Hold onto your hats. Our friends and partners - the BSF PRO Team - have offered up Willson to explain his journey to find a more directional - and powerful - kick in his skate. We're excited to help you achieve skate technique goals with some tips, tricks and deep thoughts around propulsion in skate skiing.
With that, let's watch the vid below and then dive into how to push like a pro, yo.
push like a pro, yo.
The Line.
The skate push element must be initiated AND finished in a lateral movement AWAY from the body with the hip, knee + ankle aligned. Think of them as a set unit, that move together. The colored lines below help to show the ideal limb position on Willson:
X The unideal:
> When Willson's femur joint "opens" it causes his hips AND shoulders to rotate away from his direction of travel. Causing a loss of alignment and compromised power.
> This "open" hip joint also impacts BALANCE. It will be much harder for Willson (and us mortals) to be able to maintain a forward + flexed position on your flat, gliding ski. This will ultimately compromise your weight transfer, as well.
\/ The ideal:
> Everything is aligned, and Willson's body is better positioned to get him UP the trail.
> This ideal femur/joint position will recruit more muscles to create a powerful, purposeful push-off.
push like a pro, yo.
The Extension.
Willson is now under power with a perfect extension AWAY from his mid-line. Ensuring a powerful and BALANCED application of power to positively impact his ski. AKA, he fast AF.
> On the left: Proper set-up for the push-off with the flexed gliding position. Willson's right leg joints are in line and coiled like a spring ready to release.
> The image on the right: The FINISH of a proper push. All three lower body joints: hip, knee, and ankle are extended fully, transferring all of Willson's power through the boot, to the binding and ski.
Full extension results in dynamic weight transfer onto the new glide ski where we repeat the fluid cycle of push, weight transfer, and glide.
push like a pro, yo.
The NORDJÖRK Cue.
This is one of the very first cues we ever created using "external cueing". It is an absolute game-changer for our students. It helps them think about something other than their bodies and they immediately feel the impact of a proper push-off. It is crystal clear, easy to visualize, understand and replicate under virtually any skiing condition - slow and controlled in drills, or opening it up on a training ski. Here's how:
🕛 Think about your body as the center of a clock. Your direction of travel up the trail = 12
🕒 PUSH your right foot to 3 O'CLOCK
🕘PUSH your left foot to 9 O'CLOCK
push like a pro, yo.
The Practice.
You gotta work it. When you're ready to put the 3 o'clock + 9 o'clock cue to the test, try these drills with Willson:
1️⃣ NO POLE: The gold standard when working to refine leg technique. We remove the poles to help the brain focus on only ONE task. Ski as much as you can to cement the cue and the motion.
2️⃣ V2 ONE POLE: This is a super drill that tests power output between each side/leg. Excellent progression from the NO POLE.
3️⃣ V1 ONE POLE: Nailing your ski/pole push with one pole is crucial. Make sure you work both sides. Bonus points for working the "off-side" single pole V1 to round out your technique and timing.
push like a pro, yo.
The Extra Things.
Even in the digital world, coaches can't stop talking:
👉 Optimizing the direction of your push will take your skate skiing to a new level. Be slow and deliberate with your practice, keeping the upper body and COM in control and quiet.
👉 Don’t be shocked when the timing of your V2 and V2A POLING takes a hit. Executing a longer, more powerful skate push will likely change up your poling rhythm. Let your feet dictate the tempo of the pole plant, not your hands. Don’t overthink this piece, ski without poles and then slowly integrate. Your brain will work it out.
👉 When pushing in the proper direction, finding the full extension is much easier, a lot of fun, and is critical for opening up a new source of power in your skiing.
the closer What We're Thinking About
That the skate push is a legit piece of technique that doesn't get nearly enough attention. If you're forward, flexed and low - and STILL not finding your way in the skate lane. Take a look at WHERE your skate push is happening, it might reveal some clues. While it's tricky to advocate for skiing with your head down (?) this is one of those moments that could benefit with a few sneaky-peakies to make sure you're pushing at 3 and 9 o'clock so you can skate like a pro, yo.
Comments