im so damn slow
 

I've played for about 8 years now.. ( I'm 20 ) .. As a hockey player, I'm probably average.. I can stick handle like anybody, but its all useless thanks to my speed. I'm always the slowest guy on the ice.. It's so aggrivating... I don't know what im doing wrong... There's definitley something wrong with the positioning of my body while I'm skating.. I'm going balls to the walls, but still getting no where..




Anyone have any advice..

You could try a Power skating clinic, they will teach you stride techniques, and/or check with a chriopractor or doctor , you may have a spinal curvature. I do, which gives me a slightly uneven gait, and makes it hard to gain speed,somewhat affects balance a bit on ice skates, (roller blades and sidewalks are deadly).

my father said my back is bent so rediculously when I skate.. I bet that has something to do with it.. My balance has never been good either... doesn't take much to knock me off my skates..... I bet there is a back problem for sure....

Better you find out now. At age 20, there is still a fair chance a chiropractor can straighten your back fairly well without surgery. I am
31, and he can only straighten mine so much. I have no problems walking(I will trip occasionally over my own feet, the result of the uneven gait I mentioned) and can do any activity, including sporting(albeit,I am not good at sports.... I can kiss olympic hockey dreams goodbye)

Its probably not your back. You aren't bending your knees enough and you are leaning forward too much. You should skate like you are taking a dump. Knees bent to nearly 90 degrees and back straight. Your legs should move out at about a 45 degree angle when you are taking a stride (out from your body, im not talking about the knee bend here). Flick your feet at the end of every stride for extra power and focus on staying low, especially when crossing over (its tempting to stand up).
The way you describe your skating is exactly the way mine was before i got some help with it.

What about ball hockey? Is there a particular running techique?

Ya, you want to go fast. Skating is all about technique, it makes a huge difference. Even though extending your legs at a 45 degree angle sounds stupid, you would be surprised how doing it properly makes a difference. People who aren't natural athletes usually aren't natural skaters.

bench warmer, get this book:

Laura Stamm's Power Skating

ISBN: 0736037357

Get Vapor 30s.

that would not be a good advise as his feet might not be fit to vapor's shape

Hit the weights for the legs. Also, get into a powerskating course or try to do sprints.

Heres something I didn't think of: Have someone use a camcorder and record your game. You will be able to compare your skating style to others. Is your stick length appropriate?

Anywho, the others are probably right, it might be you are in the wrong stance, so

1. Check skating/stance/style/proper skate fit(Moulded skates suck)
2. Use appropriate stick(Too small will cause hunching)
3. If unable to correct yourself try a power skating clinic/hockey camp
4. Still nothing? Thats when you check with your chiro/doctor about your back/gait/instep etc....

I have the same probelm but I just started playing this year. I joined a university intramural league with my buddies and can certainly say that everyone on the ice is a better skater than I am. Quite frustrating, but it'll come. I hope. Anyways I like the powerskating suggestions i've been thinking of going out for a class. Also get on the ice as much as possible. I cant wait for the outdoor rinks to open up.

That's probably the worst skating advice I've ever heard.

The most common problem is probably failing to bend your knees enough, like others have mentioned. My speed has improved significantly since I've been focusing on really getting down low.

he is right the lower you get the better and take less but bigger strides keith primeau is a good player to watch. he is not the fastest player but he get low and takes monster strides. another thing...crossover as much as possible. it is by far the best way to gain speed but just dont over do it

i think he was joking.

Yeah, I was thinking that too but sarchasm is difficult to convey on the internet without the use of a smiley.

The 30's might work, I love my skates :D

Back on topic, my stride is kinda screwed up and it really hurts my speed. I'm 6'3 and have very long and strong legs, but I have a difficult time skating with the proper form. I've been skating since I was around 12 years old and always skated in a very upright position. The key is to get low, almost like you are sitting in a chair, and just pump those legs out and try and get your stride as long as you can.

I'm playing College hockey now and I'll tell ya, it's really difficult to fix a fundemental flaw after years and years of skating, but it can be done if you work hard enough. All the coaches out there, get at those kids and their bad habits early when it's easier to fix.

