Snow Skills

Skiing on the outside leg only is one of the true gold standards of improving one’s skiing. It’s an activity that has several benefits, capable of being used for different movements and sensations. For this post, let’s talk about stance.

One leg skiing could be considered a ‘cheater’ exercise in that it isn’t really how you ski, but doing it successfully exposes you to highly effective motions and sensations. Go to easy terrain and begin to make a comfortable parallel turn at medium speed. After a few turns, start making turns where you lift your inside leg only a couple inches of the snow, alternating with each new turn. After it’s off the snow, it will be easier to balance on the support leg if you rest the raised leg against the boot of the support leg. If you struggle at first, try just tapping the inside ski through each turn; this effort is lower-impact and will give you the same sensation.

For this post, let’s focus on the benefits to balance by outside leg skiing. You should be feeling the ski turning very efficiently because all your weight is based on the outside leg. This one legged stance relies on a well-flexed and soft support leg as any stiffness in that leg will result in a sudden loss of balance. Note that the upper body has shifted to a position where the hips are substantially over only the support leg. With all your weight on the support leg, your arms will naturally move forward to fine tune your solid stance. Finally, notice that an outside leg skiing turn relies very little on leg steering to help direct the ski through the turn.

With one leg in the air, you’ve put your trust in your outside ski by putting most of your balance on it. Hold on to that confidence by holding on to the same stance when you’ve got both feet on the snow.