Ice skating what is it taffy tales

What is Ice Skating?

As inferred by the name of the activity, ice skating takes place on an ice playing surface. Ice skating is the recreation and sport of gliding around an ice surface on blades attached to the bottom of a shoe-life skate product. Ice skating rinks are often found to be both indoors and outdoors. It’s a fun way to spend a day with friends and family. Ice skating is also the key component of sports such as ice hockey, speed skating, and figure skating as well.

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History

Ice skating was established in early 1000 BCE in Scandinavia.В Initially, the first skates were made from a variety of animals, such as shank and rib bones of oxen and deer.В However, as time progressed, the metal runner was introduced by the Dutch.В In 1950 in the United States, the steel blade attaching to the bottom of the skate itself was invented.В The transformation of ice skating from a seasonal pastime to a popular sport and form of entertainment occurred when refrigerated ice rinks were constructed in London (1876) and at Madison Square Garden (1879).

Gameplay

As mentioned before, ice skating is considered to be its own type of recreation but also plays a key role in sports like ice hockey. Ice skating as a form of recreation and entertainment, however, has no structured rules or gameplay. Skaters must always be safe and keep their head up while gliding around the ice surface because the rink can sometimes be busy with families and friend groups.

Positions and Roles

Rink Manager: The rink manager will be responsible for determining the days and hours in which the ice rink will be open. The rink manager must also hire zamboni drivers (those who drive the zamboni around the rink to clean the ice surface), rink guards, and various individuals who will be required to maintain the snack bar or pro shop (sells skates and equipment) within the ice arena.

Program Director: The program director is often second in command to the rink manager. The program director’s job is to determine when skating lessons and/or when various events or programs will occur. The program director is allowed to set certain restrictions on who/how many individuals take the ice at once.

Skater: The skater is the common person who decides to go ice skating for the day. Skating is a fun winter activity because of the cold weather.

On-Ice Rink Guard: The on-ice rink guard very well might have the most vital job on the ice-rink. The rink guards (who can be adults or experienced ice-skaters) are paid to skate around the rink and to ensure that every skater’s safety is maintained. If something goes wrong the rink guard must be there to save the day and to call for help.

Rules and Regulations

There’s no real rules or regulations to ice skating. However, like any sport or recreational activity that one takes part in; it is always important that one stays safe and be aware of the rules and their surroundings.

Lingo and Terminology

Ice Skating Coaching

A coach must have a great deal of knowledge on ice skating. More importantly, however, a coach must know how to treat and respect their own skaters. The great ice skating coaches know what it takes to help their skater’s reach the next level. These coaches must also know The 4 coaches below are a few of the premier ice skating coaches:

Drills

The great thing about ice skating is the fact that professionals and children work on the same drills while practicing. There are hundreds of drills that each help a skater or duo can practice. Common drills include different variations of how to efficiently stop, spin, or jump. Other drills often include how an individual or duo will pull off a certain routine.

Olympic Ice Skating

Because it includes speed skating, figure skating, and ice hockey, ice skating is arguably the most prominent activity that occurs throughout the Winter Olympic Games. Professional skaters and players from all over the world travel to one country to compete for gold.

Youth Organizations

Ice Skating youth organizations exist in order for skaters of any level to have the chance to train and improve their skating techniques and skills with professionals. A few highly regarded youth organizations and locations in the tri-state area to learn how to skate are below:

Ice Skaters

Events and Tournaments

From the Olympics to World Championships, there are numerous ice skating events each year which showcase the most-talented skaters worldwide. Each skater has the chance to display their talent in front of large crowds and have an opportunity to win world/national championships.

Ice Skating Books

Ice skating books are often fiction, nonfiction, or novels on how to train made for skaters to help them improve their craft. В Some of the stories are based on real-life events. Other books are made up of stories meant to be fun and enjoyable for a reader. Some of the more popular hockey books include:

What is Ice Skating?

Ice skating is a recreational activity that almost any individual can take part in both outdoors and indoors. One must know how to ice skate to be involved and compete in a sport like ice hockey, figure skating, or speed skating.

Is ice skating hard?

Learning how to ice skate is a process. However, with the proper training and hard work, an individual will be able to improve and keep mastering new skills.

How much is it to ice skate?

Ice Skating Basics

What are the basics of Ice skating? What are the most important things to understand about Ice skating? Get ready to learn the basic rules of Ice skating.

