- Joined
- Feb 17, 2018
Hi! I've searched every where online for this answer, and can't find it... so here goes:
I learned to roller skate when I was about 14, but dragged my left foot, and my left foot stayed on the ground -- I never raised it. I would push off with my right foot, and propel myself solely with my right foot. Despite this, I was pretty fast, and I skated for about 3 years in this manner.
Fastforward many years, and I am now 40. I started skating at public sessions at the local ice rink and quickly reverted to dragging my left foot, and using only my right foot to gain momentum. I had hoped I would have unlearned to drag my left foot after almost 30 years of not skating, but I went right back to riding a broken bicycle, as it were.
During public skate sessions, I try to focus on propelling myself with my left foot, and I'll do ok'ish, but then a kid or crazy teen will get in front of me, and I will quickly revert to dragging my left foot again. My daughter is always yelling at me to stop dragging my foot, but I can't break the habit.
I recently started group adult classes at the rink, and the teacher will hold my hand and force me to propel on the left foot, and this is sad, but my heart will race and I will start sweating. She backs off, and then we go work on swizzles or rocking horses, and other basic moves, which I do ok at.
My long-winded point is -- does anyone have any ideas of how I break this awful habit? It's like I learned to ride a bike wrong, or learned how to walk wrong. Should I keep trying to fix this myself at public sessions? Or possibly hire a coach just to learn how to basic 101 skate?
I learned to roller skate when I was about 14, but dragged my left foot, and my left foot stayed on the ground -- I never raised it. I would push off with my right foot, and propel myself solely with my right foot. Despite this, I was pretty fast, and I skated for about 3 years in this manner.
Fastforward many years, and I am now 40. I started skating at public sessions at the local ice rink and quickly reverted to dragging my left foot, and using only my right foot to gain momentum. I had hoped I would have unlearned to drag my left foot after almost 30 years of not skating, but I went right back to riding a broken bicycle, as it were.
During public skate sessions, I try to focus on propelling myself with my left foot, and I'll do ok'ish, but then a kid or crazy teen will get in front of me, and I will quickly revert to dragging my left foot again. My daughter is always yelling at me to stop dragging my foot, but I can't break the habit.
I recently started group adult classes at the rink, and the teacher will hold my hand and force me to propel on the left foot, and this is sad, but my heart will race and I will start sweating. She backs off, and then we go work on swizzles or rocking horses, and other basic moves, which I do ok at.
My long-winded point is -- does anyone have any ideas of how I break this awful habit? It's like I learned to ride a bike wrong, or learned how to walk wrong. Should I keep trying to fix this myself at public sessions? Or possibly hire a coach just to learn how to basic 101 skate?