Imagine going to the optician and being given a pair of glasses without having your eyes tested. This is the way most of us buy ski equipment. Despite state-of-the-art boots and skis, many skiers are stuck on the intermediate plateau.
According to Matthew Bennett, ski chiropractor to the British ski team, it's all a question of balance. 'Skiing is an unnatural sport,' he says. 'It is the only sport that encases the main balancing joints, the feet, in plaster. Without balance, skiing is a clumsy and awkward struggle against gravity, often leading to fatigue, injury and a frustrating lack of improvement.'
Balance is achieved through numerous receptors in the feet telling the body where it is in space. With skiing, this 'feedback' is severely restricted by inadequate foot support from the boot and lack of alignment of the skier's foot, knee, pelvis and spinal bones. In the same way that a blown fuse cuts off available power, poor feedback can literally switch muscles off, creating misalignments and imbalance for skiers. In practice, the result is a loss of muscle contraction speed, affecting the ability to change direction and react to changing terrain.
At a Skiing Ergonomics Conference in Telluride, Colorado, Bennett outlined the role of the chiropractor. Some 90 per cent of skiers suffer from boot and alignment problems of which they are probably unaware. This is where chiropractors come in, working with ski shops and ski schools to improve a skier's technique without even setting foot on the slopes. Much of their work is preventative, working to improve the function of every part of the body. Having been stuck on the intermediate plateau for 10 years, I decided to give it a try.
Bennett watched me skiing and noted the 'typical back-seat stance of someone being held back by his equipment'.
By a series of muscle tests, he could tell whether the 'fuses' for relevant skiing muscles were blown. A couple of treatments freed up the relevant joints. Bennett was then in a position to advise on the set-up of my ski equipment.
Boot manufacturers can only make a boot designed for a normal foot, but a normal foot does not exist. Even though a comfortable fit can be obtained in any good ski shop from a fitter with a few days' training, this does not mean that the skier is in balance. Tuning the boot to fit the individual needs of the skier requires the expertise of a skiing chiropractor, who has five years of training in addition to practical experience.
'The difference between perfect balance and dysfunction, even pain, can be as little as a millimetre or half a degree,' Bennett says.
I had a specialist footbed made in a ski shop, which usually costs from £25 to £80. The footbed improves fit, balance, feedback and muscle strength. Wedges under the heel correct the skier's fore/aft balance, then the cuff of the boot is adjusted to correct the shin bone angle. Finally, a wedge is made to go under the binding itself to compensate for overall postural distortions.
'The result of all this,' says Bennett, 'is to put skiers in perfect balance. Then they can ski with agility, strength, carving ability and economy of motion.' These are the buzzwords to which we all aspire.
The alignment process is normally done in two or three visits to a chiropractic clinic, well in advance of the skiing season. It takes about two and a half hours in total and costs from £100 to £150. Ideally every skier would have the full treatment, although any part will help. 'But,' Bennett adds, 'the first 80 per cent of correction achieves a 20 per cent improvement in performance. The last 20 per cent makes an 80 per cent improvement, so it is worth going the whole way if you can.'
Back on the snow I felt an immediate difference. The footbeds and boots were now supporting my foot in a natural and relaxed position. Even on the first few turns, I felt more stable, more confident.
Instructor Andi McCann commented on the improvement: 'Your feet are now under your hips and you are edging better on both skis. Now there is a series of linked turns rather than a series of linked recoveries. Your skiing is already more agile and you can start to improve.'
Other skiers were equally impressed. After treatment and alignment Lisa, a Telluride-based skier, felt she had improved 100 per cent, while Polly, an English skier, had her best day's skiing ever. Others spoke of being more relaxed, more efficient and more balanced while on the slopes and being able to carve turns which were impossible in the old stance. It was immensely satisfying to be able to blame years of mediocre skiing on equipment that was not tuned for my individual needs.
'But you have no more excuses,' Bennett said. 'Everything - your body, your boots, your skis, even gravity - is now working in your favour. With lessons and practice you could be off the intermediate plateau very soon.' I can't wait.
Factfile
For details on treatment in the UK and courses on the snow, visit Ski Ergonomics: or call Matthew Bennett on 01273 774114.
Contact the British Chiropractic Association 0118 950 5950, for your nearest chiropractor..
Stephen Lee flew to Denver with United Airlines (0845 8444 777). For further information on skiing in Telluride see www.telski.com.
