HOW TO FIX THIS COMMON MISTAKE

SHOULDERS DOWN THE HILL!
This is one of the most common tips given for skiers building confidence with their short turns and bumps skiing!
When done correctly, it can be extremely useful.
However, when misinterpreted and executed poorly, you are opening yourself up to a whole new set of challenges, likely to send you backwards instead of forwards...
We met up with Level 4 BASI Examiner Tom Waddington and asked him to break this tip down and stop any confusion associated with this Tip.
Specifically, Tom takes a detailed look at where exactly upper-lower body separation should happen and pointed out some of the common misconceptions/examples of poor/bad separation.
To help you improve on your next ski trip, Tom suggests a good drill with a few variations, so you can start to get a feeling for better leg rotation and better separation.
Enjoy the video and please leave a comment if you have any questions about this topic!
Learn more about how a digital ski coach could help you improve your skiing: getcarv.com/
⛷️⛷️⛷️
Skier: Tom Waddington | IG: @tomwaddington_skier
Ski resort: Sölden, Tyrol, AUSTRIA
Music Licensed by Music Bed: MB016G8PPY3DLH6
⛷️⛷️⛷️
SUBSCRIBE today to get access to more ski lessons, more real-time feedback, and never-before-seen alpine skiing data from Carv!
For more how to ski content make sure to check out our other ski improvement videos:
- How to ski with style:
• HOW TO SKI WITH STYLE ...
- How to ski in tough terrain:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDFaq...
- How to ski on ice:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0cDT...
- How to ski with flow:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=SK6SC...
- Carving with early edge angles:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElOhJ...
- 4 Advanced skiing mistakes and how to fix them:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=04lRa...
- How to increase your edge angle:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYPxH...
Follow us on:
IG: / carv.ski
⛷️⛷️⛷️
Timecodes
0:00 - Shoulders down the hill - What’s the big deal
01:11 - Where should you separate from?
01:53 - Ski Drill: The plow wiggle
03:02 - Drill variations
04:08 - Take these feelings to your short turns
05:02 - Watch more skiing content!

[@dmac2573]

Tip for everyone, sit on a sofa and lift your feet up so your legs are horizontal. Rotate your feet left and right and that's the movement you want without moving your hips.

[@CarvSki]

Wow, Love it, thanks for the insightful comment Drew. With 27 likes so far, this must be a quality tip!

[@Wayondon]

Please include a visual to be certain we have it right.

[@maloneycraig]

I can get about 90 degrees of external rotation but only about 45 of internal rotation while lying down with zero knee flex. Is this something I should be working on with stretching?

[@simonshusse]

I actually gave my daughter the standard shoulder lesson today. I now realize I have to do it again tomorrow after seeing this video. I made the exact mistake you’re emphasizing here. Big thanks!

[@CarvSki]

Glad you found the tips useful Daniel! Stay tuned for more ski content 🎿

[@jimroberts6176]

This video is a keeper. Terrific, clear instructions from start to finish on an important fundamental movement.

[@verneastley619]

Thanks for helping me understand my biggest skiing form problem. Now I have a far better way to envision and work on lower/upper body separation. This is exactly what I needed!

[@RVDS1996]

Was waiting for him to get back his poles by climbing up the hill again haha

[@CarvSki]

We can assure that the poles were picked up! We decided to hold off recording the pole rescue 😅

[@alleo5774]

@@CarvSki I was reminded of a movie where King Philip threw his gloves to make a statement. Cool !!

[@jimy4707]

Thanks for your wonderful ski lesson with perfect demonstration. I'm a ski trainer at DRSA ski team since 1983 in korea where Yongpyeong that held in men and women winter Olympics for GS, SL last 2018. I totally agree with you. The ski resort where I'm working is going to open this weekend. I respect your teaching method. It probably a lot helpful when I coaching the students. Thanks. Have a great winter. I'm looking forward to next video of you.

