Wholistic Fitness

This is Vegaard..my ski training partner here at Two Tree Manor. as you can plainly see, Vegaard is also sponsored by PowerBar and is a nordic ski racer. “V” – as i call him – told me that it was about time to do an Exercise Profile on Nordic ski technique. “You’re absolutely right, V,” i replied.

Enjoy…

(yes, it took a few Herculean efforts to hoist Vegaard’s tremendously powerful midsection into place!)

“…arms and legs dancing in symbiotic harmony with breath upon a pair of nordic skis is truly to me, the most magnificent of all yoga and when rightly used, gives Man purposed influence upon his Soul.”

teaching and photos by coach ilg, ryt/uscf/cpt
former member/U.S. Jr. National Nordic Combined Team

– click photos to enlarge for better biomechanics comprehension –

Let’s go skiing, shall we?

i mean REAL skiing…
i mean like no chairlifts, no damned ski passes that cost you an arm and a leg, no obnoxious crowds…
i mean, like let’s go REAL SKIING…let’s go return to where ALL OF SKIING (and snowboarding) began yet is (at least in this country) nearly extinct as a sport; the Nordic Diagonal Stride, also known as, “Kick-and-Glide,” or “Classic.”

this is Ananda with Doko Oosliid, the Sacred Peak protecting Her. Ananda (aka;Joy to you new DL’rs) is the amazing Mother of Dewa. She is also the Beloved Partner of mine. less than five months ago, she had a baby. today, she is cranking out in Brahman’s beautiful snow, taking a Classic Ski lesson from me during a nordic jaunt about a serene ponderosa mesa about 10 minutes from our home. yep, that’s right, we finally got a babysitter and the first thing we did? GO SKIING BABY!!!! we ain’t no dummies.

i taught Ananda the basic mechanics of the Classic Stride in less than 8 minutes.

i’ll teach you too, just like the many, many others i’ve taught this elegant movement to throughout the decades. you won’t need much. just an ol’ pair of cross-country skis and some open space with a little snow on top of it.

***

The basic mechanics of the Classic Stride on a beginner can look a lot like walking with a glide, aided by poles for balance. This allows pretty much anyone to enter into the nordic skiing world regardless of coordination, age, or fitness level. In fact, when i lived in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, i taught my then 60+ year-young mother how to Classic Ski and those memories remain among our most precious. Though easy to learn, the technique is easy to do poorly. the new generation of Skate Skiers who do not grow up doing the Classic Technique are missing not only a helluva workout, they are also missing out on gracefulness and balance that would only help their Skate Skiing.

The components of the Classic Stride are the Push, the Weight shift, the Glide
and the Leg Recovery.

The “kick” in the “kick-and-glide” or Classic Stride is not so much a “kick” as it is a “pop-step.” See, in Classic Skiing, you have either sticky wax or a’fishscale’ pattern cut into your skis beneath the binding area. it’s this area that you HAVE TO COMPRESS INTO the snow by bending at the knee and ankle as the ski passes underneath your center of gravity. see how Ananda’s left leg is slightly bent in the above photo? in this miraculous moment she gets sufficient grip to move her body forward of that position by pulling back with her ski.

“Fall Forward Tall!”
While compressing her left ski into the snow, she feels the weight and compression on the heel and rolls to the ball of the foot during the push. The maximum traction
is when the ski passes underneath its hip (why, why, WHY is it ALWAYS ABOUT THE HIPS!??!). once your weight is on the ball of the foot? the kick is over. Pushing off your toes is too late and is known as “back slip” and is the bane of Classic Technique. Essentially, you want the snow to remain on the ground and your body to glide over it. The classic Classic coaching advice is eon-old and remains true to this day; “Fall Forward Tall!”

The arms? they must REACH! they reach from front to back and return by the most direct means as the hip aligns over the glide ski. The power comes from the hip chain muscles that we train in the gym during Hang Cleans, Squats, and during HP Yoga Prop Workouts which facilitates a full weight transfer. All movement is forward, however micro pelvic twisting is a must! Allow the Sacrum to drift downward as you relax onto the glide.

the trailing leg extends as you shift the weight onto the new glide leg has
taken place. While one leg is gliding and carrying all the body weight, the other leg
extends back and relaxes momentarily. in the above photo, Ananda’s left leg is entering its extension/relaxation phase yet there is only a poetic, fluid forward motion. as this excellent photo (thank you very much!) shows, the trailing leg recovers at the moment the front glide leg begins to compress down onto the snow and
pull back.

Some Highlights since i’m 7 minutes into my 8 minute coaching lesson:

* Classic Stride involves a weight transfer and glide from one ski onto the other assisted by opposite arm poling (like the natural motion of walking or running).

* Balance, concentration, and weight shift are committed onto only one weighted foot at a time.

* The pelvis is tucked slightly and hovers over the toes in the transitional moment between strides.

* As the terrain steepens, the hips are pressed forward and move further ahead.

* The returning foot drives past the kicking foot to just ahead of the kicking foot in accordance with optimal weight transfer.

* The shoulder reaches forward as the weight is committed on the pole plant and
the hand is kept…

oh darn! outta time! well, guess you best just hoof it out to Flag and come ski with me for a couple hours…i’ll hook you up!

***

inevitably, everyone – including die-hard alpine skiers and warm weather addicts – that i’ve taken Classic Skiing absolutely falls utterly in love with this beautiful, historic and caloric-philic sport. some even swear off the entire Alpine (downhill) scene altogether…exchanging an expensive, loud, dangerous on the body sport for a little known activity which calls to one’s most ancient nordic warrior spirit within. to touch even a tiny measure of effortless glide across a canopy of white wildness is to touch the epitome of freedom. arms and legs dancing in symbiotic harmony with breath upon a pair of nordic skis is truly to me, the most magnificent of all yoga and when rightly used, gives Man purposed influence upon his Soul.

coach just won the Flagstaff Classic 10k last weekend and is also the overall Champion of the Santa Fe Classic 10k and Taos Mountain Stampede.