Mastering the Slopes: Empowering Skiers with Bodyset’s SkiFit assessment

Meet Hannah Hobbs, Regional Lead and Senior MSK Physiotherapist, whose journey from senior physio to clinical and regional lead has spanned an invigorating 2.5 years here at Bodyset. Her recent return from a sabbatical in a Japanese ski resort fueled her drive to create Bodyset’s SkiFit assessment.

This service, seamlessly integrated within Bodyset’s holistic offerings, embodies her passion for prepping skiers to conquer the slopes with confidence while preventing injuries. Hannah’s firsthand experience with knee injuries, coupled with her personal journey through an ACL reconstruction, underpins her dedication to ensuring skiers are fully prepared for their snowy adventures. 

Tell us a bit about you

I’m Hannah Hobbs, Regional lead and Senior MSK physiotherapist based at our Bodyset Harley Street and Battersea clinics. I’ve been working at Bodyset for just over 2 and a half years and it has flown by! Starting off as a senior physio, I have worked my way up to a clinical lead and more recently a regional lead and I’m looking forward to the next opportunities to come and to continue to grow within Bodyset.

You recently returned from taking a sabbatical to work in a ski resort in Japan. We’d love to know more about your time there!

Bodyset helped to support my decision to take a sabbatical to work in a ski resort and gain some valuable experience. I have always had an interest in knee injuries and therefore decided to seek opportunities in a ski resort, so I had to choose one of the best in the world – Niseko Ski and Snowboard Injury Clinic! We didn’t have a day without seeing a patient with a knee injury. We had patients coming straight off the slopes to see us with acute injuries and therefore a majority of our role was to diagnose, send patients to hospital for imaging and help with pain management advice and education until their flight home. It was tough telling our patients they couldn’t ski again that holiday!

We also had skiing instructors and locals coming in for longer term rehab for injuries they sustained. I really enjoyed working with them to get them back on the slopes and even stronger than when they started! Knowing what types of injuries are common in skiing, alongside the mechanisms of these injuries, highlighted the importance of preparing for a skiing holiday and what prehab would be beneficial to enhance performance and avoid these injuries as much as possible.

Upon your return you played a pivotal role in setting up our new Bodyset SkiFit assessment. How do you think skiers will benefit from this specialised service in terms of performance improvement and injury prevention?

Firstly, our SkiFit assessment will help to build confidence in patients going on their skiing holiday; returning from an injury, not having been skiing for a while and those who are skiing for the first time. Knowing that they are well prepared, they can make the most of their holiday and most importantly enjoy it. Having had an ACL reconstruction, I understand the worry of returning to a sport with a higher risk of injury! Secondly, it will help to enhance performance for those who are looking to go off piste, or try a different type of skiing.

How will the SkiFit service integrate with Bodyset’s existing services, and how might it benefit clients who are already engaging with other physiotherapy services?

You will not just be limited to SkiFit, but there are many other services that we can offer for that 360 approach – we also work with Gait & Motion Technology Ltd for our Footscan & Orthotics service for ski boot insoles and Enovis UK & Ireland for our Bracing service, using braces that can fit around your skiwear, and if you are already seeing a physio, we can adapt the rehab to make you a specific return-to-ski programme.

What are some common challenges skiers face, and how does the SkiFit service address or mitigate these issues?

Fatigue when on the slopes, delayed onset muscle soreness after your first day of skiing and not having the confidence to tackle more challenging slopes. We will help to understand what your worries, limiting factors and goals might be and work with you to mitigate and achieve these goals!

How do you measure the success of the SkiFit physiotherapy service in terms experience and outcomes?

We will take baseline measures in your initial assessment which will include, range of movement, strength, functional movements of the key areas that are important for skiing. We will then re-assess throughout our rehab journey so that we can monitor improvement and adapt exercises as needed. Following that, we’ll see our client after the skiing holiday for feedback and the opportunity to educate and advise on long term self-management so that they have the tools to prepare for their next skiing holiday.

Can you share any success stories or examples of how similar services have positively impacted skiers’ performance and well-being?

As we have just started our SkiFit service in Bodyset, I look forward to sharing some success stories soon. However, in Niseko, I worked with a skiing instructor who sustained a partial MCL tear in his first few weeks of starting his contract – he not only went back to work after a month of rehab, but he also managed to climb and ski down Mt. Yotei a few times in his last month – his ultimate goal!

Lastly, have you got any ski trips of your owned planned? We know you love a escape to the slopes!

Absolutely! The launch of this service spurred me onto book my skiing holiday for next year – I will be heading to Switzerland and I cannot wait!