Back Spin

[antmanb]

Help! Help! Help!

I am getting so frustrated with this spin. No matter what i do, however i go into it i cannot get more than one revolution of it out. It doesn't matter how many things i tell myself when i go into it i ALWAYS come right up on the toe pick. even my coach laughed last night because i stayed down on a really bent knee and still pointed my toe and came up on the toe! Eventually i got a little off the toe by thinking of flexing my ankle forward rather than bending my knee and stayed off the toe but i can't figure out what to do.

With the front spin i remember spending as much as an hour at a time by the board doing the simple LFO three and trying to hold on the spin for a long as possible and building it up. It was always easy because if you fall inwards your free foot was there to catch you.

So how can i try to do this and hang on to the backspin?

I've tried from a standstill striking onto the RFI edge and "leaving" the free leg where it is - drawing the best part of a circle on the ice before turning the three and trying to spin. (usually just pop up onto the toe and kill the spin, even when i do not pop up on the toe my balance feels completely off and i can't stay in position).

I've tried doing a change foot upright but my front upright (even done slowly) is too fast to have any confidence in changing feet and pushing into that RBO.

Last night i was playing with just standing on two feet and rubbing the RBO edge around feeling where it is that i should spin and when i feel it pushing slightly into it and trying to hold it - i actually managed to get one and quarter turns doing that but then couldn't get any further.

Does anyone have any tips? I suspect that part of the problem is that right leg simply doesn't have the same strength as my left and that work in the gym should help this, but does anyone have any other hints or tips that can help with learning the feel of the rotation on this spin?

Ant

[Sessy]

My own experiences:
I pull your hips in before the entrance to the spin. I have a naturally hollow back and I can do forward spins that way, but not the back spin, I really need to "pull my tail in" like a scared cat with the tail between the legs, topple the hips.
I pull in my bellybutton by tensing the belly muscles like on one of those machines in the gym for the front row of belly muscles. Sort of takes the hollow out of the back, in line with the hip toppling thing. This keeps my rib cage over the spinning part of the blade, preventing me from going either over the back of the blade or the toepicks.
I don't open up the free-leg hip either, and take care to have your arms level (no dropping of the arms, and no pulling them too high) so that your shoulders don't go out of whack.

One more thing: check the blade mounting on your skating skate. If the mounting is off, you won't be able to keep the edge.

And you could get a spinner trainer. I bought one and practiced on it, and the first day I tried the backspin on ice I had 9 revolutions on my best spin of that day. I've still got troubles with the spin travelling badly and other problems, but I mean, it is spinning.

[Verena]

Hi!

I can share your feelings about the backspin :).. I remember having the same troubles when I first tried it and I am having the same issues with other backspin positions that I am trying to learn.
Here are some of my tips:
-First, practice practice practice no matter what! Even though this advice seems trivial it is the best advice for finding the spinning point and eliminating balancing back and forth on the blade!
- Strengthen your right side; this will also be associated by constantly practicing.
- Try to do a slow intro into the spin thinking all of the correct elements (position of arms, shoulders, hips) and do not rush it
- As soon as you complete the entrance (then you are starting to rotate) keep your free leg extended. It is much harder, but this is the right way to center the spin and if you manage to do it with an extended leg you will do it with a closed one.
- Very important: think of you abdominal muscles so that you do not drop or raise too high your free hip. The extended free leg should be extended from the hip and only the hip. The rest of the body should be vertical to the ice. This is how ballet dancers extend their legs.. Also, think that you are 'hanged' from your head, such that you are slightly leaning forward..

I hope this helps..

[Petlover]

Here is an exercise that helped with my backspin:

Do a right forward inside 3 turn to a right outside back 3 turn, repeat as many times as possible without ever putting the left/free foot down. This is kind of like a twizzle, but it really helped me get the feel of turning and balancing on the right foot in the same manner as the backspin.

Good luck!

[froggy]

i totally feel for you! i did the exact same thing, thankfully though i made some progress and im getting now like 3 or 3 1/2 now and no more popping!. what really helped a lot were two things in the beginning. (im ccw)

1. inside spread eagle - do a deep one in the direction to the right, hold the two inside edges till you cant anymore then slowly bring up your left leg,
2. keep the right knee bent for at least 1 or 2 turns

if your still popping up, just keep bending your right knee, that should avoid you from popping up on your toes.

once you get the hang of these even if your just doing 1 or 2 revolutions, then you can begin not keeping your left leg on the ice until you spin but rather just pushing off and coming in front, also you can begin not to hold your right knee that deeply as you spin, but just gradually come up on it, think of coming up using your thigh muscles and pressing down hard on your sweet spot.

your coach will help you with the arms and posture and all that fun stuff!

good luck!

