Cold weather sports primer

Your five-step winter workout prep plan:

1. Do a cardiovascular workout such as running, walking, cycling or aerobics, three times a week for at least 20 minutes.

2. Aim for a full body resistance workout two to three times a week. Start by pre-stretching your quadriceps, hamstrings, calves as well as your triceps and shoulder muscles. Warm up with either a 10-minute bike ride or brisk walk before you move to the weight machines.

3. Work your largest muscles first by doing squats, lunges, abductor and adductor (inner and outer thigh), hamstring curls and leg extension exercises. Start with two sets of 12 repetitions for each move, then progress up to 15 repetitions. When this gets easy, move up to three sets. If your holiday involves skiing or trekking, you’ll need to work your upper and lower body equally. Make sure you give your back, chest, shoulders, biceps and triceps equal attention by doing two sets of 12-15 repetitions of chest flies, bicep curls, lat pull-downs and triceps extensions.

4. Always work your abdominal muscles at the end of your workout, doing up to 25 crunches or, if you’re feeling really strong, up to 50. Remember that rest and recovery are essential to make your muscles stronger, so don’t repeat full body workouts more than every other day.

5. Finish your training session with a five to ten-minute cool down and stretch for all your major muscles.

For more information on Josh Salzmann, visit www.salzmann-fitness.com.