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Ice Skating Basics

Although difficult, ice skating can be one of the most exciting and fun athletic activities to learn. The sport requires exceptional skating; however, and athletes must practice and learn the craft before participating. In ice skating, the ability to dance can be a distinct advantage, and many athletes will take lessons in order to gain it. In the same sense, athletes can fall behind if they are not as skilled. Learning to ice skate can be a long and frustrating process, but one that is worth it if you truly commit yourself.

The Most Important Things To Know About Ice Skating

The most important thing to know about ice skating is that it is incredibly difficult and takes a true commitment in order to succeed truly. Skating ability, as well as the ability to dance while doing so, are not traits that come to just anyone. Ice skating is known for being a sport that takes very long hours practicing and learning the craft. Ice skating is also very expensive as multiple pieces of equipment are needed as well as ice time. This can be a burden to some athletes trying to get into the sport.

List of Ice skating Basic Rules

In ice skating you are scored by a panel of judges, and the job of the ice skater is to get the highest possible score. Athletes can be judged based on the amount and quality of spins, jumps, and steps. This is the same in pairs, except both athletes are judged based on their coordinated movements.В Here is a list of some more ice skatingВ rules to know:

The 7 benefits of ice skating (is it good exercise?)

Last updated on February 4, 2021

Is ice-skating good exercise? Are you wondering if you should head to the rink for your workout? Below you will find the benefits of ice skating in terms of mental and physical health.

This article may contain affiliate Links (info on the Disclosure page ). If you purchase using my link, I get a commission at no extra cost to you.

If you are looking to vary your fitness program, you should consider ice skating for its many benefits. It is great exercise.
Spending a couple of hours skating offers some great benefits to improve balance, joint flexibility, mental health, muscle mass and motor coordination (amongst others).
Plus if you don’t jump or spin, this is a low impact cardio activity that suits all ages and many conditions.

And you can wear figure skates or hockey skates, the benefits are similar. But if you are wondering which ones to choose as a beginner, head to this article.

Of course, always check with your doctor before practicing a new physical activity.

All workouts are a great way to relieve stress. The physical activity releases endorphins.

But ice skating brings much more than that. It has special benefits compared to other sports that, in my biased opinion, make it one of the greatest sports to enjoy. I call it the skating happiness boost. Those are:

When learning to skate, you have to train your body and mind to balance on a thin blade while traveling across a slippery surface.
Ice skating is a great workout that helps you engage many muscles, improving your control of them so as to find balance.

As you work to develop your balance on your skates, you’re strengthening specific muscles and tendons in your feet and ankles. This benefit of improved balance carries over off-ice.

As you glide on 2 thin blades, and later on only one, your ability to balance will increase practice after practice.

Ice skating is also a great work out for the brain.
You whole body has to move as one if you don’t want to lose balance: your feet and legs of course, but also the position of your arms, torso, neck, head and where you are looking. It engages every part of your body to control the movement.
This activity triggers pathways in your brain, creating connections. And they will stay open after practice.

This improved motor coordination is studied to see if it could help people facing Parkinson’s disease (for example, the research at the University of Lethbridge)

Ice Skating

Ice Skating Information

Introduction

Ice skating is the skill of moving over the ice using ice skates. Ice skating is done on ice rink. An ice rink is a frozen body of water where people can skate or play winter sports. Skates, typically, have single blades. Ice skating is considered to be a tremendous sport and recreational activity with no age group restriction. It has been seen that large group of people has false approach regarding this sport. They consider it to be a dangerous sport but by paying a little attention one can be a master of ice skating.

A trained, professional skater have a firm grip over ice skating and can perform various complex moves on ice whereas a beginner skater is most likely to fall flat on ice more often than doing skating.

Ice skating can be done for many reasons. It can be for leisure purpose, sports, or even travelling. Ice skating can be of different types such as figure skating, ice hockey or speed skating, Rousette skating and Synchronized skating which are all part of Olympic sports. Ice skating can be done on artificially prepared ice tracks or on naturally occurring frozen bodies such as a frozen river or water. The artificial tracks can be indoor as well as outdoor.

What is an ice skate? They are boots having sharp blades connected to its bottom that helps a person to propel on an ice surface. Bottom of an ice skate contains a hollow crescent design two immense sharp edges. Radius or dept of hollow is of numerous sizes depending upon the following elements:

1- Weight of skater

2- Strength of skater

3- Ability of skater

4- Style of sport

5- Nature of sport (type of skating).

Skates like touring skates and speed skate don’t have bottom which is hollow, that enables the person to make a smooth slide but they are unable to cut ice with ease.

