SK8 W8

[jds 20]

I'm really slow on the ice and need to build my speed. I plan on doing all the required plyometric/overspeed yada yada but I was also looking at those weights you can attach to your skates to build leg speed. Anyone have any experience with these?Am I just setting my joints up for disaster?

[greech 4]

I'm really slow on the ice and need to build my speed. I plan on doing all the required plyometric/overspeed yada yada but I was also looking at those weights you can attach to your skates to build leg speed. Anyone have any experience with these?Am I just setting my joints up for disaster?

Skating coach? A perfect stride goes miles in improving top end speed, I've done it and seen the results. Call me a believer.

[matix218 11]

My opinion on the skate weights is that they are not the greatest idea. The reason being that you get used to a certain motion when you are skating and having extra weight in an area and then removing it when you go to play will definately mess with your muscle memory/skate motion consistancy. I understand the concept is similar to using a weighted donut on a baseball bat but I think due to the precision and repatition/consistancy required in power skating I do not think adding a foreign weighted object is going to have much of an impact on improving your speed.

In my opinion if you want to get faster take powerskating/overspeed lessons, work on leg strength and conditioning, and practice the same proper stride every time without introducing any foreign objects like a skate weight into the mix.

If you have not been playing for a long time you definately need to take proper powerskating lessons. No one skates fast without years of practice and proper training.

*Also if you want to be fast and learn proper skating technique make sure you have a good supportive skate (maybe not top of the line but somewhere near the top of the line) so your ankles are at least locked in place and you are not ankle dragging like you find people doing in low end discount/rental level boots.

[JGraz15 53]

Could you please change the title to 'skate weight'...that has to be the most annoying thing I have seen all day.

[troy 12]

That's what I was thinking too, but it's the actual name of the product.

[IniNew 53]

I am with matix to a certain extent. For someone still learning a solid technique and looking to improve stride weights would be detrimental to you. After you've been skating for quite a while and have a constant stride pattern it wouldn't hurt as much.

[furlanitalia 1]

Your best bet would be to find a local puckmasters and jump on their resistance ice. Doesn't hamper your skating the way weights do but instead offers resistance that you have to over come. When you get back to real ice the result is phenomenal. If there isn't one in you local area, find a skating treadmill to train on. Either way, make sure you have a coach that knows their stuff!!

[cptjeff 0]

I use ankle weights and it helps. It doesn't disrupt the stride, it slows it down and adds resistance, so when I skate with them off, I skate like I just switched to a super lightweight skate.

All it does is build up the muscle. It doesn't screw up your stride at all if you know how to skate already. If you're still learning how to skate, I could see it causing problems.

[peckmic2 2]

my senior year our coach (Tim Zimmerman) had all of us wear his endorsed skate weights, there is a website for them, not sure of the name. but we wore them for every practice in every situation and it seemed to work, especially because we did more systems than conditioning and at the end of the season you could really tell.

i give them a thumbs up, but the ones we used had velcro, which kinda tore up my skates a bit (8090s)

[Ital79 0]

Um...are you out of shape? If so, how badly?

If you do exercise regularly, is cardio part of your routine? If so, do you go at an even pace? Hockey is an explosive sport that also requires a high degree of endurance. Do some research on how to run faster and start there.

................................................................

If you're asking from an equipment aspect; what's your rocker & how are your skates sharpened? If you have too much rocker (from poor hand sharpening), your skate doesn't have a lot to glide on...hence, you're slow. If you have a very deep cut on your runners (smaller than 1/2") this can affect speed too. Shallower cuts allow for a better glide. A small guy can get away with a deeper cut - a big/heavier guy can get away with a shallower cut. Also of importance is ice hardness - warmer ice is softer, needing a shallower cut runner. Cooler ice is hard, requiring a deeper cut.

My rule of thumb was to start out 1 tick bigger than 1/2" (shallower hollow) and work from there. I absolutely hated deep cuts & a larger radius

[jds 20]

My aerobic conditioning is pretty good since I came from doing long distance triathlons. I can go long but not very fast. I need to build the fast twitch muscle fibres more. My turnover is not fast enough for quickness. Like a said, I was running marathons etc and basically suck a sprinting. I want to develop that leg speed and short term power as opposed to endurance

[Ital79 0]

I can go long but not very fast. I need to build the fast twitch muscle fibres more.

There's yr issue. If running is part of your regular routine - get ready to do some sprints. There's a guy out there, Stew Smith, that does training & publishes articles to help people get & stay fit for the military. He has some training programs specifically for speed while maintaining endurance, such as training to run 3 miles in under 18 minutes.

A Marine told me about his programs...check 'em out.

[CH_Hockey12 0]

The weights aren't going to make your stride any better. All they are going to do is strengthen the specific leg muscles you use while skating.

In conjunction with a proper stride it will work wonders.

But these weights can easily be replaced by proper hockey training and workouts.

[thundros85 0]

The weights are just another way for companies to make money on aspiring and ambitious hockey players. They really offer no benefit and could actually hinder your technique. If you wan to add weight to your on-ice regimine, I would reccommend investing in a weight vest and skating with that. Start off slow by, just adding a a couple of pounds and then slowly increase. You dont want to jump to vastly in the weight, as it will cause you to develop bad habits, because you muscles will have to compinsate for an unusual weight increase. As far as the plyo goes, nothing beats that and hard work. Check this video out, im sure it will help. Good luck..Remember no short-cuts just hard work. Its not rocket science.

[jds 20]

I understand all of this. I plan on working on technique a lot as well as leg strength I just was wondering if these skate weights would be a useful part of a total program. I was sort of wondering if the weights would mess up my knees etc

[hehatemefrisbee 0]

i really hoped this was a new product. Not just some retard too lazy to type.

[IniNew 53]

i really hoped this was a new product. Not just some retard too lazy to type.

New? Not so much. But a product none the less.