avoid falling backward down the mountain. This alters their technique by tightening their muscles, which in turn elevates their heart rate.
Ski Type
Seifert also found that skiers who use powder skis on groomed snow showed elevated heart rates. Powder skis, designed for deeper snow, are fatter than shaped skis. They do make for easy turns, but this is mainly irrelevant in deep powder, which requires less turning and more floating on top of the snow for skiers. The powder slows you down; wide, fat powder skis help you keep momentum. In contrast, groomed conditions provide fast terrain, and require turning to control your direction and speed. Using powder skis on groomed terrain requires you to use extra muscle tension to avoid racing out of control. Seifert reported that skiers who use powder skis on groomed slopes have a 5 to 10 percent higher heart rate than skiers using carving skis.
Altitude
Where you do your skiing affects your heart rate. The journal "American Family Physician" defines high altitude as ski facilities with base areas located at 4,921 feet or higher. As you gain altitude, atmospheric pressure decreases and there's less oxygen available for the lungs, explains Robert E. Leach, author of "Alpine Skiing." These conditions cause your breathing and heart rates to increase.
References
- "Outside" magazine; The Battle of the Butterflies; April 2002
- Montana State University; Slick Science; Anne Cantrell; October 2010
- "American Family Physician"; High-Altitude Medicine; Mark D. Harris, et al.; 199
- "Applying Sport Psychology: Four Perspectives'; Jim Taylor, Gregory Scott Wilson; 2005
- "Alpine Skiing"; Robert E. Leach, Daniel Fritschy, J. Richard Steadman; 1994
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