Strength and Mobility: Your Winter Toolkit for Riding, Skiing, and Running

Strength and Mobility: Your Winter Toolkit for Riding, Skiing, and Running

Ready or not.. Winter is here! Whether you live in a snow globe, desert, city, or somewhere tropical… winter affects all of us in different ways. It’s also a prime opportunity to hone in on your strength and mobility routine. And believe it or not, there’s a handful of exercises you can do to benefit your riding, running, and/or skiing so you can stay strong, injury-free, and confident across all your activities. Winter is your season to build a stronger, more resilient body, so you’re ready to crush those miles when spring arrives (and yes, you CAN use skiing to build strength for riding!)

Why Strength and Mobility Matter in the Winter

Simply put… our bodies naturally WANT to slow down in the winter. And yes, I’m here to tell you to lean into that. Combined with intentional and focused strength and mobility, sleeping more and winding down early is what we crave in the winter. 

→ Why Strength? Strength builds power, stability, and endurance for winter riding, skiing, and running.

→ Why Mobility? Mobility prevents tightness and injury while also improving flexibility for smoother movement, reducing stiffness and cracks/creaks that often happen when we’re cold and starting our activity.

 

Benefits Across Sports: Here’s the thing. YES we can. We can in fact ride a bike, ski, and run. I get asked all the time how I run as a professional athlete while riding and skiing. That’s my secret sauce to a healthy body. It’s all about balance.

For example, here’s a breakdown of how each of these sports can actually complement one another: 

  • Biking: Builds strong legs and core for climbing + mobility for handling tricky winter terrain.
  • Skiing: Leg power, balance, and hip mobility for carving turns and recovery.
  • Running: Strength for hills, stability on icy paths, and mobility to avoid strain or injury.

 

Winter Strength Training Essentials

Each of these exercises can be done at home, in the gym, or outside someplace:

  • Rope Slams: Excellent for warming up (quickly) and working the full body.
  • Medicine Ball Slams: Also a full-body workout that gets you heated quickly.
  • Kettle Bell Swings: Builds lower body power for biking and skiing.
    • Tip: Use a slightly heavier kettlebell for extra resistance.
  • Step-up Jumps: Works on single leg endurance while spiking the heart rate.

Core Rotations with a Med Ball: Enhances core stability for bike handling and turning on skis.

 

Here’s a sample winter work out that I absolutely LOVE and find so much value in: 

3 sets of strength exercises (shouldn’t take longer than 45 minutes to compete):

  • 45s hard effort: Rope slams (rest for :15s)
  • 45s medicine ball slams (rest for :15s)
  • 45s kettle bell swings (rest for 15s)
  • 10x Step Up Jumps (each side)
  • 25x Core Rotations with Med Ball

Repeat 3 times to complete this portion of the workout. 

  • BONUS: Do 10 minutes of abs to complete the full workout, along with 5 minutes of stretching whatever feels tight! 

Mobility Must-Dos for Winter Athletes

Doing these consistently will keep the body flexible and limber between activities.

  • 90/90 Hip Stretch: Opens the hips for better mobility in cycling and skiing.
  • Thoracic Spine Rotation: Loosens up the upper back and shoulders for riding posture and skiing control.
  • Calf Stretch with a Wall: Prevents tight calves and Achilles strain from running or ski boots.
  • Child’s Pose with Side Stretch: A relaxing, full-body release after activity.


Here’s a sample of 3 sets of mobility exercises (shouldn’t take longer than 20 minutes to compete):

  • 8x 90/90 hip stretch per side
  • 8x Thoracic Spine Rotations per side
  • 3x 30 sec calf stretch holds per side
  • 3x 20s holds per side

Do these movements 3 times to complete this portion of the workout. 

How to Stay Consistent?

  • Time-Saving Approach: 10 minutes of mobility before or after your ride/run/ski session goes a long way.
  • Mix it In: Do mobility between sets in strength training to save time.
  • Morning Mobility: Establish a 20 minute morning mobility routine before you start your day!
  • Recovery Days: Focus on mobility when resting to keep the body moving without overloading.

 

Real-Life Application: My Winter Routine

If we can take advantage of these winter days to build up strength (and have some fun doing it), our bodies will be stronger, safer, and less prone to injury when it’s time to get back out there and rip some hero dirt. I can personally attest to strength and mobility training both preventing me from getting injured and helping me rehab my knee back to health. The bottom line is that both strength and mobility are key tools for thriving in the winter season, all the while setting you up to have your best, strongest season yet. 

Happy Winter Training! If anyone has any questions about training in the Winter, please reach out. I’d love to connect with you.