[momsk8er]

I agree that the backspin is a pain in the ***. My problem is not that I go up on my toepicks, but that I keep flipping from the outside to inside edge - ending up with a series of 3 turns. I can do about 4-5 or sometimes more 3 turns in a row, but I need to stop checking my hip and start going around in a circle. It seems like it is a bad habit now, and I can't stop doing it.

Maybe keeping the free leg out longer will help? I'll try that tonight. Any other thoughts?

[froggy]

I agree that the backspin is a pain in the ***. My problem is not that I go up on my toepicks, but that I keep flipping from the outside to inside edge - ending up with a series of 3 turns. I can do about 4-5 or sometimes more 3 turns in a row, but I need to stop checking my hip and start going around in a circle. It seems like it is a bad habit now, and I can't stop doing it.

Maybe keeping the free leg out longer will help? I'll try that tonight. Any other thoughts?

keep the entrance edge nice and deep and hold it longer, then at the very last second begin the spin, don't think in your head, "3 turn and spin" rather, long and deep inside edge, press down and flip it around, then press down again on the sweet spot of your skating leg and also press down with your shouders and arms to help hold you centered rather than making traveling 3s.

i know on my fwd spins if i dont press down hard enough i end up making traveling 3s too...if only i collected mileage points on that! lol

good luck

[SkatingOnClouds]

I am also very frustrated with my backspin. No matter what I do, I end up with a series of 3 turns and my coach and I laugh about them as being twizzles. :frus:

I've tried open free leg, tried snapping in sooner. I've tried a loose, relaxed entry, and a slow, controlled entry. And they just keep getting worse! :frus:

I cannot get on the right part of my blade, I continually grind to a halt on my heel because I rock backwards and forwards. I've tried the tricks of pulling the tummy in and getting the weight further forward over the toe, I've tried lifting my toes, tried pushing down with my little toe. The more I work on them, the worse they are getting, and I don't know how to fix it. :frus:

Thank you. I feel better now.:oops: :oops:

[kayskate]

How is your camel? Might you be ready to try a back camel? IMO, the back camel really improves your upright back spin. It teaches you to keep the free leg behind, for the camel pose. If you enter your basic upright bspin as though you were doing a bcamel, then snap the hip closed as you hit the cusp of the initiating FI3, you are in backspin city.

I wrote a journal entry about it here:
www.skatejournal.com/sept01.html#paradox

Kay

[doubletoe]

Two other exercises that might help:

RFI-RBO double 3-turn (to get you comfortable turning and staying on the ball of the blade)

Backspin from LBI pivot. This is not easy, but it will allow you to bypass the RFI edge entry that you are having so much trouble with. It's also a great exercise for mastering the transition from forward spin to backspin.

[SkatingOnClouds]

Another skating session, another battle with backspins. If it weren't for the occasional (very occasional) spin which actually does go around in some pretty lame little loopy circles, I would blame my old blades, which are getting decidedly concave where the spinning spot should be.

All I can say is :giveup:

Nah, not really. I used to be able to do them, I've just lost something and one day it will just come back again.

[Skate@Delaware]

I agree that the backspin is a pain in the ***. My problem is not that I go up on my toepicks, but that I keep flipping from the outside to inside edge - ending up with a series of 3 turns. I can do about 4-5 or sometimes more 3 turns in a row, but I need to stop checking my hip and start going around in a circle. It seems like it is a bad habit now, and I can't stop doing it.

Maybe keeping the free leg out longer will help? I'll try that tonight. Any other thoughts?

