Roller skating is a healthy activity that everyone should get on board to learning it. Learning how to roller skate is a big step to building your bones and muscles physically, and improving the overall health condition of your body. However, there are many things that you should know as regards learning how to skate, like how long does it take to learn roller skating and how to skate. These are what we shall be discussing in this post.
How long does it take to learn roller skate?
That depends on the learning process of the learner. Some people learn rapidly, while others take their time to digest whatever that there is to learn. Typically, it takes between one hour to about 40 hours in a week maximum for a beginner to learn how to roller skate. However, this length of time depends on some factors.
One of such factors is age. Age play an important part in the learning process. The younger the learner, the easier it is for such person to grasp. That is why most people who ended up becoming skaters started when they were toddlers to when they were preteens. That isn’t to say that older persons can’t learn as fast as the younger ones. Balance and body coordination also play a big part in this.
Is It Hard to Learn to Roller Skate?
Learning to roller skate is no different from one who’s trying to learn how to play football or other sports. It will be hard at first, but with consistency and hard work, becoming an expert isn’t out of reach.
Practice, they say leads to perfection. If you are willing to learn how to roller skate, you must be willing to put your efforts into it. It takes practice to figure out how to move, turn, stop, roll, back up, etc. and you should expect to fall a lot of times, because everyone went through it.
Before you can being roller skating, you need to take note of your balance. Body balance is probably one of the major reasons why people find it hard to learn roller skating. At every little bump, they fall because they have lost their balance.
Skating requires that you constantly alternate the position of your feet, and this throws people off if they are not balanced. This is normal of every new skater. If you don’t have the right balance, roller skating would be difficult for you, which means that you will spend so much time trying to learn.
So here is the thing, skating can be much fun if you can develop your balance. With balance come decent speed because you will become more confident at roller skating. If you have attained the right balance, skating more proficiently will be the order of the day. You will also be able to escape little bumps and still retain your balance.
To enhance your learning process, ensure that you find an instructor or someone knowledgeable about skating enough and practical to teach you the basics. Teaching you without actual practice won’t suffice. It’s often easier said than done, so get an instructor that would be willing to teach and practice with you.
At What Age Should You Learn Roller Skating Best?
Many people have different opinions as to what age is best to learn roller skating. These days, parents teach their kids roller skating when they are as early as three. Others wait till their kids come of age, say when they are between five and six because they must have improved in their balancing and muscular coordination.
Here is the thing, you can learn to roller skate at any age, whether you are in your 20s, 30s, or even a septuagenarian. As far as you still have the right balance and eat healthily, you are good to go. Learning how to roller skate is endless. Even at 60, you can learn some new tricks that you weren’t exposed to when you were younger.
All you have to do is choose any area of roller skating and follow the tips to the latter. Then, take up exercise classes that would suit the area of roller skating that you have chosen. Different ages require certain workouts. For example, workouts suited for a teenager is different from those tailored for older people. Your age category will determine the type of workouts that you should do.
The fact is skating is personalized and people deem it fit to learn whenever they want to, irrespective of how old they are. People want to learn skating for various reasons. Some want to learn it because of they have a thing or two for it. Others want to learn it because they want to get healthier. At the end of it all, two things drive their reasons for learning to skate – passion/ interest and for health reasons.
Can You Learn Roller Skating On Your Own?
This is very rare because roller skating requires you to have an instructor or someone who has vast knowledge in roller skating to be your guide. You can’t roller skate using trial and error methods. You need someone to show you how it’s done and what is needed to be done.
However, if you are a fast learner, resourceful, and good at capturing little details, you can learn skating on your own by just looking at and observing how your friends or people in your neighborhood do it. This might take a really long time to learn though.
Which Is Easier for a Beginner? Roller Skating or Inline Skating?
For a beginner, it’s easier to roller skate than to do inline skating. A person that’s just starting out should skate in a roller boot that would provide more balance and comfort due to the wide skate base. Since he/she is still learning the ropes, roller skating would be much easier to do than inline skating, which requires more skill and technique.
Inline skates would be a better option for people who already have one or two lessons as regards skating. Also, they are designed for speed because the wheels are thinner. In terms of stability, they are way below roller skates.
The best type of skate to get yourself is a quad skate. Quad skates have four rubber thick wheels that are lined up in two’s (at the front and at the back). Like we stated, they are designed for stability and are less speedy, which are what a beginner need at this point.
We recommend that you opt for quad skates, instead of inline skates. Quad skates will help in developing your glute, calves, thighs, hamstrings, etc. However, the choice is entirely dependent on you. You could try out both simultaneously and who knows, you can be proficient at both of them, even if you are a beginner.