Following are the few types of ice skates:

2- Recreational ice skates

3- Speed skates or racing skates

4- Hockey skates

Types of Ice Skating

There are numerous types of ice skating that includes Ice Figure Skating, Ice Speed Skating, Tour Ice Skating and Ice Hockey. Skating is a professional sport as well as hobby that have need of expertise to become an expert and to slide with ease on ice sheet.

People having passion and love for this sport are mainly seen participating in the following two categories:

a- Figure skating

b- Hockey skating

Tour Skating

Tour Skating is a sport and recreational form of long distance ice skating on natural ice.

Speed Skating

Speed Skating or speedskating is a competitive form of ice skating in which the competitors race each other in traveling a certain distance on skates.

Figure skating

Following are the major international competitions that are authorized by international skating union:

1- ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating.

2- European Figure Skating Championships.

3- World Championships.

4- Winter Olympic Games.

5- World Junior Figure Skating Championships.

6- Four Continents Figure Skating Championships.

Figure skating falls in four main branches i.e. Synchronized Skating, Ice Dance, pair skating and individual or single skating.

Synchronized Skating: A group of 12 to 20 skaters are involved in performing synchronized skating. These skaters then perform various techniques all together with music playing in the background. The basic formations include wheels, blocks, lines, circles, and intersections. The close formations and need for the team to stay in unison add to the difficulty of the footwork performed by the skaters in these elements

Ice Dancing: Ice Dancing is just like doing ballroom dancing. In this skaters are allowed or can skate foxtrots, tangos, waltzes or any type of dance they want to. These dances can be performed individually or with a partner. Make sure while performing not to lift your partner above your shoulder. Ice dance differs from pairs in focusing on intricate footwork performed in close dance holds, in time with the music.

Pair Skating: It is a type of free skating in which two skaters, i.e. lady and a man, girl or a boy skates, and performs number of foot works, spins and jumps. Pairs perform singles elements in unison as well as pair-specific elements such as throw jumps, in which the man `throws` the woman into a jump; lifts, in which the woman is held above the man`s head in one of various grips and positions; pair spins, in which both skaters spin together about a common axis; death spirals; and other elements. They lift and spins each other to make their performance more attractive and touching.

Single Skatin: The most well know form of figure skating is known as single skating in which an individual performs. The workout he or she performs could be anything i.e. spinning, jumping or mixture set of various moves.

Hockey skating is way more forceful, speedy as compared to figure skating. The speed in hockey skating depends upon two key elements that includes Foot speed and Skating power (skills). Hockey skating may involve many injuries so make sure while playing it you wear helmet as if your head strike the ice you won’t get hurt. Wear proper gloves as if while playing you fall down and other player by mistake step on your hand your figure won’t get damage from the sharp blades.

Effective Ways to Learn Ice Skating:

1. Look for suitable skates: Make sure the skate you buy ideally fit you as it is very much necessary to comfort your feet. Keep that in mind that while purchasing skate you check both the shoe by wearing them. Difference in the size of both feet can create problem while skating so if you check the size by wearing them at the time of purchasing it will make you clear to buy this or not. So select that shoe that ideally fits to both feet and you feel easy in them. There are various expensive brands available but if you are a beginner, it is advisable to go for rental skate shoes.

2. Try to walk: Skating rinks mostly have rubber matting for you to walk on. You should walk around on this matting in order to learn to keep the centre of gravity maintained. Make sure that you have your skate guards on.

3. Try to get and move on ice: Initially, you should get familiar with the ice and how it feels by holding the wall and walking around rink’s edges. You need to keep yourself relaxed and should know good techniques if you want to skate well. By walking around you will be able to learn to support your ankle as well as get used to the ice friction.

Initially, you should get familiar with the ice and how it feels by holding the wall and walking around rink’s edges. You need to keep yourself relaxed and should know good techniques if you want to skate well. By walking around you will be able to learn to support your ankle as well as get used to the ice friction.

4. Become skilled at keeping or sustaining your balance: In order to learn how to balance, grasp both of your arms at a level below to your shoulders. After this, lean the knees and bend forward. It will be very good if you do this without any support. If you are facing problem in maintaining balance without any support, use walls as a support.

5. Do crouch: You should stand straight up with your feet kept at hip distance apart. Your arms should be in front of you. After this, with slight squat find the centre of balance. Keep on repeating till you are comfortable. After this, you should squat down a little further until your knees start bending. All this time make sure you are looking forward.

