5 Best Exercises For Cross Country Skiing

Cross country skiing is a great way to get outside, burn some calories, and enjoy the outdoors. It might even be one of the best winter sports to do. However, there's no doubt that cross country skiing can also work muscles in your body that you don't usually work during other workouts.

If you want to ski with ease (and not hurt yourself), it's important to include exercises like these into your workout routine!

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Best Exercises For Cross Country Skiing

1) Side lunges

• Stand with feet hip-width apart and create a straight line from your head to your heels.
• Hold a medicine ball or dumbbell in each hand at chest level, palms facing down.
• Step out to the side with one leg, bending both knees until thighs are parallel to the floor (about 90 degrees). Think about pushing through the heel of your back leg and not leaning forward too much as you lunge.
• Return to the start position by pressing through the heel of the front leg and straightening both legs until standing again – repeat on the other side for one rep (keep weight in front during the entire movement).

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2) Resistance band side squats

The resistance band side squat is another great exercise to build up your glute strength. To start, you'll want to grab a band that's between 10-30 pounds of resistance (your goal being the middle of this range).

Grab the looped band and slip into it. Now place one foot about 8 inches in front of the other and keep them hip-width distance apart throughout this movement. Then squat down until your back knee almost touches the ground but never actually does touch it! Make sure to keep good posture during this exercise and don't round or hunch over as you go down into your squat. Once done here get back up onto two feet again

This exercise can easily be done with just one leg too which makes it even harder so make sure not to underestimate what could be pretty simple-looking movements!!

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3) Switch lunges

Switch lunges are a great exercise for cross country skiing because they work your lower body in a similar way to ski strides. Start with the switch lunge, which is like a regular lunge except that you jump your back leg up and forward so it lands in front of and beyond the front leg. To make this more challenging, add resistance such as holding a dumbbell between your hands or wearing an ankle weight on one foot. You can also progress by adding more repetitions or doing single-leg switches instead of double-leg switches.

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4) Glute bridges

Glute bridges are a great exercise for your glutes, hamstrings, and lower back. You can do this exercise on the floor or on a bench. Make sure to place a towel under your hips if you are doing the exercise on a bench.

• Lie flat with your feet flat on the floor and your knees bent.
• Lift your hips off the floor until they make contact with it again in an arc shape, ensuring that both legs remain straight during this movement (it may be easier to start with one leg lifted at first).
• Repeat 15-20 times per set, using as much weight as possible without sacrificing form or technique

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5) Single-leg hops

Single-leg hops are a great way to work your glutes and hamstrings. Single-leg hops also help improve your balance and coordination, which will benefit you when skiing down slopes with varying degrees of incline.

To perform single-leg hops, find a flat surface that's about six feet in length or less. Stand on one foot with the other held out in front of you at shoulder height (or higher). Hinge forward at the waist while keeping your back straight and repeat this motion 25 times before switching legs and repeating the exercise again.

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Conclusion

So, now you know the best exercises for cross country skiing. If you want a good workout and to be able to ski faster, then these exercises will help you do just that. The most important thing is to keep your body strong so that it can handle all the different motions involved in cross country skiing while also improving balance and coordination.