I am also very frustrated with my backspin. No matter what I do, I end up with a series of 3 turns and my coach and I laugh about them as being twizzles. :frus:

I've tried open free leg, tried snapping in sooner. I've tried a loose, relaxed entry, and a slow, controlled entry. And they just keep getting worse! :frus:

I cannot get on the right part of my blade, I continually grind to a halt on my heel because I rock backwards and forwards. I've tried the tricks of pulling the tummy in and getting the weight further forward over the toe, I've tried lifting my toes, tried pushing down with my little toe. The more I work on them, the worse they are getting, and I don't know how to fix it. :frus:

Thank you. I feel better now.:oops: :oops:
Maybe you guys are blocking the spin with your shoulder???? I did the same thing and it kept me on the wrong edge AND gave me headaches because I could not get it. I spin ccw so to counteract blocking I have to concentrate by pushing my left shoulder back further than the right shoulder-makes me look uneven but it does work! try that and see if it helps. And don't raise up onto a straight leg until you are centered-1-2 revs.

[looplover]

I'm in the backspin hell club too :evil:

No matter what I do I cannot get this spin!! I do maybe 2-3 revs and then I start to go off the back of the blade. That freaks me out.

It always feels exactly the same when I do it (wrong) but I can't figure out what exactly it is that I'm doing wrong. Need more lessons on this. :frus: :frus:

[Skate@Delaware]

I think today I was only able to do them (all 2 of them) right because I was totally unblocked! I was relaxed (thank you muscle relaxer!!!) and un-rushed...thinking "spin over the right side"....plus I did lift up my left foot and tried to "spin around and catch up to the left foot" ...

not sure if that makes sense but when it finally happened, everything was just clicking into place! I was in the zen of the backspin! Of course, I only did 2 but that's 2 I didn't have before.

[dbny]

No matter what I do I cannot get this spin!! I do maybe 2-3 revs and then I start to go off the back of the blade. That freaks me out.

If you are going off the back of the blade then you are not doing a backspin at all. You are on the FI edge instead of the BO edge. That's the only way you could go to the back of the blade. Think about it, when skating forwards, your weight is to the back of the blade, and when skating backwards, your weight is to the front of the blade. Doing a FI edge instead of a BO edge is very common and a lot of people do not realize that they are doing it.

I described the method my skating director uses to teach the backspin in a previous thread. Here it is again:
I haven't tried to teach this yet myself, and I'm not sure I can convey it only in words without a demo, but here goes. First, you have to be aware that the direction you are going to move in is backwards, not forwards, so don't start from anything moving forwards. Second, you must have your weight over the skating hip (big surprise), and anything that pulls your weight out and away is going to pull you onto the FI edge (notice that in elite competition, when they change edge from the BO, the free foot uncrosses and is usually out away from the skating foot). Assuming a CCW spin, stand on two feet with your R foot slightly pigeon toed. Push off with the L foot into what is almost a B pivot on the R foot. As you push, bring the L foot over the right into the crossed position. Keep the L foot parallel to the R foot so as to keep the hips closed. The L arm is in front, with the R arm to the side. As you push off, bring the arms in, hands meeting in front, elbows down. If you feel your weight start to shift to the FI edge, jump out of the spin (from your toe), onto your toe as if you were landing a loop.

The thing that impressed me the most is that there is never any FI edge happening. I think that if you've already got that problem it's going to be very, very difficult to beat, especially if you can't feel the difference.


A couple of skaters expressed interest in this method. Has anyone tried it yet? I'd like to hear how it worked for them. I've been trying myself, but never have time to really work on it. The BI pivot doesn't work for me because I can't get my weight onto the pivoting foot solidly enough.

[SkatingOnClouds]

Coach has had me trying to work on back pivots. For some reason I never learnt these before, and I struggle with them. So now I have back pivots and backspins that aren't working :roll:

I know I hit the back outside edge going into them, I really feel for that flip from the forward inside edge to the back outside edge. Unfortunately it just keeps flipping.

[looplover]

If you are going off the back of the blade then you are not doing a backspin at all. You are on the FI edge instead of the BO edge.

Yikes! Thanks, that's helpful. I've got to practice this incessantly.

[chowskates]

Maybe you guys are blocking the spin with your shoulder???? I did the same thing and it kept me on the wrong edge AND gave me headaches because I could not get it. I spin ccw so to counteract blocking I have to concentrate by pushing my left shoulder back further than the right shoulder-makes me look uneven but it does work! try that and see if it helps. And don't raise up onto a straight leg until you are centered-1-2 revs.

I heard from a coach that the L shoulder should be in front -> for CCW rotation!! She did also say to look over the L shoulder. It just seemed too counter-intuitive to be true!