6. Falling during practice: It is obvious while practicing, you will fall several times. Make sure you get succeed in pulling your arms out resulting in a safer fall else it can lead to many injuries including knee, wrist and many more.

7. How to stand up: If you fall, make sure while you are getting up to stand put your knees and hands on to surface. Put one foot in between the hands. Do the same with the other foot. It will make you to stand with much ease and perfection.

8. Move toward forward: Make you weak foot to bend, then with the help of other feet make a push outwards that direction diagonals. This will make you to move forward. After you achieve succeed, perform the same move with your other foot so that you can be able to move with the help of both feet.

9. Along with big strokes try also to glide: While doing stroking make sure you give an extra push or pressure to your ankle or toe this will boost your speed and with make you quicker. Try to lean the knees as much as possible and with the strokes move your body.

10. Learn to stop: For stopping, one skate should be placed behind you with toe facing away. Now, drag it gently behind till you reach a complete halt. Doing this will put all your balance on one foot only so make sure that you do a lot of one foot skating practice in order to master this technique.

1. Never look down to the surface while you are skating. If you do so your concentration will be distracted and you can collide with the corner wall of the ice ground.

2. If you are a beginner get old or rental skates, if you are a master in it you can buy various expensive skates.

3. Tie the skates in a proper way. Otherwise a perfect skate can’t help you to make it done with perfection.

4. Make sure while practicing it, you warm up your body to avoid injuries.

5. Have some training classes in order to learn.

6. Never bend on you back if you are a beginner, it will result in sever back injuries.

7. Never stop practicing as there is no end to perfection.

What do I need in order to Skate?

To skate you will need to have a proper pair of ice skates and some warm clothing. If you have these two you are good to go. If you are a beginner it is recommended that you rent a pair of skates instead of purchasing new one because with time, training and experience ice skating needs will change and you will eventually need to buy a new but a different type of pair.

What is the proper clothing needed for ice skating?

Clothing depends upon where you plan to skate. If you are to skate indoors, then typically the temperature will be around 50 to 60 degrees but if you are to skate outdoor than keep in mind that temperature will be colder. Make sure to wear layers. The clothing should be comfortable and you should be able to move easily. Do wear gloves as well but not thick or heavy socks as they become a problem. Also, if you are a beginner make sure to wear a helmet.

I am a beginner, should I prefer hockey skates or figure skates?

For a beginner, it doesn’t matter which skates you wear. You can learn the basics of skating on any of the skates.

What should I keep in mind when purchasing skates?

Make sure that your skates fit properly. No room should be there for extra boots. When you were skates, make sure that the toes are able to wiggle. Also, once you have tied the laces the heel should not be able to slide down or up. Finally, make sure that the maximum support is at the ankle.

Ice skating can be a lot fun to do. Once you have learned and become an expert in ice skating, you will then know how much exciting as well as relaxing this game is. Once you start skating you will not be able to stop yourself. You will want to skate all day on the ice, not necessarily doing some special moves but simply gliding on ice.

Ice skating has a got a lot of variety and techniques which one can learn. In order to learn, one may need a help of a professional. After having received proper training, you will need to practice a lot in order to master a technique and be able to do it comfortably. You can then even go out and compete or simply do it as a recreational activity.

How to Ice Skate for Beginners

So you want to learn how to ice skate. You’re a complete beginner. Or maybe you used to skate, but you’ve not practiced for ages. Fortunately, you bumped into this post on how to ice skate for beginners. Lucky you! Here, you’ll learn the fundamentals or basics of ice skating and more. Of course, you won’t instantly become Nathan Chen. But at least, you’ll know where to start.

You’ll learn various beginning ice skating moves. In the end, though, ice skating is more about doing and less about reading or even thinking about it! So, read this. Watch a couple videos. Buy the gear you need, or rent it if possible. Most importantly, start practicing earliest you can. And remember to wear protective gear for ice skating including a helmet and protective pads.

What’s Skating?

Skating is a hobby or sport where people use skates or wheeled-shoes to glide on ice or other surfaces. It’s an all all-embracing term referring to a smorgasbord of different types of activities.

Someone may say “I’m going skating,” but they mean they’re actually going electric skateboarding or just street skating rather than ice skating. Or maybe they’re going roller skating. In the end, it’s a question of context. Skating means whatever version of gliding around the speaker practices.

By the way, ice skating isn’t the same as roller skating. Typical roller skates have wheels while regular ice skates feature a metallic blade on the underside. Take a look.

