But first, Ski Muscle of the Week #1 and #2 deal with exercises that help your lower leg performance. The next set in this series will focus on exercises for the thigh. But right now, I want to talk about a concept that influences our performance on the the snow: our left-right symmetry.
When I mention this notion to ski instructors or fitness trainers, I sometimes get pretty interesting stares--until I explain what I mean. My hair stylist, however, got it right away.
The concept is Bilateral Symmetry. Here's a link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilateral_symmetry#Bilateral_symmetry
All creatures that walk, crawl, and fly have a left and right side. The smallest worm to the largest elephant come with a left and a right.
In practice, however, human muscle performance and the neurological connections of our left and right sides are not 100% equal. Just try to write your name with your non-dominant hand and you'll appreciate that lack of equality.
So imagine how that inequality equality affects our legs--and our skiing. Because my strength and muscle performance in my left and right legs are not equal, my ski turns are also not equal--I make a better, and more confident left turn than a right one.
Why did Mel, my hair stylist, get this when the others didn't? Because she deals with asymmetric cowlicks, curls, waves and hair patterns every day. Here's a link of famous faces that demonstrates this concept:
How do we fix this asymmetry and improve our weak side turn? That's part of the logic of my Ski Muscle of the Week series. Be sure to give extra attention to your weak leg when performing the exercises.
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