help w/ rollerskiing

I did rollerskiing last summer for the first time where I actually did
it consistently. It was helpful and a great fitness activity, but I
need to fix my technique and rollerskiing just seemed to reinforce my
problems. I have a lazy weight shift and don't really get much
compression, I should be getting a lot more out of my body in terms of
speed.

So, I know what I need and just spending more time chugging along
doesn't seem like the best bet. My balance needs some help also.

What's the best approach to take, ski slow and work on technique, do
some drills or try to just do shorter faster efforts? Any suggestions
would be most helpful. Right now I'm just going to skate and DP, as
the classic is bugging my knee.

On May 23, 4:59*pm, john wrote:
I did rollerskiing last summer for the first time where I actually did
it consistently. *It was helpful and a great fitness activity, but I
need to fix my technique and rollerskiing just seemed to reinforce my
problems. *I have a lazy weight shift and don't really get much
compression, I should be getting a lot more out of my body in terms of
speed.

So, I know what I need and just spending more time chugging along
doesn't seem like the best bet. *My balance needs some help also.

What's the best approach to take, ski slow and work on technique, do
some drills or try to just do shorter faster efforts? *Any suggestions
would be most helpful. *Right now I'm just going to skate and DP, as
the classic is bugging my knee.

John - I use rollerskiing (skating) for balancing a lot. My preferred
technique is to go for a very long stride spending as much time as
possible over one ski while balancing. I really try to keep all my
weight and center of gravity out in front over the gliding ski.
During this glide phase I focus on slowly bending the knee, lowering
my CG and preparing for a somewhat explosive and driving push off to
the other leg. You need a pretty smooth wide track for this. I
definitely have one side that I can glide longer and with less body
tension on so i try and bring the other side up to the same level.

Pole technique varies as I try and use all the strides with a really
long glide. Still have no problem getting the heart rate up to 80-85%
as I'm using the slowest wheels out there. Hope that helps.

Chris

John - I use rollerskiing (skating) for balancing a lot. My preferred
technique is to go for a very long stride spending as much time as
possible over one ski while balancing. *I really try to keep all my
weight and center of gravity out in front over the gliding ski.
During this glide phase I focus on slowly bending the knee, lowering
my CG and preparing for a somewhat explosive and driving push off to
the other leg. *

Agreed. I would rollerski w/o poles focusing on the glide, i.e. as
slow of a turnover rate as possible. In Russian ski schools they have
a game routine for kids called "whose pine tree has less branches".
Thomas Alsgaard who has a very smooth skate technique also emphasized
skiing w/o poles. I would also focus on trying to balance on the outer
"edge" of a rollerski, just like one would do with skis. It can get
tricky at the beginning, don't get discouraged if you... well...
crash.

On May 26, 1:53*pm, wrote:
John - I use rollerskiing (skating) for balancing a lot. My preferred
technique is to go for a very long stride spending as much time as
possible over one ski while balancing. *I really try to keep all my
weight and center of gravity out in front over the gliding ski.
During this glide phase I focus on slowly bending the knee, lowering
my CG and preparing for a somewhat explosive and driving push off to
the other leg. *

Agreed. I would rollerski w/o poles focusing on the glide, i.e. as
slow of a turnover rate as possible. In Russian ski schools they have
a game routine for kids called "whose pine tree has less branches".
Thomas Alsgaard who has a very smooth skate technique also emphasized
skiing w/o poles. I would also focus on trying to balance on the outer
"edge" of a rollerski, just like one would do with skis. It can get
tricky at the beginning, don't get discouraged if you... well...
crash.

right - I agree with the "outer edge" part of that recommendation.
With each glide I try and make sure I have a clear segment that has no
edging at all i.e pure glide with the rollerski and foot completely
vertical. I want to make sure I am relaxed and completely balanced
for this part - confident that if I wanted to, I could continue on for
several feet like this - this is the good balance stuff.

If you have a tendency to begin to edge immediately - and thus cannot
push the balance envelope - begin the landing and glide very slightly
on the outer edge (be careful, this is subtle) and slowly come up to
neutral. This can help you find neutral more easily sometimes. Later
in the stroke you will begin the inward edge in preparation for the
push off. Hope these words help.

