Telemark Boot Camp: Get Your Knees Ready for the Deep and the Steep (or Die Trying)

As the first flakes start to fall and the air gets that crisp bite, it's time to face the inevitable truth: your legs are soft, your lungs are weak, and your telemark game is hanging by a thread. But fear not, my fellow knee-dropping warriors—this is not a time for panic. No, this is a time for action. A time to train like your life depends on it, because, let's be real, that first-day leg burn is a kind of pain that borders on the existential.

So, grab a shot of espresso (or tequila, if you're brave), throw on your most questionable workout gear, and prepare to sweat out the sins of off-season laziness. This simple pre-season workout will transform your quads into shock absorbers, your core into a fortress, and your soul into something marginally more prepared for the chaos of the first powder day.   

Best to set this up as a four exercise circuit, and repeat it three to four times.

Box Jumps

15-20 repetitions on each leg. Click here for video demo.

Rotational Dead Lifts

12-15 repetitions per leg.  Click here for video demo.

Tele Lunge with Twist

30+ repetitions, with leg going forward and back to simulate a tele turn. Click here for video demo.

Twist Crunch

20-30 per side. Click here for video demo.

Big thanks to Jake Wells with FÔRM Attainment Studio in Edwards, CO for these tele-centric workouts and the accompanying photos and videos illustrating how to do them correctly. As a bonus, most of the following exercises can be done in your home with the use of a chair and some improvised weights.