I agree with the whole bending the knees thing....i was lucky enough when i first broke into Ice hockey to get a session with Peter Bondra where he took kids 1-1 and helped us with our skating tech....i skate extreamly low to the ice not only are you faster but your alot harder to catch/takedown and your alot stronger on the puck. My dad always tells me that it looks like im about to face plant in the ice because of how low i get. Also just in the last couple of months ive bought a stationary bike and am on it for about 30-45 mins a day on it ive gotten alot faster you'll see a noticalbe diff in a week of doing that!
If you have the money deff get some power skating lessons i had a coach that tought the powerskate stuff teach the team that, and it helped my skating as well. now if i could just get a lil more accurate shot.
GOOD LUCK

People think I am fast, but believe me when I say I am not, very average speed at best. I have seen myself on camera and I'll admit I look as good as the next guy, but my stride is very inefficient.

Here's how I improved my speed without altering my flawed technique.

I built my legs up by riding my road bike vigorously approximately 40 miles a week. My legs don't cramp with lactic acid as fast as a result.

I have smaller shin guards, very light.

My breezers are very light and hang perfectly so I don't even feel them.

I bought some really, really light skates, probably the lightest on the market. This has made a huge difference. Over a 1/2 pound of weight off each skate is quite noticeable.

I agree with the above advice about power skating and trying to improve your technique, but this is very tough after you hit 14-15 years of age. You need to get a solid technique right out of the chute or you will have to basically "unlearn" before you re-learn. Pretty tough to do when you are an adult, even if you are a younger adult of 20 or so...

a couple of pointers, i teach at the Okanagan Hockey School, the oldest in NA.

You're probably moving your arms right to left when you skate, to try to move faster, try moving your arms forward and backward instead, as well, you're probably bending over when you skate, you want to keep your back completely vertical head up, deep bend in your legs and hard full pushes.

a power skating clinic is actually the best way to go, it's definitely worth the money.


Geoff Sanderson's scouting report when he was in junior mentioned his great stick handling and shot, but poor skating, look at him now, Power skating is the way to go.

Techniques to running that won't require you to do anything extra other than being aware of how you run:

As Attica said with respect to skating, make sure your arms move straight forward and straight back. If they cross in front of your body your top swivels and the rest of your muscles have to work harder to help you keep your balance. Poor running technique wastes a lot of energy and really slows you down.

Keep your body straight up as much as possible rather than hunched over like you would when carrying the ball. Stay relaxed and breath. Shorten your first 4 or 5 strides to increase cadence, and then lengthen your stride as you get past the first few steps. Be sure to run on the ball of your foot (while standing, lift only your heel off the ground and you'd be standing on the ball of your foot).

If you're running with the ball on your stick I would say you have to run "over" the ball. In this case, reduce the length of your overall and especially as you accelerate.

If you want to do exercises to improve your running:

Strengthening your core muscles and doing plyometrics will really improve your speed and acceleration. Speed ladders work wonders, and improving your flexibility is huge.

If you do not play at a high level of hockey, what's the point of the worrying about your speed? You're 20, you'll most likely be hitting the beer leagues soon and thats the time to have fun. I came to the assumption that you are not at a high level due to the fact that most high level hockey teams provide their players with power skating instructors during practice or at a seperate time during the week.

However, there are many things you could do to improve your skating technique. One, attend beginner or intermediate power skating sessions. The most basic skating tips are the following: keep your toes straight, your knees slightly bent and your back also slightly bent... but do NOT lean over your skates.

I was a goaltender though and acquired most of skating skills through power skating lessons that the goaltenders were not required to go to. However, due to it being my draft year I went anyway and became one of the fastest skaters on my team (I believe it was my skating skills that got me a few scholarship offers to a couple of division I universities in the U.S. but never went due to a knee injury I suffered at the end of the year, gah (I'm 19 now)).

Anyways, considering you are not playing at a high level, I must say it is not important that you master your skating technique. Your aim should just be to have fun.

Don't worry about slowness, you can allways play defense for the Leafs.

You might just have a high percentage of slow twitch muscles in your body. Those are better for endurance, but they'll ruin your chances of being an olympic sprinter.