ONE-FOOT-GLIDING FOR BEGINNER'S....CAN ANYONE GIVE ME HELP ON HOW TO IMPROVE ON MY ONE-FOOT-GLIDE?

[FSWer]

Ok....I am working on this in my Ice-Dance Lessons,and I am wondering what I can do to improve? When I go and lift my leg,it just gos back down.Am I the only one here with a stubborn leg? Also,how would I go about putting distance on one-Foot? Is there any advice given to Skater's working on their One-Foot Glide as a Beginner? Because I would really love to get past it at some point. Can anybody help?

 

[Clarice]

How far apart are your feet when you pick one up? It's easier to find your balance if your feet are pretty close together to begin with.

You can also practice standing on one foot on the floor. If that gets easy, try doing it with your eyes closed.

 

[FSWer]

It's hard to say. But I'd say there not touching.

 

[MR-FAN]

Bend your knee!

Also, try practicing slowly near the wall, so that you can hold onto it when it gets shaky. once you build the confidence to lift the foot, add speed and move away from the wall

 

[Clarice]

They don't have to be touching yet. But if they're wide apart, as soon as you pick one up you will feel that you have to put it down again. If your feet are right underneath you when you pick one up, it is easier to find your balance.

 

[FSWer]

So,how should I start off?....On 2 feet,and keep my legs together,and lift slowly?

 

[Clarice]

Yes. And you don't have to lift your foot very high. Toe to ankle is fine. What did your coach tell you to do?

 

[FSWer]

She and Nick just had me lift my leg and put it against my other,if I remember right

 

[Clarice]

Yep, that's right. You have good coaches. You can trust what they tell you.

 

[TheGirlCanSkate]

What about practicing at home? Stand holding onto a chair with one hand, close your eyes and put your foot where your coach told you to put it. Raise your hand off the chair. Make sure not too far so if you wobble you can hold it again.

The reason you close your eyes is so you can focus on how it feels better, you're more mindful of what muscles you are using.

My physical therapist as a flat board with a piece of wood under it so it is wobbly. You try to balance on it. It looks so simple, but it uses core, leg and brain muscles. I get tired after 2 minutes.

 

[Shyjosie]

I can subscribe to everything that's been witten here, just want to add that you must consider that while standing still in both feet (on the floor or on the ice), your body, say your center, is in the middle between your feet. Keeping yourself upright in a stable position on one foot requires a shift of the weight to one side.
The wider apart the feet are, the more difficult it is to lift one of them, because the whole body weight is far away from the point where it needs to be for one-foot-gliding - it needs to be over the running foot - and every time you lift one foot briefly, you instantly skip and have to place the foot back on the ice in order not to fall, just as Clarice explained.
Plus, standing on both feet with more width in between than hip-width, will make you stand on your inside edges, making it Impossible to push and stroke, which is crucial to have at least a little speed for gliding.
We do an easy excercise on the ice: stand comfortably on both feet, push just a little bit to have a glide on both feet, hold out your arms for equilibrium, and lift one foot a little, try to hold the free foot up at ankle-height of the other foot while gliding on. Change foot. Try counting to three while holding the position.
Always take care that when placing the free foot on the ice again, the gap between both feet should not exceed hip-width.

 

[overedge]

@FSWer you don't have a stubborn leg. It is natural to put your other foot down if you don't feel secure standing on only one foot. You might even feel secure, but your mind may think that you could fall and send a signal to your leg to put your foot down.

The best way to get your one foot glide is to be able to stand securely for a while on one foot. As other posters have said you can practice this any time off the ice. Keep your free foot close to your other leg and stand near something solid like a chair that you can grab if you start to fall or wobble.

The easier it becomes to stand on one foot off the ice, the easier it will become on the ice.

 

[FSWer]

Yes. And you don't have to lift your foot very high. Toe to ankle is fine. What did your coach tell you to do?

Ok,because I've been bringing my leg up to my knee,which makes me fall. I feel backwards on Sat. at my lesson.

