One Thought At a Time

It can be lonely on a foggy day.

I was reminded by Andreas, a fellow skier, that, as a ski instructor, one should give the student just one thought at a time.  So in my manual lessons, you could filter out the details and background information (often the whys of doing) to concentrate on the primary thought.  For example, in the first lesson, the primary thought is feeling your feet. This should be top of mind in the rest of the lesson, making a wedge, getting mobile on the flats, learning how to snowplow-stop and slow fast slow. 

Making a wedge requires more pressure on the heel in order to make the back of the ski spread the snow like a fan shape.  Similarly when turning during the mobility exercise you push with your heel to turn.  During the snowplow, to stop, you must press on your heel in order to push your heel wide enough to stop.  To go fast and slow and fast, you must modulate from low pressure to higher pressure and then low pressure repeatedly. This control of extra pressure on the heel is how you control your speed, the amount you turn and how you stop. All of this requires awareness of your feet. 

The third lesson is about the start of the turn, where pressure is concentrated on the toe pad. While skiing, your pressure is constantly changing from toe to heel.