Which Place Is Best For Beginners to Learn Roller Skating?
To start with, the best place for a beginner to begin his/her roller skating lessons is an indoor roller skating rink. A skating rink that’s made of maple wood is the most suitable.
Wood skating rink is soft, smooth, and provides better grip to skaters who are just starting out. It has an easy feel on the ankles, and this why it’s a better surface for beginners to learn quickly as against outdoor skating rinks, especially one that’s concrete. They are less likely to fall, and even if they do, it won’t be that bad as they can recover from it quickly.
Skating outdoors is not a good option for beginners. The surface would be too hard for them and it won’t provide them enough grip. Moreover, it’s not smooth and you will likely encounter bumps, rocks, etc. It’s better suited to professional or the more experienced roller skaters.
How to Roller Skate (Tips for Beginners)
Roller skating is simple if you know how to assume the correct posture, how to roll or glide, and how to stop. Fortunately, we will teach you how to roller skate in this post.
Before you begin roller skating, you need to get prepped for it. By prepping, we mean exercising your muscles and bones and getting them ready for skating. Roller skating takes a lot from the body. That’s why you need to get the muscles worked up a little.
Do some sets of dumbbell squats, lunge, bicycle crunch, and do some planking. Perform each workout technique for about 10 – 30 seconds. All these techniques will straighten your posture, enhance the flexibility of the joints, and prep your thighs, hamstrings, and your Achilles tendon.
Wear Your Skating Equipment
First of all, you need to purchase a pair of skates. They must suit your preference, your purpose, and the skating floor you intend on roller skating. If you can’t buy a pair of skates, you can rent a pair, but it’s always better to buy to avoid any inconvenience.
Normally, the skate size is the same as a shoe size. If you are wearing a shoe with size 9, your roller skate should be size 9 as well. If the size is a little bigger than your feet, wear thick socks to fill up the space.
Wear a helmet to protect your head from injury. You should also get some knee pads and wrist guards to protect your knee and elbow respectively.
Properly Position Yourself
Assuming the right stance is key in roller skating because it directly affects the body. Assume the wrong posture and you will always return with back pains, abdominal pain, and muscle cramps at the end of your skating exercise. Maintain the right posture and you will enjoy the benefits of roller skating. In essence, balance is essential in roller skating.
Keep your feet in V-shape, separate your feet and shoulder slightly apart, assume a bending position, and squat. Lower your backside toward the ground, as if you want to sit on the ground, lean forward slightly, with your butt slightly backwards. It’s difficult to get the perfect stance in a roller skate in the first trial, but you shouldn’t relent. Try to practice assuming this position by walking often, but slowly. The key here is to achieve a balanced state.
Start to Walk
Now that you have learned to stand correctly, the next thing to do is to walk slowly forward. Start by slowly moving the right leg, then left, back to right, and so on. Don’t forget to squat and always keep your heels underneath your body.
Continue to practice until you can walk in those skates comfortably. This might take a few hours to several days to learn and remember that you will fall several times at first. It’s normal. Just remember to maintain your stance and continue to walk. The more you walk, the more you get confident, and you can start moving more quickly and taking longer strides.
Glide
Push the wheels harder and lengthen each stride. Push the right leg and glide with the other until you lose motion. Then switch to your gliding foot to be the lead foot and let your right leg be your gliding foot. While gliding, make sure you keep the other foot behind above the ground to maintain balance.
Start by practicing how to turn left and right. When you want to turn left, adjust your skate and your body slightly to the left. Remember to always squat. Glide faster if you can by propelling your body forward and using your arms to help your balancing, but if otherwise, continue to glide and change direction.
Learn to Stop
Most roller skates are equipped with brakes in the front of the slate for stopping. To do that, glide your skates so that they stay parallel to each other. Retain your squatting position and lean forward. Your right skate should be slightly in front of your left skate. Lift the toe of the right skate and press it hard so that it comes to a stop. If you want to stop, don’t hesitate. If you do, you may lose balance and fall down.
Alternatively, you can apply enough pressure on your right knee by pressing it down with your hands. The pressure exerted will be enough to force your skate to stop.
Conclusion
Roller skating is a fun and exciting activity to do. However, you don’t just wake up to skating one day. You will have to learn and practice it, until you become good at it.
How long does it take to learn roller skating? We believe that we have answered your question. Depending on the individual, learning it can take some time, ranging from a few hours to several hours in a week. It’s best that you learn at your own pace so as to be perfect.