[@CarvSki]

Hi there Jimy, Thanks so much for watching the video and providing your feedback! Please just let us know if you have any specific content recommendations and have a great winter ⛷⛷⛷

[@janelefever3131]

I am guilty of this!!! thanks for explaining the correct technique! looking forward to trying to get better!

[@rub3cula313]

That really resonated with me - I think I'm overly focussed on the shoulders, as that's what everyone tells you. Next time skiing, I'll def try the drill and try to shift the focus on the hips/leg rotation. Great vid!

[@CarvSki]

Glad you liked it! Let us know how you get on and stay tuned for more skiing content 🎿

[@showze21]

good one, ive never seen that exact lesson before, demonstrating the turn by rotating the femur from the hip socket. its spot on, about the shoulder part too

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for the feedback Steve! Glad to hear that this lesson was useful for you. All the best putting these tips into practice ⛷

[@Kharkovsailing]

Thanks. It's very helpful.

[@andrewmills233]

Thank you. We were working on this last week.

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for watching Andrew and apologies for taking so long to get back to this comment. If you have any feedback about trying out these drills then don't hesitate to let us know! Have a great winter ⛷

[@MrWolfyWolfy]

I love it that you took this right back to basics with the “plough wiggles” and variations. You can only build well on strong foundations 👍

[@CarvSki]

Couldn't agree more Richard! Glad you enjoyed the video, stay tuned for more content 🎿

[@seadkapetanovic6257]

Bravo majstore, bas si se potrudio pomoci nama amaterima kako napraviti skolski zaokret. 👏

[@jenparsons3665]

That was an incredibly helpful video !! Thank you ! Going to get Carv for next season for sure.

[@CarvSki]

Hey Jen, no problem! Glad it helped 🙌

[@sarahlee8838]

Great 👍 👌 👍 👌 video! Thank you 😊

[@CarvSki]

Glad you enjoyed it Sarah! Stay tuned for more ski content 🎿

[@patrickpurcell3671]

Wow thanks for posting I think I have been moving my lower body too much instead of rotating my legs in the hip joint more.

[@CarvSki]

Glad you found some insight in our video Patrick! Stay tuned for more content 🎿

[@jasonleftwrightleftsnowspo307]

Great video guys!

[@CarvSki]

Glad you enjoyed it! 🎿

[@anthalasdaelith]

Thank you Tom.

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for watching Anthalas, We're really happy to hear that you have enjoyed Tom's lesson! Stay posted for more content 👍

[@otisregatoni617]

The plow wiggle is a drill that is excellent, that my Olympic coach made me do in my teens. Great revival. 👊🏽

[@CarvSki]

Glad you liked it Otis, stay tuned for more ski content 🎿

[@edsecretan4605]

You raise an important issue of communication. One of the problems many of us have in learning to ski is that we take what instructors say at face value and, unless the context is specified, assume the advice applies to all skiing always. So "keep the shoulders down the hill", to us, means exactly that. So we can become fixated as you rightly point out but that is because we are trying to do what instructors have told us. It strikes me that instructors often score 10 out of 10 for skiing but only 3 out of 10 for clear communication. As many Brits try to learn from foreign language instructors that often makes things worse. Having said that, your vid is a welcome clarification and I think a lot of YT content is now improving in this regard. Also I notice that, like many disciplines, skiing has recruited various words to mean very specific things in a skiing context and instructors sometimes forget that pupils do not necessarily know this lexicon. So 'shorten the inside ski', with a saw presumably? 'Soften' the leg, with a mallet? etc. Bit of a rant but not aimed at you so please don't take it personally!

[@inquistive]

You are right what you say Ed Secretan. The problem with ski instructor systems is that 90% of training is spent on how instructors ski and only 5% on how to teach. The trainers have also been through the same system and so they don't really know how to teach properly and therefore the issue is prolonged over generations. This is why, once people have had some lessons when they were beginners, very few go back and have more and more lessons because essentially most ski instructors are poor teachers.

[@riccapatrol]

EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT! 👍

[@CarvSki]

Glad you enjoyed it Michael! 🎿

[@riccapatrol]

@@CarvSki I never wished for anything more than a Carv Digital Ski Coach. I so badly wish I had one..