Anyway, I later looked at some pictures of elite skaters, and yes, that is exactly what they do in the air - for multi-rev jumps... Then when I got that photo of my backspin in O'dorf last year, well, it wasn't so obvious, but the L shoulder is certainly a little in front.

So, rather than thinking about the L shoulder, try using the right shoulder to nudge someone standing to the right.

[chowskates]

Maybe you guys are blocking the spin with your shoulder???? I did the same thing and it kept me on the wrong edge AND gave me headaches because I could not get it. I spin ccw so to counteract blocking I have to concentrate by pushing my left shoulder back further than the right shoulder-makes me look uneven but it does work! try that and see if it helps. And don't raise up onto a straight leg until you are centered-1-2 revs.

Many many years ago, a coach told me that the L shoulder should be in front -> for CCW rotation!! She did also say to look over the L shoulder. It just seemed too counter-intuitive to be true!

Anyway, I later looked at some pictures of elite skaters, and yes, that is exactly what they do in the air - for multi-rev jumps... Then when I got that photo of my backspin in O'dorf last year, well, it wasn't so obvious, but the L shoulder is certainly a little in front.

So, rather than thinking about the L shoulder, try using the R shoulder to nudge someone standing to the right.

[blackmanskating]

Many many years ago, a coach told me that the L shoulder should be in front -> for CCW rotation!! She did also say to look over the L shoulder. It just seemed too counter-intuitive to be true!

Anyway, I later looked at some pictures of elite skaters, and yes, that is exactly what they do in the air - for multi-rev jumps... Then when I got that photo of my backspin in O'dorf last year, well, it wasn't so obvious, but the L shoulder is certainly a little in front.

So, rather than thinking about the L shoulder, try using the R shoulder to nudge someone standing to the right.


You are right chowskates!!! Your left shoulder should be in slightly in front for CCW rotation. This is what fixed my axel and what caused me to rotate a double axel. My coach always said to lead with my left shoulder so that I rotate on my right side. And it always seemed counter-intuitive but it works. Turning the head to the left also helps for some reason. And there is no place better to practice this than in a backspin!!! I always try to rotate with my chest facing inside my circle. This causes my left shoulder to be in front and my right shoulder to be slightly back. It almost feels like my upper body is turned sideways.


BlackManSkating

[Skate@Delaware]

You are right chowskates!!! Your left shoulder should be in slightly in front for CCW rotation. This is what fixed my axel and what caused me to rotate a double axel. My coach always said to lead with my left shoulder so that I rotate on my right side. And it always seemed counter-intuitive but it works. Turning the head to the left also helps for some reason. And there is no place better to practice this than in a backspin!!! I always try to rotate with my chest facing inside my circle. This causes my left shoulder to be in front and my right shoulder to be slightly back. It almost feels like my upper body is turned sideways.


BlackManSkating
Aw, man! Now I KNOW that I'm the oddball!!!! This confirms it! Is there any wonder my coach has me salchow out of a mohawk now????

I will say, though, I did manage 2 well-executed backspins-feet crossed at ankles and looking over shoulder (had a witness for one of them) at club skate on Sunday...both were 5 revs.

[antmanb]

Thank you so much for all the tips and drills. I'm going to work hard on this tomorrow. Coach is now away for a couple of weeks so i'll try to do little and often to try not to pick up nasty bad habbits while she's away.

It is quite heartening to know that this spin is giving lots of people fits and not just me!

Ant

[momsk8er]

Has anyone tried to work on a backspin in a harness? Is that possible, or do you get too tangled up? I would like to try it, as I think maybe it would help. I keep checking my hip and doing 3 turns instead of circles. The one time my coach said I was really doing it right felt really different and I bailed out because I thought I was going to fall.

[kayskate]

Have you seen the Lussi vid? He teaches an upright bspin that starts something like a pivot, however instead of the toe pick, the skater turns on what Lussi calls "the bulge of the skate". This is the area right behind the pick. I have tried this method and find it helpful.

Kay

[blackmanskating]

Have you seen the Lussi vid? He teaches an upright bspin that starts something like a pivot, however instead of the toe pick, the skater turns on what Lussi calls "the bulge of the skate". This is the area right behind the pick. I have tried this method and find it helpful.

