Ashley Battersby suggests 5 tips for prevention of injury during skiing
Ashley Battersby, a well known name in the world of skiing, has been taking measures to avoid injury during skiing for a long time now. Of course, these do not always prove to be successful, and we indeed have found her visiting the surgeons a number of
times. But that does not undermine the reliability of her measures and precautions.
It has been a while since we have seen the lady in bandages. To further enhance her knowledge about safety and health, Battersby has switched her major at the University of Utah, where she studies off-season, to exercise sports science; something she feels
would help her help people with injuries.
Fortunately for us, she generously shared a small amount of her knowledge on the subject of safety in order to help us avoid injury during skiing.
Stretch is the first tip that Battersby shares with us. She stresses on the importance of stretching before skiing as it helps to warm up the body. Warming up the body makes it limber, which in turn decreases the chances of the skier getting hurt when he
falls. Battersby takes the warm up very seriously, stretching before and after she skis.
The second tip that Battersby shares with the world is to promptly deal with a teak i.e. a jerk or twist. She explains that taking minor injuries casually and leaving them untreated would cause them to grow into something much more serious. She recommended
butt pads or knee braces in case the skier finds himself falling on one side too often.
The next word of advice to be given out by Battersby was to understand the importance of taking a break. Everybody has a limit and ignoring these limits has some serious consequences. It is best to take a rest or call it a day when fatigue takes over the
mind and makes it sore instead of pushing yourself unnecessarily. There is always tomorrow to continue the practice and that too with a fresh mind and energy.
The fourth suggestion was to exercise. Strong legs and core are extremely crucial when hitting jumps. A healthy heart is extremely important for any kind of skiing, be it urban or backcountry. She suggested hiking, swimming, running, climbing etc.
The last tip to come from the professional skier was to visualize what one wants to do, and then commit to it. It is crucial to be very clear about what one wants to do before actually attempting it. Visualizing the trick before actually doing it gets the
muscles fired up and causes an adrenaline rush, which in turn prepares the body and mind for what is about to come.
Member of a cheer-squad at Chicago once, Ashley Battersby had to let go of the pom-poms after her family moved to Utah to focus on skiing.
“I was worried that if I got dropped I'd get hurt and I wouldn't be able to ski,” she says. “So I quit cheering for skiing.”
Ironically, she has suffered a number of injuries during her skiing career. She has had two knee surgeries, the first due to the left ACL in 2006, and the second because of the right ACL in 2008. Several cases of skier’s thumb and broken bones in her left
hands had led her to the surgeons a number of times as well.
Injuries are not the only highlight of her Battersby’s skiing career. In fact they are pretty invisible when her prowess and performance on the snow and rails is considered. She is a celebrated pro skier with a number of accomplishments to her name. She
barely missed out on the podium at Winter X Games 15 earlier this year while pitted against the aces of skiing. However, she seems to be getting even better with every passing year and it won't be long before we find her wearing the Winter X Games crown.
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