This is a roller skate, and as you can see, the wearer rolls on wheels. Ice skates are what you need for ice skating. As you can see, they have a metal blade rather than wheels.

Science-backed Benefits of Ice Skating

You’ve probably wondered whether ice skating delivers any real benefits. Can skating really help me lose weight, you ask.

Now, here’s good news:

Skating can help a 125-pound person burn as much as 210 calories in just 30 minutes according to Harvard Medical School. By comparison, the same person would burn just 90 calories if they did general weightlifting for 30 minutes.

As you can see, ice skating actually burns 57 percent more calories than weightlifting! Evidently, ice skating can help you lose weight. It’s a great way to regain one’s self-esteem and confidence.

Another great advantage of skating is that it can help you develop a leaner, well-toned body. As you stretch your muscles and various body parts such as hands and legs, your overall body shape will improve. Your ability to endure will soar, and you’ll become stronger.

Finally, skating can do wonders for your mental health according to Healthline. The activity is a great way to push one’s body and mind beyond their comfort zones, boosting clarity and mental control. Isn’t this something you’d want to learn with your significant other or friends?

Enough of that. Now, let’s start……

Prepping for Ice Skating

Let’s start at the beginning. You don’t need any kind of fancy equipment to get started. Pretty much anyone can afford this hobby.

First off, you need good skates — probably the best ice skates you can afford. But who says you can’t rent? Renting lets you learn the sport cheaply. It gives you sufficient time to decide whether you really love ice skating without spending a whole boatload of money. Get skates that’ll fit just right. Choose those that’ll offer you enough foot and ankle support.

Of course, you should wrap up warm for the activity. Also, have several pairs of socks whether you’re renting skates or using your own. It does get cold out there, and you want to stay warm. Plus, socks make your skates less roomy, and that helps you avoid nasty blisters.

And before you strap those skates on, wear something that covers your legs entirely. Wearing shorts is just a bad idea. There’s always a chance you might fall, leaving a layer of your skin on the ice! So, grab a pair of warm-up pants or sweatpants. They should be close-fitting rather than too tight. Also, have knee pads as well as shin pads.

In addition, wear a safety helmet. Figure skating pros say that all beginners regardless of age should have protective gear for the head. Your helmet should be snug and comfortable. It shouldn’t move or fall off at any time during practicing. So, buckle your helmet’s chin strap properly.

Don’t tilt the helmet too far back on the top of your head. Or pull it too low over your forehead. And before you get onto the ice, test the safety helmet to ensure it’s a good fit. Here’s one more thing. Make sure the helmet doesn’t have any cracks or other signs of damage.

Lest I forget, you should also wear cut-proof skating gloves. Gloves or mittens keep your hands warm. And in the event of a fall, you can avoid getting cut. It’s also nice to have elbow pads and wrist guards. Pads minimize impact in case you fall.

Let’s now put the skates on….

How to Lace Up Your Skates

Have your heels as far back into the boot as possible. At that point, hold the tongue and gently pull it up. Next, tuck the tongue on either side of the foot. Then, start pulling the laces, starting at the second set/pair of laces.

Ensure each boot closes well over the front of each foot. The first two sets of laces and those meant to support the ankles should be snug. The last two laces should be somewhat looser, allowing you adequate flexibility. Finally, cross the ends nicely over the last two hooks, tying them tightly.

Note: make sure you have no loose flying bows. Why? It’s because they can cause accidents.

How do you know you’ve done the job correctly? Put a finger between each leg and the back of the boot. If you tied the laces right, your finger should fit without too much work. But you shouldn’t be able to stick it in effortlessly. Also, your feet should feel comfortable. They shouldn’t hurt at all. If that’s not the kind of fit you have, make adjustments until you get it right.

Let’s Start Skating

Want to see a real pro doing it rather than read how to ice skate? Here’s a video for you so you can learn the basics quickly and hit the rink.

Ice Skating Video (You won’t find a better trainer!)

This video explains in clear detail various fundamental ice skating moves. Watch it, understand it, and most important, practice the moves. Happy gliding!

Gliding successfully on ice is a function of how well you can command balance and control. So, learn how to achieve and maintain your balance. How do you do this? Get into the correct ice skating posture from the get-go. And maintain that posture throughout each session.

Your knees should always stay slightly bent. That position lowers your center of gravity, stabilizing you. It also helps you to skate without falling. Also, you should always have your weight positioned over your skating leg.