 

[Sylvia]

FSWer, maybe you should try lifting up your foot just a little bit and keeping your skate close to your lower leg/shin level and not as high as your knee.

It's also easier, in general, to hold a one-foot glide when the skater is moving faster, rather than slower, across the ice.

 

[FSWer]

HOLD!!!! That's the word I was looking for!!!! So,bring it up to my Ankle?

 

[overedge]

@FSWer You may catch your toepick if you hold your free foot next to your ankle. Put your foot a tiny bit higher on your leg, just next to the top of your skate boot.

 

[Yazmeen]

That's how my first coach taught it - boot to boot, one boot next to the other like overedge recommended.

I used to tell my students this to help them understand (and make them smile):

• You're not a flamingo standing on one leg, so don't lift the leg up high behind you
• You're not a Vegas showgirl or a Rockette doing a high kick, so don't lift the leg up high (up to the knee or higher)
• You're not Frankenstein, so don't lift the foot way out to the side where you look like Dr. Frankenstein's monster trying to walk

Just lift the foot up to your other foot - boot to boot.

 

[FSWer]

My boots should....touch on a landing?

 

[overedge]

@FSWer No, your boots should touch while you are doing the one-foot glide - while you are holding your free foot up. If your legs are too far apart, you will lose your balance.

It is very simple to practice this off the ice. Stand with your feet just a little way apart, the way you would normally stand when you are standing still. Now imagine that you are wearing your skates. Lift one leg up until your free foot is next to the top of your skating boot on your standing leg. That is where you want to hold your free foot when you are doing a one-foot glide.

 

[FSWer]

So,put my boots together after I start gliding?

 

[Clarice]

FSWer, this is why you have a coach. It's really hard for us to describe in words what you need to do - it is much better for your coach to show you. You should do exactly what your coach instructs you to do. After your lesson, if you find you can't remember how to do something, it would be good to write down a list of questions to ask your coach the next time you see them.

 

[overedge]

@FSWer you push with your free leg to start the glide. As soon as you start to glide, then you put the foot of your free leg next to the top of the boot of your standing leg. And you hold it there for as long as you glide. When you start to slow down or lose your balance, you put your free foot back on the ice.

But @Clarice is right - this is a lot easier to show than to describe in words. Ask your coach the questions you are asking us.

And practice standing on one foot off the ice. Doing that a lot will really help you balance better on the ice.

 

[Yazmeen]

@FSWer you push with your free leg to start the glide. As soon as you start to glide, then you put the foot of your free leg next to the top of the boot of your standing leg. And you hold it there for as long as you glide. When you start to slow down or lose your balance, you put your free foot back on the ice.

But @Clarice is right - this is a lot easier to show than to describe in words. Ask your coach the questions you are asking us.

And practice standing on one foot off the ice. Doing that a lot will really help you balance better on the ice.

I still practice balancing on one foot off the ice just to help maintain good balance at my age (I just turned 60).

 

[TheGirlCanSkate]

I still practice balancing on one foot off the ice just to help maintain good balance at my age (I just turned 60).

Me too - a foot injury means general weakness on one of my ankles. I find the more I practice, the better I get but it is a slow improvement.

 

[livetoskate]

Also-- have your coach check out your boots and blades to make sure they are mounted right. I assume you're not wearing rental skates, right? It's so important to have properly fitted boots and blades, otherwise your sense of balance can be horribly affected.

 

[Yazmeen]

FSWer - something that might help. If you are using rental skates, each pair should have some sort of number or code written on them (for inventory purposes). If you find a pair you are comfortable with, check out that number and see if the skate rental can give you that same pair every time you skate. It might not work out, but it's worth and try and would be helpful to keep you in the same pair of skates.

 

[treesprite]

That is what we tell the LTS students at my rink. A lot of them write the skate number on their lesson cards (cards that let them get free skate rentals and practice sessions). The only problem is that sometimes the rink is crowded and the skates get handed to someone else, since we can't reserve them.