Hello all, me and the wife are trying to put some time on the ice after getting our first adult beginner lesson, of which will probably continue at about once a week. I am just wondering about some of the stuff she taught us. The first thing she did before skating with us was show us how to get up if we fall, thats understandable. Then she had us sort of march in place and around the ice.

The next day when we did not have the coach I was thinking about it, and was this marching to get us to pick the toe up and not step the teeth into the ice?

She really helped alot with getting us moving, I keep my knees bent now and bring my feet together before pushing off with my next foot and spend some time on one foot too, but I keep letting my arms down. Is that for balance, or just to stop you when you fall?

Stopping is really hard, she taught us snow plow, hopefully we will get better with improved balance. Luckily the ice is really empty in the morning, and skating is so nice (like flying), who wants to stop anyways? Well my wife does, her new Riedells are hurting, mostly the soles of her feet, might have to take them for heat readjustment?



hutchndi

The purpose of marching is to teach you to put your skates on the ice in place rather than stepping ahead as in walking, to teach you to avoid the toe pick when pushing (you're not quite there yet), and to help you learn to bend your knees. I don't tell people to pick their feet up and down, I say "lift your knees up" instead. Keeping your ams slightly in front and at waist height is for balance and to help you keep your upper body still. Every time your upper body moves, it affects what you do on the ice.

Reheating your wife's skates might help, but you could also try buying some softer insoles at the drugstore.

Welcome to figure skating!

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Thanks for the info and advice, now just any comfort insole will do, like gel or Dr Scholl's or what? My wifes feet will thank you SO much.

hutchndi

it all depends on the fit of the boot. if they fit properly i.e. nice and tight...you'd want to go for a thinner more rigid sole, but if you had more room in the boot you could use like a memory foam insole that they have at the drug store- and they are thivker.

I got some superfeet insoles after some of the people on here recommended them. Havn't skated in them yet but they seem very confortable and there are green ones and blue ones depending on what thickness you prefer.

You can also get heat-moulded-to-measure custom insoles from a ski shop. One manufacturer is Sidas "conformable" insoles. Well worth the 50 dollars or so IMO.

I'd avoid gel or anything too soft - your feet need to be secure in the skates.

I use Sole custom insoles which are heat-moldable to your feet but after shaping are quite firm, and have seen recommendations for the superfeet brand ones as well. The key difference for me seemed to be the additional arch support, and the fit of the insoles means that my feet don't slide forward and back like they did with the stock insoles (my boots aren't quite the right size for my feet ).

Another part may simply be how she's tying the laces. They should be tight enough that your foot doesn't move around, but not to great excess. I find that my arches will start to cramp and hurt pretty quickly if I tie the lower part of the skate overly tight. Everyone seems to have different preferences, but for me the lower part of the laces need to be tight enough to keep me from being able to lift the ball up and down in my foot, but no more than that, whereas the ankle part I tie nearly as tightly as I can (not so tight it makes my ankle hurt, but surely a lot tighter than the bottom portion) all the way up. Try a few different combinations, leaving the top hooks unlaced, etc. and see if one method works considerably better. Also keep in mind that what works best might change as skating skills improve too.

Fortunately, insoles are pretty inexpensive, even the good ones

Good luck,

__________________
Casey Allen Shobe | http://casey.shobe.info
"What matters is not experience per se but 'effortful study'."
"At first, dreams seem impossible, then improbable, and eventually inevitable" ~ Christopher Reeve

Well the coach did have her loosen the top of her boots a bit so she can have some movement there. She has Riedell 300's http://www.riedellskates.com/ice/300.html with lace locks so they pretty much stay snug without loosening up, and she doesnt lace the top holes. I know its not a good idea to do to much heat adjustment (so the store manager tells us) so the boots dont get too loose as they break in, so I will look for some insoles for her.

Thanks a bunch,

hutchndi

Well we were at Walmart the other day and picked up some Dr Scholes, they seem to have helped some. The ones that mold to your feet, at least the ones in Walmart, they looked very thick especiallt towards the heel, so we thought that with new boots they would make them even tighter.

Thanks again,

hutchndi

I'm a new skater, too, and I've had a heck of a time learning how to lace my skates properly. What I mean is, half the time I do them too tight, and half the time too loose, so I spend the first fifteen minutes in a skating session adjusting them one way or another.

If they are too tight, the soles of my feet hurt. They don't really cramp, they just hurt and even burn a little. If that is what your wife is feeling, perhaps her skates are too tightly laced across her foot. I'm finding that I like mine quite loose there, and then very very snug up the ankle.