One time you’re skating on the right leg, and the next moment on the left one. Every time you switch legs, you must shift your weight so that it’s over the skating leg. Here’s one more thing. Your hands should stay stretched out to the front. Picture someone riding a scooter, with their hands holding onto the bars.

But before you get onto the ice…..

Learn How to Fall, Too

While falls rarely cause severe injuries or death, they happen. It’s critical to learn how to fall right.

As a kid, you fell many times before you learned to walk. A couple years later, you fell of the bike several times before you learned how to cycle without falling. The same goes for ice skating. No matter how well you know the art, you’ll fall.

Note: If it feels like you’re falling, do what you can to fall to the side rather than backward or forward. That’s why it’s advisable to practice for some time off the ice.

Here’s the secret of falling right. ALWAYS lower your center of gravity before a fall. Maybe your high school physics is a little rusty, huh? Don’t worry; it doesn’t matter.

So, bend your knees. That reduces the distance between you and the ice, minimizing the odds of getting hurt. And don’t use your hands to catch yourself, no matter how natural that feels. You don’t want to end up with broken arms, do you?

As stated elsewhere, most bad ice skating falls happen to folks who try to break the fall using their hands. Keep your hands out of the way so you don’t crush them. Then, fall on the side. As you fall, make sure to tuck your chin to your body. You never want to bash your head against the ground.

Do Ice Skating Falls Hurt?

Many beginners wonder what it’s like to fall while skating. They can’t stop imagining all the pain they’d feel if they took a bad fall. But here’s good news. Even though beginners and pros fall a lot, bad falls aren’t scarily common. Especially if you’ve learned how to fall properly. By default, your knees are bent, and you’re always comfortably close to the ground.

One study shows that most ice skating falls happen when people fall the “wrong way.” The study focused on an ice rink in Cambridge, but it can be assumed the same goes for most rinks. The vast majority of falls occur because people tried to break the fall using their outstretched hands. That’s most likely why fully 98% of all accidents affect the upper limbs.

How to Get Up

If you fall, try to get back up as quickly as possible. Get out of the way, or you’ll stop a speeding skater!

To get back up, roll onto your hands and knees. Set one of your feet, preferably your dominant one, on the ice — between your hands. After that, quickly get the other foot on the ice, also between your hands. At that point, stand up, and keep your knees slightly bent. Once you’re back up, regain your balance and you’re good.

Ready? Let’s start gliding…

1. Skate Forward

It’s time to march forward. With your toes pointing in the direction you’re heading to, take one step forward. Then, repeat the action with the other foot. Afraid? Hold onto the wall first as you build up your confidence. Oh, and stop looking down to see whether you’re doing it right, or you’ll collide with someone and get injured. Next, try to push a little harder, doing two-foot glides. As your confidence grows, you’ll do longer glides faster.

2. Backward Skating

Keep your feet parallel to each other, knees bent, and chest up. Then, shift your weight to some position between your feet, and push outward, one foot at a time. To maintain your balance, work off the balls of your feet, pushing backward gently. Not going anywhere? No worries. Try this: with your toes turned in, try to walk backward slowly. As you do that, shift your weight until you find that sweet spot where balance happens almost effortlessly.

3. Forward Swizzles (Scissors)

This move starts with you standing in a V-shaped position, your heels touching and toes turned out. Of course, you should bend your knees a little. Now, use the inside edges of your skates to push outward and forward. Keep going until your blades are one foot apart.

At that point, with your knees straightened, form an inverted V by bringing your toes together. When you complete this move, you’ll have done a circular move, like the letter O.

4. Backward Swizzles

For many people, backward swizzles are more difficult than forward swizzles. You may have done the forward wiggles without much difficulty, but you may find you have trouble doing backward swizzles.

Fundamentally, backward swizzles are similar to their forward counterparts. Except that in this case, you’re moving backward.

Backward swizzles have you starting the glide in an inverted V position. So, bend your knees. And your toes should stay together. Next, use your inside edges to press your heels outward. At that point, your skates should start gliding apart. Continue moving until your feet are at roughly one foot apart.

Next, start straightening your knees as you rise up. Simultaneously, put your heels together as if you’re prepping for a two-foot backward glide. Do this again and again, about 6-8 times.

Backward swizzles (and wiggles) are very important. Without them, you won’t do backward crossovers successfully.

5. One-foot Glide (Forward)

To do this one, start with forward marching or swizzles as per your preference. Then, get into a two-foot glide. Next, pick one of your feet up, placing the foot close and parallel to the skating one.