Chris

On May 26, 10:32*pm, "
wrote:
On May 26, 1:53*pm, wrote:



John - I use rollerskiing (skating) for balancing a lot. My preferred
technique is to go for a very long stride spending as much time as
possible over one ski while balancing. *I really try to keep all my
weight and center of gravity out in front over the gliding ski.
During this glide phase I focus on slowly bending the knee, lowering
my CG and preparing for a somewhat explosive and driving push off to
the other leg. *

Agreed. I would rollerski w/o poles focusing on the glide, i.e. as
slow of a turnover rate as possible. In Russian ski schools they have
a game routine for kids called "whose pine tree has less branches".
Thomas Alsgaard who has a very smooth skate technique also emphasized
skiing w/o poles. I would also focus on trying to balance on the outer
"edge" of a rollerski, just like one would do with skis. It can get
tricky at the beginning, don't get discouraged if you... well...
crash.

right - I agree with the "outer edge" part of that recommendation.
With each glide I try and make sure I have a clear segment that has no
edging at all i.e pure glide with the rollerski and foot completely
vertical. *I want to make sure I am relaxed and *completely balanced
for this part - confident that if I wanted to, I could continue on for
several feet like this - *this is the good balance stuff.

If you have a tendency to begin to edge immediately - and thus cannot
push the balance envelope - begin the landing and glide very slightly
on the outer edge (be careful, this is subtle) and slowly come up to
neutral. *This can help you find neutral more easily sometimes. *Later
in the stroke you will begin the inward edge in preparation for the
push off. *Hope these words help.

Chris

all this stuff was helpful, I got out today and did an hour without
poles and really felt a lot of improvement in that short time. Funny
how quickly you lose your ski balance

Good for you learning to rollerski. It pays off big in the long haul.
Some of the advice given about extending glide on one leg is a helpful
propioceptive exercise, tho balance drills should be entirely
secondary to technique practice. Good balance, genetics aside, is
largely a byproduct of extended practice with good technique, aided by
some specific muscle strengthening.

Good advice about center of gravity, tho more easily understood if
visualized as if you were pushing a 3' arrow forward (or side to side in
skating) from inside the belly button (actually from just under the
roll of fat). That said, I disagree with some of the specific technique
advice given, specifically about lowering the center of gravity and
bending the knee. Those confuse effect with cause. If the push off
starts with a quick ankle flex (from an already "soft" or slightly
flexed ankle), then those two things happen naturally.

I have a couple of suggestions: if or when you can, find a lesson(s)
from a pro; and ski as slowly as you comfortably can most of the time.
Learners tend to go too fast as a way to mask technique flaws. Pushing
fast is a good test from time to time and, of course, has training
benefits, but as learners, i.e., with relative inefficiencies, we tend
to go too hard aerobically as it is. Happy rollerskiing,

Gene

john wrote:

On May 26, 10:32*pm, "
wrote:
On May 26, 1:53*pm, wrote:



John - I use rollerskiing (skating) for balancing a lot. My preferred
technique is to go for a very long stride spending as much time as
possible over one ski while balancing. *I really try to keep all my
weight and center of gravity out in front over the gliding ski.
During this glide phase I focus on slowly bending the knee, lowering
my CG and preparing for a somewhat explosive and driving push off to
the other leg. *

Agreed. I would rollerski w/o poles focusing on the glide, i.e. as
slow of a turnover rate as possible. In Russian ski schools they have
a game routine for kids called "whose pine tree has less branches".
Thomas Alsgaard who has a very smooth skate technique also emphasized
skiing w/o poles. I would also focus on trying to balance on the outer
"edge" of a rollerski, just like one would do with skis. It can get
tricky at the beginning, don't get discouraged if you... well...
crash.

right - I agree with the "outer edge" part of that recommendation.
With each glide I try and make sure I have a clear segment that has no
edging at all i.e pure glide with the rollerski and foot completely
vertical. *I want to make sure I am relaxed and *completely balanced
for this part - confident that if I wanted to, I could continue on for
several feet like this - *this is the good balance stuff.

If you have a tendency to begin to edge immediately - and thus cannot
push the balance envelope - begin the landing and glide very slightly
on the outer edge (be careful, this is subtle) and slowly come up to
neutral. *This can help you find neutral more easily sometimes. *Later
in the stroke you will begin the inward edge in preparation for the
push off. *Hope these words help.

Chris

all this stuff was helpful, I got out today and did an hour without
poles and really felt a lot of improvement in that short time. Funny
how quickly you lose your ski balance