Please Your Knees: Exercise 1

“This exercise offers a great opportunity to focus on a movement off-snow that occurs regularly on-snow, says Knowles. When you lose your downhill ski, you usually have to recover on the inside foot; this drill mimics that movement. Master it, and you’ll boost your chances of recovering—with your ACL intact—from just such a situation.

How: Begin in a ski-stance position, knees slightly bent as if you were standing in ski boots, feet hip-width apart. Keeping your back flat and weight distributed evenly on one foot, drop down into a squat position, stopping when your knee hits 70—90 degrees. As you lower yourself, reach out to the side with your opposite foot. Tap the floor with that foot, but make sure you don’t transfer any weight to it. Quickly return to the start position by pulling in the reaching leg and transitioning to a “ski-boots-on stance. Repeat on the same leg for 20 seconds.

Exercise 1 Workout: Single Leg Squat with Side Reach

Progression One

20 sec. right; 30 sec. rest; 20 sec. left; 30 sec. restRepeat this two times.Rest 2 min. before Exercise 2Progression Two

30 sec. right; 30 sec. rest; 30 sec. left; 30 sec. restRepeat this three times.Rest 2 min before Exercise 2Progression Three

30 sec. right; 30 sec. left; nonstopContinue immediately to Exercise 2. Pace yourself: no rest until you complete four, 30-sec. exercises in a row.