Remember to keep the hip on the free foot a little raised. At the same time, have your arms extended forward, parallel to the ice in the direction you’re heading.

Also, position your shoulders parallel to the direction you’re gliding in. Want a really strong glide? Learn to balance on your foot for about 3 or more counts. Or, glide a over distance that equates to your height.

6. Learn the Dip

Let’s now do the dip. It’s a basic ice skating lesson taught in all beginning classes.

Here’s how to do the dip:

Start with your arms extended sideways, one to the right and the other to the left. Then, start marching slowly to build momentum. Finally, push off into a 2-foot glide. Next, bend both knees in a dip. Meanwhile, your arms should be extended forward, parallel to the ice and over your knees. Your upper body and chin should stay straight up.

7. Crossovers

We have forward crossovers and backward crossovers. These elements help skaters immensely when it comes to maneuvering corners. They require you to place your outside skate (assuming you’re practicing in a hockey circle) over the inside skate.

Crossovers are something you must practice frequently. They’re a fundamental move, and while they can be quite tough for a beginner, you won’t make much progress without learn them.

Forward Crossovers

Here’s how to do the forward crossovers. First, stand with your feet parallel to each other, one arm in the front, and the other stretching backward. Then, try crossing the right foot over the left one, searching for your balance in the process.

Next, lift the left leg and put it next to the right, assuming your starting position once again. To make sure you’re moving straight, follow one of the hockey lines. And as you do all this, be sure not to turn your hip as this will have you walking in a new direction.

You can also try to do sidesteps, one arm in the back and the other extended to the front. As you do that, you’ll feel like there’s a bit of a twist between your hips and shoulders. That’s because your shoulders and hips won’t be square.

Next, learn the edges you’ll be using to do the forward crossovers. As you cross your right leg over the left, bend the left one a bit, dropping it over to the outside edge, toward the smallest toe. Doing that allows you to cross over the left leg without a problem. It also helps avoid toe pushing later in the process.

And as you put the right foot down, bend the ankle a little, stepping on the outside edge. Finally, pick the left foot and position it parallel to the other foot. Note: as you cross one foot over the other, shift your weight in alignment with that move.

At this point, you’re ready to start practicing in a circle. Now, start pushing with the right foot. Note that this foot is on the outside of the circle. At first, bring the right foot to the left one without crossing over. As your confidence grows, start doing the crossovers as detailed above.

Keep this in mind: The first push should be done on the inside edge, the second one on the outside edge. Always start a new push with an edge opposite to the previous one.

Here’s another important thing. As you do the crossovers, keep your knees somewhat bent. A common beginner mistake is to play as if they’re walking rather than skating. You won’t get skating flow unless your knees remain fluid.

Another reason to bend your knees a little is to avoid tripping yourself by your toe picks. Once you’re comfortable doing forward crossovers in one direction, start practicing in the opposite direction.

Backward Crossovers

By now, you can skate backward or do backward swizzles and wiggles without issues (hopefully).

Now, start with backward wiggles or swizzles. Then, lift one foot up, find your balance, and glide in that position. Then, resume the backward wiggles or swizzles and lift the other foot up. Now, move over to a hockey circle (there are usually many such circles in an indoor ice rink).

Next, do one-foot backward glides around the circle until you can do it smoothly. Note: turn your head over your shoulder so you’re facing the direction of travel. A common mistake is to face the direction you’re gliding from, thinking it’s the best way to avoid collision! Sounds silly, doesn’t it? But beginners do that all the time.

Push with the foot outside the circle, using the inside backward edge. Next, lift the same foot (the one you pushed with) and cross it over the other foot. Then, pick the skating foot and place it next to the other foot, just like you did for forward crossovers.

Remember to bend your knees as you do a crossover so you can have smooth moves and avoid tripping. One arm should extend to the front while the other should stretch out to the back, helping you maintain balance. Once you’re comfortable moving in one direction, start practicing in the opposite direction.

8. Shoot-the-Duck

This is another trick you should learn. The good thing with the shoot-the-duck move is that it’s quite hard to fall while practicing it. Normally, your backside stays pretty close to the ice. If you fall, it likely won’t be a thud! You most likely won’t get hurt.

Start by deeply bending one leg so that your knee stays close to your chest. At the same time, have the other leg out to the front. Pretend you’re prepping to aim and shoot at some unlucky duck. Now, in that position, push off and have fun.

9. Jumps

Ice skating jumps involve actually jumping off the ice and rotating in the air. There are 6 different elements (rotational jumps) you’ll learn (eventually).