Kay


Yes I have that video. Lussi is referring to what is now commonly called the sweet spot on a blade. I've tried the technique when I first learned to do a backspin. (which wasn't too long ago by the way) It was helpful to me too. It made it easier for me to find my center once I started entering the spin from the inside 3 turn. I find it very informative to check out the "old school" technique. It brings some of these elements into perspective.



BlackManSkating

[cherriee]

Has anyone tried to work on a backspin in a harness?

I did at the *very* early stage of learning backspin. It helped me feel the weight on my skating foot w/o worry about falling.

[SkatingOnClouds]

Have you seen the Lussi vid? He teaches an upright bspin that starts something like a pivot, however instead of the toe pick, the skater turns on what Lussi calls "the bulge of the skate". This is the area right behind the pick. I have tried this method and find it helpful.

Kay

Yes, as I have said before, it might help my spins if my blade was convex instead of concave at the spinning point. Instead of a 'bulge' the blades are actually slightly dished at the spinning point. :roll:

I tried some of the tips last night :frus: Thinking of keeping my left shoulder in front and looking over my left shoulder made me fall in onto an inside edge. Coach is taking me back to working from back pivots - she was amazed to hear I had never been taught those. Perseverance, I will get my backspin.

[doubletoe]

Perseverance, I will get my backspin.

. . . especially if you get yourself some new blades with a nice rocker! :mrgreen:

[antmanb]

:frus: :frus: :frus:

I hate this spin, i HATE this spin, I HATE THIS SPIN!!!

There, i feel better now.

Had no success at all with it so left it well alone and did moves and jumps (which weren't too bad!)

Ant

[Isk8NYC]

I started working on a CW backspin yesterday. I skate CCW, but I can do a forward spin in either direction. (Advanced spins CCW only)

It's really hard! People just learning one of these spins have my sympathy.
Hang in there-you can get it.

One thing I noticed is that I was twisting my upper body in the wrong direction AND letting my shoulders get uneven. Might help you if you pay attention to keeping the shoulders level and the body checked to the skating side.

[peanutskates]

the only way I can get my backspin to about 3 or 4 ok-ish revs is PRACTICE for about 10 minutes, then I get a few good ones... otherwise they're rubbish

[kayskate]

This ties in w the Lussi method I discussed earlier. I came up w this adaptation for my own practice and it works for me to get me on the correct edge. Maybe it will help someone else.

Do a back xover wind up prep similar to the prep for a forward spin. However, the xovers are in the opposite direction. Step down to the spinning foot. You will be stepping into the circle scribed by the wind-up. For CCW this is your rt foot. Step on the rocker. Now push off as though doing a pivot, but you are on the rocker (or Bulge, as Lussi calls it). Lift the free leg up straight in front. You may want to bring the knee up to stay very centered. Don't spin w the free leg to the side at first, it will drop you immediately to the inside edge, esp if you are used to spinning on the inside.

Good luck! Happy b-spins!

Kay

[Skate@Delaware]

I had tons of trouble getting onto the correct edge...so my coach came up with some nifty exercises to "help" me out-
-back edges, and lift the free foot (shows I'm not cheating)
-back pivots
-experiment with lifting big toe, little toe, etc on spinning foot

we finally nailed it this past wednesday, when she had me really push my free leg behind me (just as you do on the scratch spin, before it comes around); then allow the hip to catch up to it...all while staying down in the knee. It worked, I did 5+ revs without toppling out of it. And, yes, I still kept my left shoulder pushed back-we think it has to do with the unevenness of my shoulder muscles due to my auto accident years ago (overcompensating to keep tension equal sort of thing).

works for me, your mileage may vary.

[LAdili99]

my problem,aside from increasing revs, is exiting. when i try exiting, i just keep on rotating, only in a bigger circle.help.

[LAdili99]

the only way I can get my backspin to about 3 or 4 ok-ish revs is PRACTICE for about 10 minutes, then I get a few good ones... otherwise they're rubbish


I KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN, I NEED TONS OF WARM UP TO BE ABLE TO SPIN OR EVEN JUMP MY BEST. THIS BECOMES A PROBLEM DURING COMPETITION WHEN WARM UP SESSIONS IS SO SHORT:(

[liz_on_ice]

I've tried doing a change foot upright but my front upright (even done slowly) is too fast to have any confidence in changing feet and pushing into that RBO.


Open your arms when you sink to change feet from the forward spin. This will slow you down, then you pull them in again when you find your balance on the backspin.


