Yoga for Winter Conditioning

With winter season halfway complete here in Queenstown, we have fully immersed ourselves into the 2021 ski season. We’ve felt the chill in the air, stepped onto the beautiful dusting of snow on the mountain tops, and made our way to the spinning chairlifts in order to enjoy the crisp alpine air and expansive views from up the mountain.

It’s essential we strengthen our bodies to enhance our on snow performance, as skiing and snowboarding use muscles that are specific to the sport. Practicing yoga has become a go-to for many snow sports enthusiasts to build confidence, improve joint strength, and help ward off injury.

We caught up with legendary snowboarder Christy Prior, who has represented New Zealand in the Olympics and has achieved podium results at the World Cup, X Games, Dew Tour, and Burton Open. She was even named Snow Sports NZ Snowboarder of the Year for four consecutive years.

Christy, who is also a 500-hour qualified yoga teacher, has used yoga and meditation to achieve a successful snowboarding career. Here at Nadi we want to help you continue preparing for the winter season, so we asked Christy about yoga and what moves she practices to build strength and coordination for snowboarding.