Most people have, at some point looked longingly at either people ice skating, or people figure skating in T.V. You may ask yourself, can you learn to ice skate on your own.
In short,,,,,,,, yes you can learn to ice skate on your own. You will however, have a limit of how much you can learn. The rate at which you progress will be slower than if you had lessons/coaching.
Yes you can, but you will have to make a lot of mistakes that you may have been able to avoid.
For example. If you have never laid bricks in your life, then you have to build a wall, then you could. The first time you built it, it might fall down. The second time you built it it, it might stand up, but it isn’t straight. Eventually, through trial and error, you would build a decent wall.
Now imagine you again have to build a wall for the first time. But this time there is a professional bricklayer beside you, telling you exactly how to do it. You would learn a lot quicker, with less errors.
Learning to ice skate is much like this. You can learn the basics on your own, in fact at some point you have to step out there on your own. But if you have a professional coach, you will learn to ice skate faster and probably more safely.
Getting the basics – Some balance
When I headed onto the ice for the first time, it was not in a lesson or with a coach. I suspect a lot of people are like this.
I headed out on to the ice, wobbling and gripping the side with white knuckles. I went a few times and started to get my balance a little. I could loose the barrier for short while and skate on my own. Eventually, I managed to leave the barrier and start to head out onto the ice a little, though not at any great speed.
I was starting to find my balance. This did make me feel a little more confident when I attended my first group lesson. Was it necessary to have that balance before my first lesson? No, not really, they would have taught me from whatever stage I was at.
Will I learn to ice skate at a faster rate with lessons?
Yes you will definitely learn faster if you have lessons. What can take you weeks to work out on your own, can be shown to you by a coach in minutes.
This was the feeling I got after attending my first lesson. I had been trying to work out how to stop for ages. After being shown a couple of times, I soon had the basic knack. I realized at that point how quickly I could learn if I carried on with group lessons.
When taking lessons, you learn to ice skate in the correct order
The syllabus of most learn to skate courses follows a logical sequence. You are taught different techniques that build on the previous one. If you are trying to learn yourself, its easy to try to skip steps, try things that you are not ready for and miss things that you need to learn.
The teaching is of a natural progression. In the British learn to skate program, Skate UK, on the first level, one of the techniques taught is the two foot glide in a straight line. On the second level, that straight glide is progressed upon with a glide on a curve and so forth.
Can you learn to ice skate complex elements on your own
Well, not like likely. I suppose you could watch a you tube video of a move over and over again and try to copy it, but to be honest, that is still likely to not work. You are more likely to injure yourself trying.
When you get taught a complex move, like for example a spin. First you are taught a strong outside edge and the lead in to the spin. You might practice this for weeks. Then when you do slightly start to rotate, your coach will position your arms and your legs, where they should be during the spin. A coach will alter tiny fine details about your movement. Right down to the position of your head and even the direction you are looking.
The process of reduction
This process of reduction, breaking down the move into smaller and smaller parts, is one of the true skills of a coach. Moreover, it is by far the safest way to learn a complex element in ice skating. Each stage is learnt under control, before the next stage is taught.
When we learn, or try to learn a skating move on our own, we tend to throw ourselves into the final shape, we tend to go right for the outcome. We tend to do this without going through all the steps that professional coaching offers. This is where things go wrong and where people get hurt.
In conclusion. If you want to do something complex like a spin or a jump, a lift or a twizzle, then get a coach to teach you.
The cost of learning to ice skate on your own Vs lessons
Lessons may not be as expensive as you think. You don’t generally start off learning to ice skate with one on one coaching from an Olympic level coach. No, you start off in group lessons. Adults, that may mean you are in with the kids when you start. If you are lucky your rink will have an adult learn to skate course. If not, you will be like I was, an adult in a class of mainly kids, with a few adults. It is fine, you soon get used to it.
Group lessons
Group lessons are cheaper than you think. You can very often buy a batch of lessons, or part of a course. Because there is a bunch of you on the course, the coaching fee is spread over all the people in the class, so you get a really good deal. Group lessons are generally loads cheaper than one on one coaching.
Very often with the group lessons, as well, you also get use of the ice in with the cost of the lesson or the course. Also very often, you get to stay on the ice after your lesson at no extra cost, to practice what you have just been taught.
Learning to ice skate with a coach in a one on one scenario
This is more expensive, but then again, you are learning a lot faster. You have the coach all to yourself. In the first instance, I would definitely go for group lessons.
Then as the courses wind to an end, then get yourself a personal coach to take you to the next level. A personal coach is the only way to get to the next level of coaching and raise you to a standard where you can really perform and perhaps think about competition.
It is an exciting time. The coaching costs you more and you are paying the rink for your ice time separately, but your learning is exponential. One on one time with a coach is worth its weight in gold.
Learning to ice skate on your own with no coach and no group lessons
Well this looks cheaper at the outset doesn’t it? No group lessons to pay for, no personal coach to pay for. Just rock in on a public session and do your thing. No, its not cheaper in the long run.
Going the first few times like this to ‘find your feet’ and get a bit of balance is fine. In the long run though, you will spend loads more money trying to learn it all on your own. If you do manage to teach yourself a few things, what quality will they be? Will they be filled with the grace and power that you have admired? Possibly, but I think not.
Can I learn to skate on my own well enough to enter a competition?
No, no, a thousand times no. If you are thinking of giving this ice skating thing a proper shot at working, you have got to be thinking about group lessons or personal coaching.
There is virtually no way you will make it to competition without some form of coaching. Who would teach you the elements (moves)? Who would choreograph it? You tube? I think not. If you are thinking about competition in the future, start thinking lessons are the way forward.
Learning to skate on your own – the pros and cons
OK, so you are trying to weigh up the pros and cons of learning to skate on your own. Here is a table of the pros and cons of learning to skate on your own.
| Learning on your own | Taking lessons/coaching |
| Its cheaper at the outset | Group lessons are very reasonably priced |
| You wont have to look stupid in front of people that can skate, like coaches | Coaches are used to students not being as good as them |
| You wont have the social awkwardness of learning with other people in a group lesson | You may have to be in a group at first, but its a great way to make friends |
| You wont have to look silly in front of people that might be better than you in a group lesson | Most of the people on your group lesson will be just as bad as you, some better, some worse. Groups are normally made up of same skill level skaters |
| You could teach yourself to skate to a basic standard | Lessons and coaching can take you way beyond the basics |
| You might be able to teach yourself some tricks | You can learn ice skating elements properly |
| You can learn elements that you could never have taught your self | |
| Learning with a coach is a lot safer | |
| You may have a chance at competitions and tests | |
| You may end up gaining qualifications in ice skating that are recognized nationally, then maybe internationally | |
| You will have access to patch times (private ice time) at the rink, so you are not skating on busy public sessions | |
| You will have piece of mind that you are learning to ice skate correctly |
In conclusion
As you can see from the table above, the benefits of taking lessons/coaching are greater than trying to learn on your own. Learning with a coach is faster, in my opinion more fun and a whole lot safer.
That’s not to say that you can’t head on down to your nearest rink and give ice skating a go on your own. That’s how I started. But if you really want to progress and get even more enjoyment from the sport, lessons and/or coaching is definitely the way to go.
If you liked this this article, you might enjoy ‘how do I learn to ice dance?’
Before you learn to ice dance, you need to get the basics down first. But you might not have to be as good as you think to start. Some of it you can learn as you go.
This article features
- Learn to skate classes
- How important are the basics?
- When to get an ice dance coach
- How to choose the right coach
- Skating clubs
And much more. If you are interested in learning to ice dance then check out ‘How do I learn to ice dance?’.