Does anyone have any tips? I suspect that part of the problem is that right leg simply doesn't have the same strength as my left and that work in the gym should help this, but does anyone have any other hints or tips that can help with learning the feel of the rotation on this spin?


Not a lot of advice, but I'm right there struggling with you. I'm either drilling holes in the ice with my pick, or sliding off the back of the blade or falling sideways out of the spin and hopping to the other foot. :giveup:

[doubletoe]

Do a back xover wind up prep similar to the prep for a forward spin. However, the xovers are in the opposite direction. Step down to the spinning foot. You will be stepping into the circle scribed by the wind-up. For CCW this is your rt foot. Step on the rocker. Now push off as though doing a pivot, but you are on the rocker (or Bulge, as Lussi calls it). Lift the free leg up straight in front.

Kay

When you step down to the spinning foot, are you stepping down onto a RBO edge or a RFI edge? In other words, is the foot turned backwards or forwards?

[mikawendy]

When you step down to the spinning foot, are you stepping down onto a RBO edge or a RFI edge? In other words, is the foot turned backwards or forwards?

I'm guessing stepping down onto BO edge?? For CCW spinners, the crossover windup would be going CW (instead of the usual CCW for a forward spin). So, if doing CW crossover, then stepping onto RBO edge would be using the momentum from the windup (going backwards, then stepping to backwards edge).

[blackmanskating]

my problem,aside from increasing revs, is exiting. when i try exiting, i just keep on rotating, only in a bigger circle.help.


I had this issue when I first started backspins. You are probably checking out of the spin too slowly. I noticed that my check had to be a little quicker and stronger on the backspin because there is no change of foot to assist you like in a forward spin. When you get into a fast back spin you will rise up in the knee as you spin but you have to come back down in your knee to check out. This helps you get off the sweet spot of the blade so that you glide on a RBO edge. These are just suggestions based on previous experiences but I would have to see your backspin to really know what's going on. But I hope this helps.


BlackManSkating

[doubletoe]

I'm guessing stepping down onto BO edge?? For CCW spinners, the crossover windup would be going CW (instead of the usual CCW for a forward spin). So, if doing CW crossover, then stepping onto RBO edge would be using the momentum from the windup (going backwards, then stepping to backwards edge).

But if you're trying to do the same thing as you do on a forward spin, wouldn't you step down onto the spinning foot on a RFI edge (ball of blade) and pivot/3-turn to get onto the BO spinning edge? On the forward spin you go from back windup edge to forward edge and do a 3-turn to get backward onto the actual spinning edge. . . ?

[Award]

Yo I always try to rotate with my chest facing inside my circle. This causes my left shoulder to be in front and my right shoulder to be slightly back.

If your chest is facing inside the circle, then what exactly do you mean by left shoulder being 'in front'.....and right shoulder slightly 'back'?

[blackmanskating]

If your chest is facing inside the circle, then what exactly do you mean by left shoulder being 'in front'.....and right shoulder slightly 'back'?

Your chest will be facing inside the circle as a result of your left shoulder being placed in front while your right shoulder is back. Imagine skating backwards on a CCW circle. While keeping your hips square, place your left shoulder in front of your body. Now take your right shoulder and place it behind your body. It should cause your upper body to twist and your rib cage to turn CW to the right. That's what I mean by having your chest face inside the circle. You chest will do this automatically if you rotate your shoulders. I hope this help clear things up.



BlackManSkating

[Award]

bmskating ..... aha! Thanks for explaining that!

[antmanb]

Open your arms when you sink to change feet from the forward spin. This will slow you down, then you pull them in again when you find your balance on the backspin.



Not a lot of advice, but I'm right there struggling with you. I'm either drilling holes in the ice with my pick, or sliding off the back of the blade or falling sideways out of the spin and hopping to the other foot. :giveup:

Back to it this evening in a lesson so i'll see how i get on. I just can't get my body aligned or used to actually spinning on the right foot. Coach has been making try a change foot camel and i get the first revolution absolutely fine and then my balance completely goes and i fall out of it.

Since i've tried and tried i think it might be time to blame something out of my control like my foot! Strangely enough i've noticed that when i walk i have a tendancy to drop in on the inside of my heel on right foot...the same foot that i find holding outside edges much more difficult than the left. I'll blame my foot for now!