[@pvwetten]

Damn, this is me... Thanks for the tip!

[@JanosKoranyi]

This is good stuff. You are right about separation. The legs should turn with the skis and the whole torso turn much less. The torso should not turn in the waist at all, the work must be done in the hip joints. Many times you can hear the term of upper/lower body separation. This is a bad name, because the border between the upper and lower boy is at the waist.

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for the insight and comment Janos. We will take this onboard. The core point Tom was trying to make, is that simply focusing on keeping your 'shoulders down the hill' is not enough to create good separation. We hope you are having an awesome winter ⛷⛷

[@melissalund6198]

Actually, the border between the legs and torso is where the leg meets the body. It's not the waist.

[@JanosKoranyi]

@@melissalund6198 you are right, but this is not different from what I have said. I said that the border between the upper and lower body is at the waist and so it is the wrong place for separation. Separation should happen in the hip joints.

[@melissalund6198]

To me this is simple -.separation between upper and lower body is not at the waist.-.it's.where the leg joins the body.

[@JanosKoranyi]

@@melissalund6198 yes, you are right. The legs join the body in the hip joints. But what about the body part that we call hips. Are the hips part of the upper body or the lower body? Normally we consider the hips as part of the lower body and so the name upper/lower body separation is wrong.

[@normferguson2769]

Big turns will usually have the shoulders square to the skies. Short turns will have the shoulders facing downhill as there usually isn’t time to move with the skies unless you are sliding the tails.

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for the insight Norm! We hope you enjoyed this lesson from Tom ⛷

[@connorp8408]

I counter rotate my body wayyyyy to much, probably leads to a lot of A framing. Great vid!

[@sloth88888]

Wonderful ski tips and demonstration

[@CarvSki]

Glad you liked it! Stay tuned for more ski content 🎿

[@tadeuszkapica6007]

Profesjonalista ! 0:30 ! Ok! + 5....Pozdrowienia z Pol-ski

[@LorneVaasjo]

The upper body and the femur are connected via the hips. Working on keeping the hip 'stacked' is key and should be part of this instruction.

[@Evich555]

Спасибо

[@philiplacey5430]

Extra points for the Dr Who reference .

[@rafaz.695]

That's quiet impresive, most of the instructors can't fake a crappy technique so well.

[@loremipsum7ac]

Lol at the dalek reference

[@danielrapp4096]

The highlight of this video for me is the shift in technique at 4:33 from jerky hockey stop turns to letting legs and feet edge and carve and follow the ski radius through each turn, flowing seamlessly from one to the other.

[@inquistive]

#TomWaddington - not saying you are wrong but in the plough wiggle the whole of your upper body followed the skis round the turn so please explain where the separation is?

[@AndrewRCoulson]

While the desired end state of dynamic skiing and flow remains the same, for a 180 degree opposed perspective about how to conceptualize torso rotation based on Leading Joint Theory check out Natalia Dounskaia's approach.

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for the insight Andrew! 📖

[@bobcoggin4618]

Brill 👍🏻

[@CarvSki]

Glad you enjoyed the video! Stay tuned for more ski content 🎿

[@markmd9]

It looks like you are having the weight on the both skies when carving, do you? When I'm skidding I can keep my weight on the both skies and keep them parallel but if I edge them well I feel how they bite strongly in the snow but then they have their own separate paths which diverge or converge and I no longer able to force them going together parallel.

[@CarvSki]

Hi there, We're not 100% sure what might be happening with your ski technique, however, It certainly sounds pressure related. We have just brought out 3 different 'technique teardown' lessons that you might find helpful. Check out the first one of the series as this could help you get to the bottom of your problem: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iHjKd2CehteNp8U We hope this helps!

[@da1ewok]

Ive experienced this feeling when learning how to carve. Like you are going to trip yourself up or catch an edge. Need more practice

[@fredtrottelhauer9815]

great camera work - skiing backwards ? vg

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for watching Fred, We won't give all the secrets of our cameraman 😉 But definitely a bit of backwards skiing involved!

