Fit For Snow

Fit For Snow Comprehensive fitness and nutrition programs for snowsport employees and enthusiasts, improve your on-snow performance and reduce your risk of injury.

That's a wrap for us for this season, hope you have enjoyed the content and make use of the same evidence based strategi...
04/26/2026

That's a wrap for us for this season, hope you have enjoyed the content and make use of the same evidence based strategies for performance and injury prevention during your summer season. We'll be back in August with our annual pre-season fitness program but until then, be well!

More relevant for most folks working as snowsport resorts and as first responders is the one small study that looked at ...
04/24/2026

More relevant for most folks working as snowsport resorts and as first responders is the one small study that looked at the effects of creatine on cognitive function in younger adults in an acute situation. The study used a night of sleep deprivation to stress a group whose average age was 23 years. The study was randomized and compared baseline, sleep deprivation with placebo and sleep deprivation with a single high dose of creatine (.35g/kg).

And this is where it gets interesting because the results showed that creatine was taken up by the brain (peaked at 4 hours) and the beneficial effect on preventing the deterioration in short term memory and slowing of reaction time with fatigue lasted 9 hours.

So maybe, creatine should be in your emergency pack? Maintaining cognitive function during an extended high risk scenario would be very valuable!

Scientific Reports volume 14, Article number: 4937 (2024)

The most investigated effect of creatine on mental function is in older adults. A 2025 systematic review examined data f...
04/22/2026

The most investigated effect of creatine on mental function is in older adults. A 2025 systematic review examined data for over 1500 men and women, with average ages ranging from 67-76 years old. Like most papers that have investigated the impact of creatine on mental function in individuals over 55 years of age, this one concluded that there was a mild improvement in cognitive function.

This might make creatine an attractive supplement for those of us who are older - but buyer beware because when you read the fine print it's not quite that convincing. The only study that was of high quality - where the same subjects were tested under both the baseline and the creatine conditions, where the conditions were in random order, and where both subjects and researchers were unaware of which data set was the supplemented one, was the one study that showed no effect. Almost all the studies that did show positive effects were based on dietary recall, which means that subjects were asked to remember what they ate over past days. If you've ever tried to do that - even if you are highly motivated to be accurate and you are knowledgable about nutrition the accuracy of recall is very poor. When combined with the low degree of cognitive improvement that was reported it makes more sense to put your dollars and energy into things we do know help older adults maintain good function - like diet, hydration, sleep and yes.... FITNESS!

When out in the mountains the decisions that we make can have big consequences. There are a lot of things that go into m...
04/20/2026

When out in the mountains the decisions that we make can have big consequences. There are a lot of things that go into making a good vs less good decision, but one of the big ones that impairs the process is fatigue. At Fit for Snow we do a lot of teaching about methods to reduce fatigue and hence lower the risk of incident or injury.

So our next focus topic will be the recent reports that creatine supplements help with more than muscle power. Follow for the facts about the new claims that creatine has beneficial effects on memory and cognition, especially under rigorous environmental conditions and fatigue.

For the final post on the safety and efficacy of sun protection we're going to talk about organic sunscreens. These prod...
04/18/2026

For the final post on the safety and efficacy of sun protection we're going to talk about organic sunscreens. These products have a much nicer feel than inorganic sunscreen because they absorb into the skin. But this same characteristic can raise concerns of toxicity. There is some evidence that oxybenzone in particular can accumulate in the body and may have harmful effects.

Whichever sunscreen you chose, be mindful that the efficacy is dependent on the amount of product that you use, how well you make sure to cover all exposed skin, how much you sweat, and how long your exposure period is. There's no question that repeated sunburn is associated with higher rates of melanoma, a disease that you really don't want to get. So be mindful when your job means that you spend long hours in the sun, especially in a reflective environment like on-snow!

The other problem with using clothing as a sun barrier is that it gets hot! So if you're going to go for some exposed s...
04/16/2026

The other problem with using clothing as a sun barrier is that it gets hot! So if you're going to go for some exposed skin, lets look at the choices for suncreen.

There are two main types of sunscreen, those that are inorganic, mineral based compounds and those that are organic compounds that are designed to absorb into the skin.

Inorganic sunscreens make use of zinc oxide and titanium dioxide to provide an effective barrier to UV radiation. Because they sit on the surface of the skin they generally leave a white residue, but newer products look and feel much better because the minerals are formed into nanoparticles. Unfortunately though, if these new products are applied using an aerosol applicator the nanoparticulates can be inhaled and deposited in lung and other tissues where they cause inflammation, act as reactive oxygen species and can damage the lining of small blood vessels.

04/14/2026

Only about 40% of Americans report using sunscreen at all and under 20% use it on all exposed skin. Since we know that melanoma is highly related to sunburns, what keeps people from taking this precaution? Being able to reduce the incidence of this aggressive skin cancer by almost 50% is a very powerful health behaviour!

There are 3 main choices for reducing exposure to UV light when you have to work outdoors. The first is to use a physical barrier by wearing clothing that is impervious to UV radiation. Photoprotective clothing are garments that have been certified as being effective at reducing the amount of UV radiation than can pass through the garment, but there isn't a lot of published research that actually tests how effective clothing is at blocking the harmful radiation. They use tight weave and fabric dyes to reduce the amount of UV radiation that can pass through the garment.

Regular clothes can also protect agains UV exposure. There are some studies that show that wool garments in particular are effective, but it depends on the tightness of the weave and the colour of the fabric. Polyester seems to provide the best protection against the sun, while perhaps not being the material of choice for plastic exposure or comfort. Dark and bright dyes also tend to reduce transmission more than light colours. Wear and tear over time also matters, certified garments have to simulate two years of wear with 40 washings per year.

There are some chemical based wash-in treatments that claim to confer UPF of 30 for up to 20 washes afterward but these claims have not been independently tested and you're replacing the known chemical exposure of sunscreen with a chemical treatment to your clothing that hasn't been tested.

Next up are the chemicals to watch for!

References:
Sunburns and risk of cutaneous melanoma, does age matter: a comprehensive meta-analysis. Ann Epidemiol. 2008 Aug;18(8):614–627.
An Overview of Ultraviolet-Protective Clothing. Cureus. 2022 Jul 27;14(7):e27333.

Warm temperatures and sunny skies this week bring to mind the information circulating about the dangers of using chemica...
04/12/2026

Warm temperatures and sunny skies this week bring to mind the information circulating about the dangers of using chemical suncreen. There's no question that when on snow the reflected light leaves us more vulnerable to burning, and since UV exposure is considered to be the primary cause of up to 90% of skin cancers, what's the best way to protect your skin and your health?

Scary fact: Outdoor workers are 2.5-3.5 times more likely to develop skin cancer as the general population

Referencers:Alberta Health Services. (2010). Review of Cancer and Chronic Disease Prevention in the Workplace: A situational analysis of cancer and chronic disease prevention for HPDIP workplace wellness programming. Calgary, Alberta: Alberta Health Services. Available at [email protected]
Surveillance and Reporting: 2012 Report on Cancer Statistics in Alberta. Edmonton: CancerControl AB, Alberta Health Services, 2015. Accessed at:
Surveillance & Reporting Reports | Alberta Health Services
albertahealthservices.ca

Transceiver Interference
04/08/2026

Transceiver Interference

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