Ant

[lov2sk8]

Don't blame your foot, blame your blade settings. It can make a big difference.

[kayskate]

When you step down to the spinning foot, are you stepping down onto a RBO edge or a RFI edge? In other words, is the foot turned backwards or forwards?

backwards. You step right into the bspin.

[kayskate]

Has anyone tried to work on a backspin in a harness? Is that possible, or do you get too tangled up? I would like to try it, as I think maybe it would help. I keep checking my hip and doing 3 turns instead of circles. The one time my coach said I was really doing it right felt really different and I bailed out because I thought I was going to fall.

I did this w a student last weekend. She has a weak forward spin, but needs to start working on bspin too. We did both forward and backward in the harness. She got some nice spins and was able to explore the backspin safely. We also worked on her loop, so the exercises went together very well.

Kay

[looplover]

Oh this spin! :twisted: :twisted:

I did a bunch of them today. Trying to just do it from a standstill because that's how it is in the program (we abandoned doing it from any speed for now). I can get a few revolutions but I know I'm changing edges, also still going off the back of the blade a lot. The ones I did do correctly worked when I really focused on going into it with my left shoulderblade pushed back.

I realized a lot of times I screw it up by not having my left leg/side back going in, so I'm not getting a snap. Of course as I was leaving the rink I remembered my coach telling me to turn into my left hip.

[peanutskates]

i hate the backspin soo much...
cool tips here, though

[SkatingOnClouds]

After trying so many different things that my coach suggested, my backspin finally fell apart totally. So it was back to working on the barrier, just on the pushing off. She has me now working on just push and snap into the position with left leg in front (CCW spinner).

And I am finally making some progress !!!!

Today I got sick of smacking the barrier that I tried some out in the middle, and I am starting to make circles (or at least loops) instead of twizzles. I can tell that I have not yet got my weight far enough forward toward the picks, but it is progress nonetheless. Finally !!!!!!!!

[Skate@Delaware]

After trying so many different things that my coach suggested, my backspin finally fell apart totally. So it was back to working on the barrier, just on the pushing off. She has me now working on just push and snap into the position with left leg in front (CCW spinner).

And I am finally making some progress !!!!

Today I got sick of smacking the barrier that I tried some out in the middle, and I am starting to make circles (or at least loops) instead of twizzles. I can tell that I have not yet got my weight far enough forward toward the picks, but it is progress nonetheless. Finally !!!!!!!!
Yeah, my skating director went to a seminar, and Alexei Yagudin was coaching a part on spins.....backspins.....her advice from him was stand and the boards and "snap" into the backspin (i.e. rotate, bring free leg to front, etc) but don't do the whole spin......over and over and over again.

I spent 20 minutes or so doing that and I do think it helped. at least with the muscle memory because then the next time I had a lesson with my coach was when I did the 5 revolution backspin.

I'm willing to try ANYTHING by this point!!!

[mikawendy]

Yeah, my skating director went to a seminar, and Alexei Yagudin was coaching a part on spins.....backspins.....her advice from him was stand and the boards and "snap" into the backspin (i.e. rotate, bring free leg to front, etc) but don't do the whole spin......over and over and over again.

I was *just* doing this at the rink on Friday. My problem? My "snap" is better in the direction that I don't normally spin in. The direction I spin in is slow and has not very much snap...

[looplover]

Yeah, my skating director went to a seminar, and Alexei Yagudin was coaching a part on spins.....backspins.....her advice from him was stand and the boards and "snap" into the backspin (i.e. rotate, bring free leg to front, etc) but don't do the whole spin......over and over and over again.



Hmm this is good to know. I had another day of frustrating backspin. In fact I got so frustrated I left early, which was the wrong thing to do! Sometimes I can't even get the thing started.

[Sessy]

can anybody link to the lussi video please, whatever that might be?

if the backspin is gonna take as long as the forward 1-foot took I'm gonna be pretty mad at myself.

[kayskate]

Have never seen Lussi vids on the net. You can buy them from Rainbo Sports.
http://www.rainbosports.com/shop/site/department.cfm/id/20F1BC7D-475A-BAC0-52874DA3E6743738
IMO, they are worth the $.
Kay

[Sessy]

Ahh okay.
Well I would, but last time I ordered something from the USA the EU customs didn't let it through so :x