[@peterclark7929]

Is Tom on the Blizzard Firebird SRC’s?

[@CarvSki]

He sure is! Thanks for watching Peter 👍

[@normalizedaudio2481]

Got to have these drills to keep little kids interested while mom and dad ski the blacks.

[@CarvSki]

Haha, be careful. The kids will soon be skiing double blacks while mom and dad stick to the blacks 😉 We hope you are having a great winter ❄️

[@TG-pd3ft]

3:42 you're pointing the poles with your hands lol

[@CarvSki]

Hey there, The main focus here is to keep a relatively stable torso, while feeling those legs rotate in the pelvis. We hope this makes sense! Thanks for watching ⛷

[@doesntmatter5704]

TIP: keep your hands and shoulders the same angle as your ski tips. ie: If your turning left your right ski tip will be behind your left ski tip, try to keep your hands and shoulders the same angle.

[@meadowlark8197]

The Instructor is actually doing full body rotation while demonstrating the wedge turns. Is that not a mistake?

[@fatamorgana4318]

Hey look! Free poles!

[@onlinewen]

At 40 seconds, I thought this is a dance video ☺️

[@CarvSki]

I think we'll stick to making skiing content Wen 😅 However, we take content requests seriously so if you'd like a dance video then let us know and we'll see what we can do during the off season 😎😎😎 Thanks again for watching 👍

[@raystebbins547]

EXTERMINATE-The Daleks 🤣

[@nickhopkins9965]

In coming skiers impale themselves on discarded ski poles. 😂

[@melissalund6198]

This guy is obviously a great skier but I don't think the way he explains things here is the best. I have been skiing a long time (over 30 yrs) and started ice skating at two. Personally I think a better instruction is to keep your chest pointing down the slope rather than shoulders. There's less chance that people will over rotate the shoulders. External rotation for hips when skiing? Have I missed something because the only time you do this is with a kick turn or a skating step. As I said, great skiier and I know what he wants people to do but am not sure about the clarity of the instructions.

[@user-rd7nq2ey3t]

What an accent! Arnold Schwarzenegger, is that you?

[@paulcook347]

Your hips are moving right and left with your skies at 2:40

[@KP-dd2ci]

This was a confusing lesson for many I'm sure. Read the comments, they will help.

[@CarvSki]

Hi there, Thanks for the feedback about this lesson. Would you be kind enough to share what exactly you found most confusing about the lesson? We're always striving for clear straightforward lessons!

[@KP-dd2ci]

@@CarvSki Like the goal of that drill and how it applies to making a better turn just wasn't as clear as the other ones.

[@streetsweeperdreamboat7656]

ᴡᴏᴡ

[@CarvSki]

Thanks for watching ⛷⛷⛷

[@alim-qk8se]

yes, dont be a "dalek"!

[@AtomicB-zq2cw]

The language is messy here. He doesn’t do a good job of distinguishing between the hip sockets, hips, waist and spine regarding the different options of rotary up and down the chain. Technically, it is not the hip but the hip sockets and not the waist but the spine that actually is performing the rotary motor patterns being discussed. These are the relevant biomechanics that make the differences discussed in this video and a misunderstanding that will continue to plague a students ongoing dev.

[@nishagordhan6944]

You are turning wrong

[@Huttify]

What you say and what you show, isn't the same. When you overfocuses on "shoulders pointing down", you twist them more than ever while holding your arms down the piste. You are confusing everyone with this. In stead, just explain what you do from @4:33 - it will be so much better. It would help if you explained WHY we should keep our shoulders pointing down the slope. It is more than what the good skiers do ;-) If you want a really good drill on this; try to ski down the piste with a big/heavy backpack. The backpack will pull you around each turn if you don't keep your upper torso pointing down the slope.

[@skiwhh]

This is a typical traditional method with leg steering that will never get you to proper counteracting. This instructor obviously doesn't understand biomechanics.

[@Anisha..Alayna]

I love his way of teaching😁🤾🏽‍♀️