The salchow is the easiest jump, followed by the toe loop. Then there’s the loop jump, the flip jump, and the lutz jump. Finally, we have the axel jump, the toughest of them all.

Even though I said the salchow is the easiest, ALL these jumps are hard to learn for a beginner. And you can easily get hurt. So, I strongly suggest you get a professional trainer to guide you.

Some people land the salchow jump after a month or two of practice. Others take 2+ years to learn the same jump. Not everyone in school gets what the instructor is saying the first time around. Similarly, there’ll always be differences in learning speed when it comes to ice skating.

There’s academic intelligence, and then there’s kinesthetic intelligence. To become a professional skater, you must consistently and passionately increase your kinesthetic intelligence.

Before you start with these 6 jumps, learn to hop. A hop is a simple jump where you leap into the air without rotating. Once you learn that, you can try practicing these 6 ice skating jumps from the simplest to the hardest.

How to Stop When Ice Skating

You can’t glide forever, certainly. Learning to stop is a vitally important skill. The T-stop and Snowplow stop are two essential stopping tricks you should grasp.

How to do a Snowplow Stop

To do a snowplow stop, start by reducing your speed by assuming a two-foot glide position. Next, bend your knees and ankles. Then, apply sufficient pressure (not too little or too much) to your stakes’ inside edges. When you do that, your heels will naturally begin to angle out. And that’ll have you skidding rather than gliding, bringing you to a successful, safe stop.

How to do a T-stop

You can do either the right foot T-stop or the left foot T-stop.

Let’s do the right foot T-stop. First, assume the T-position with your skates, the right one meeting the left one, forming the letter T. As you do that, stretch your right arm to the front while putting the left one to the back. Then, stand and achieve balance while in this position. Practice this until you can maintain that T-position without moving.

Now, you’re all set.

Next, use your left foot to push off and do a nice glide, holding the right foot (the stopping foot) up. The free foot should help you control the glide. At this juncture, you’re ready to start putting the foot down.

Avoid dragging the stopping foot on the inside edge. Instead, use the skate’s outer edge to push the foot toward the left foot’s heel. Take care not to step on the left blade. Then, angle your blade (of the right foot) to the outside edge while bending your knees all the way to a fine stop. And to do the left foot T stop, repeat this move, starting with the left foot.

How to Ice Skate for Beginners: The Dos and Don’ts

I’ll start with the Dos.

7 Ice Skating Dos to Keep in Mind:

5 Ice Skating Don’ts

Pain After Ice Skating

Many beginners ask, “Is it normal to experience pain or have blisters after a skating session? As a skating beginner, you may feel a bit of discomfort as you learn the ropes. And yes, be ready for a blister or two before your feet get used to wearing ice skates.

But how do you deal with skating-related pain? A certified orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Lance Silverman answers that question best. According to Dr. Silverman, it’s common for beginners in skating to hurt their ankles. It’s normal to wake up to aching, sore feet.

That’s because ice skating involves loads of footwork, and your foot and ankle muscles work hard.

One way to deal with the pain is to build ankle-strengthening exercises. A wobble board is another proven way to minimize ankle pain. Wobble boards help you balance your body better. And as you do that, your muscles become stronger and hurt much less.

Another common cause of ankle pain is wearing ill-fitting skates. It’s a common problem with people who rent skates. If your feet slide right in, you most likely have the wrong size. Skates with too much room — more than you need — end up hurting your ankles. They pile a ton of pressure on your ankle ligaments (outer), and you’ll experience pain upon waking up.

So, before picking that pair of rented skates at the rink, ask an experienced staffer to help you choose the right fit.

You can take the pain. It’s a small price to pay to learn a skill that’ll thrill you for a lifetime.

Lastly, DON’T overdo it. Don’t over-practice. In golfing, you don’t practice for a day and suddenly morph into legendary Tiger Woods. Similarly, you shouldn’t try to master ice skating in a day. Learning anything requires patience and persistence. And skating is no exception.

Final Thoughts on How to Ice Stake for Beginners

You’ve learned the basics of ice skating. Now, what remains is to overcome the fear of falling. Go out there and start skating. It’ll be hard and painfully slow at the start. And you may fall a few times, but be persistent. You’ll soon mesmerize everyone with the jumps, spins, glides, and glides you’ll effortlessly do. Here’s the thing: grab those skates and rush out. Happy skating!

3 thoughts on “How to Ice Skate for Beginners”

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