“This is going to hurt,” Andrew said, looking up at the 11,000-foot summit of Mount Spur, then down at his bulging 60-liter expedition pack. Minutes earlier, pilot Doug Brewer had left Andrew Wexler, Dylan Taylor and I at the southern end of Alaska’s Tordrillo Mountains. We had 11 days of supplies and big ambitions to complete a full-length ski traverse of the range.

We’d spent months preparing for the ski trip – securing funding, settling on a route, and honing our fitness. I had been ski guiding in the Anchorage area and Dylan in the French Alps. Andrew, on the other hand, had been mountain guiding in the Himalayas while his skis collected dust. Although as strong as Popeye on spinach, Andrew wasn’t in ski shape. He muttered something like “Sweet Jesus,” and hoisted his backpack with a Samurai scream.

***

Skiing year-round is the best form of ski fitness training. Instead, at the beginning of each backcountry ski season we get rudely awakened with screaming quad muscles, crippling soreness, and sometimes injury. As we get older, the awakening becomes more rude and injuries more common. Outsmarting this process is possible by maintaining a year-round fitness base combined with some pre-season ski training.

Base Fitness
Maintaining a year-round base of fitness is essential to returning to the snowy backcountry. Athletes maintain base fitness with a combination of cardiovascular workouts such as running, cycling or Nordic skiing; and strength training such as rock climbing, yoga, core workouts or weight lifting. But if you’re like me and cringe at the words “training” and “workouts,” then just combine fitness into your daily living.

Get mountain bike studs and fenders so you’ll never have an excuse for not bike commuting in the winter. Climb with a full rack on while doing easy laps at your local crag. Go grocery shopping with a 70-liter backpack. Maintaining base fitness will become “getting your fix” and “burning off energy.” If you need motivation, just stick your head in the freezer, close your eyes, and dream of all that fresh powder on its way.

Ripper Quads
No matter how insane the skiing is, if your quad muscles are burning on every turn, the entire run is going to be agonizing. Shortcut the lactic acid bath by developing your quad strength before the ski season. The most effective way to engage the muscle memory in your quads without skiing is by power hiking down steep hills, if your knees can take it. My local favorite is Bird Ridge – a straight uphill trail near Anchorage that rises from sea level to 3,500 feet. For a bonus workout, I load my ski pack with water bags. If you don’t have backyard mountains, then run stadium or office building stairs. Aim to rip your lungs out on the uphill, but go easy on the downhill or you’ll be limping for a week.

Another favorite quad roaster is wall sits. Place your back flat against the wall with you knees bent to 90 degrees. Hold the position and enjoy the burn. Start with three sets of one minute each, but stop if the exercise hurts your knees.

Damage Control
Past your twenties, jumping from the couch into the saddle might send you straight to the hospital with a wrenched back or tweaked knee. To thwart injury, ease into the backcountry ski season with shorter days, then work up to bigger days through the season. Another important way to prevent injury is through core strength training. Core strength refers to the strength and stability of the muscles around your abdomen, lower back, and hips. Building core strength prepares you for the sudden movements of skiing while maintaining good ski form.

My single favorite core strength exercise is the plank. Get into pushup position, but with your upper body supported on your forearms and your hands clasped together. Keep your body completely rigid with no sagging. Relax your head and look at the floor. Start with three sets of 30 seconds each and increase by 15 seconds as you feel ready.

The popularity of core-fitness oriented workouts is off the hook – most towns have numerous class options. Popular regimes include Crossfit, Gym Jones, and Core Power Yoga. Either way, a class is a great way to stay motivated in the gym and learn proper technique. After a month of core workouts you’ll feel like a Muscle & Fitness front cover model.

***

Andrew was still charging after nine days and 100 miles through technical ski mountaineering in the Tordrillos. He had high hopes of flying out to Talkeetna that night to survey the female talent at the Fairview Bar and madly stomped a ski plane runway on the snow-covered gravel bars of the Skwentna River.

The Super Cub didn’t arrive for two days. By that time, Andrew was grumbling about his back and hobbling around like he was 80 years old. He spent the next three months nursing a bulged disk and lining up a ski-filled, non-Himalaya season for 2009.

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