Tala (and later Darine) worked through exercises for understanding the basics of dynamics – “moving the centre of mass”.
The most important aspect of building this understanding is knowledge and awareness of how the feet and legs work along with the boots and skis – how to use the “Subtalar” joint beneath the ankle to rock the foot on its inside edge and how this connects with the adductor muscles on the inside of the leg. We had to work through basic skating steps and turns to develop proper coordination and control of the edges of the skis – neither Tala nor Derin having been taught anything like this before. (Here is a link to full explanations and demonstrations: Beginners)
Once the biomechanics was developed we put this to use to apply Dynamics in actual skiing. I used a “shortcut” method to bring a quick result by getting each of the skiers to hold onto my ski pole as we skied together and getting them to pull or push laterally against me so as to amplify the feedback and provide security and stability. This helps connect with the correct feelings and movements.
- rock both feet onto their inside edges inside the ski boots (at all times)
- pull inwards (relative to the body) with both legs using the adductor muscles
- While doing the above push the centre of mass into the direction you want to go (laterally to the skis)
- it takes time, mileage and experience to develop the above skills – but you need to be aware of them to be able to this
- Dynamics and underlying skating skills remove the limitations from potential development
