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Learning to skate backwards is a step forward in the world of figure skating! You can skate faster as you utilize more of your quadricep muscles. Skating backwards is awkward at first, but you’ll soon get used to it and will actually find it easier.
Backwards swizzles:
Your feet will be about 6 inches apart, turned inwards, pigeon toed. Look behind you to be sure there’s enough room. Then you’re off, bending your knees as you do your first backwards swizzle. When your feet are about 12-18 inches apart, go onto the inside edges so they’re pulled closer together. You should be looking up, your arms held out to the sides, at shoulder height. Do several back swizzles, gradually increasing speed. Occasionally you’ll want to look behind you to make sure the path is clear! Swizzles are always done on two feet and on the inside edges of your blades.
Once you’ve mastered back swizzles you can increase the level of difficulty by learning to do backwards gliding. As beginners are often nervous about not being able to see what’s going on behind them, they tend to be more cautious. Caution is necessary in skating, but it should never be so great as to hamper your progress.
Backwards Gliding:
Starting near the wall, or using the wall to push off, align your body so your feet are hip distance apart. Remember to look up, and balance with your arms to the side. Begin doing a few swizzles. Then you’ll want to be on the flats of your blades, the portion of the blade in the absolute center that allows you to travel in a straight line. Practice this backwards gliding on or near a hockey line if possible. After completing some swizzles, you’ll want to lift up your left foot, but only an inch or two, and be on the right flat center edge of your blade. This is what it’s like to glide backwards. Change feet, staying on the flat of the blade.
In order to make the transition from forwards to backwards skating, you’ll need to learn a connecting element. You’ll be busy working on the 3-turn for many sessions to come!
Outside Edges:
Edges are necessary for you to learn to improve your gliding and turn it into stroking, crossovers and 3-turns—all basic elements which will later enable you to work on jumps, spins, figures and ice dancing.
The Left Forward Outside edge [LFO] is what you’ll learn in order to do the 3-turn and help control your skating. It’s best to practice this edge on a hockey line.
If possible, begin at one side of the rink, right on the hockey line. Start with your left foot pointing straight ahead, your right foot at an angle so it’s facing the right – this will look like 3 o’clock. This is where you align yourself. You want to look straight ahead, left arm IN FRONT, right arm TO THE RIGHT SIDE. To get the proper arm height, put your arms to your side, then lift them up about 6 inches. Your arms will be in a lower position when practicing edges. Move your left foot ever so slightly to the left, so you’ll be able to glide onto that left outside edge.
When doing your outside edge, it’s important to bend your left knee. You’ll be pushing off with your right blade, the inside edge to be exact. DON’T USE YOUR TOEPICKS. It’s incorrect and it also sounds awful. By the way, your left foot the one that will remain on ice is called the skating leg. Your right foot, kept off the ice, is the free leg.
Pushing off you’ll do the first quarter of the half circle. Your right foot will be just off the ice, behind your left boot. It’s okay to have the right knee bent slightly. Your arms will remain with the left in front, right to the side, but lower than shoulder height. Also, think of LEANING to the left at the take off, using your left hip as an axis.
After completing the first quarter, you’ll need to move your right foot so that it’s still off the ice but in front of your left boot. Your shoulders will also make a shift change: they’ll go to the left [counterclockwise] so you’re now leading with your right arm. As you approach the midway point, straighten your knees.
When you get more advanced you’ll go into a right forward outside edge, but for now it’s best to work on only the LFO.
Inside edges:
This time you’ll be standing in the 9 o’clock position, right foot pointing straight ahead, left foot pointing to the left wall. Your arms will be in the lower position, as described above, left arm in front, right to the side.
Align your body, moving your right foot a bit to the left so you’ll be directly on the inside edge. Bend your knees, then push off using the left inside edge [NO toepick] of your blade. Your free leg will be behind you at the first part of the turn, then in front of your boot after you’ve gone past the quarter point of the half circle. Your arms also change position at the same time in a fluid motion straightening your knees and your arms are to the side, then the left arm leads, checking the turn. The lean on this edge will be on your right hip, but with a lean to the left—the inside edge.
The 3-turn:
All of the above exercises have prepared you for your most advanced move so far: the 3-turn. Named after the tracing it leaves on the ice, the 3-turn is a left forward outside edge to a back inside edge. Even though you haven’t done back inside edges yet, they’re not required to know for learning this turn. What the 3-turn enables you to do in the future is limitless, but the reason you’ll be learning this element now is so you can go from skating forwards to skating backwards, and be able to accomplish this on ONE FOOT!
Begin as you did on your outside edge, left foot in front, facing a little off to the left, right foot pointing to the right so your feet resemble a 3 o’clock position. Look up and to the left, in the direction in which you’re heading. Your left arm will be low and in front, right arm to the side. Bend your knees and do an outside edge, pushing off from the right inside edge. Keep your foot behind you. After completing the edge you’ll need to straighten your left knee and transfer your weight to the ball of your foot. Shift your shoulders in a counterclockwise direction and bring your free leg in closer to your body. Your balance will shift from the strong lean on your left hip to the checking of the right hip and shoulder [clockwise] and being on an inside edge. Keep your arms out to the side with the slight variation of your right arm being in front.
To make sure you’ve done this move correctly, look at the tracings on the ice and see if the number 3 is there.
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