How to ice skate for the first time

Check the rink's public skate schedule first. Sessions are short and run on fixed times: at the Bryant Park rink in New York, for example, ice time is 50 minutes and begins 20 minutes after the time on your ticket, so you have a window to get skates and lace up. If you are going to a class, Learn to Skate USA suggests arriving about 20 minutes early to check in and pick up rental skates.

Dress in light layers you can move in. Learn to Skate USA notes that ice arenas keep their thermostats around 50°F, and that sweatpants or warm-up pants work better than bulky snow pants. The what-to-wear guide covers clothing and helmets in detail.

Rental skates are built to fit a wide range of feet, and Learn to Skate USA points out that shoe size does not necessarily match skate size, so try another pair if the first feels wrong. Its rule of thumb is that a closer fit gives more control: the boot should be snug, the heel should sit far back without lifting, and the toes should have just enough room to wiggle without pinching. Brands differ: Bauer says its recreational skates run about two sizes smaller than street shoes.

Lacing matters as much as size. Tap your heel to the back of the boot, pull the tongue straight up, and pull the laces firmly over the front of the foot. Keep them snug through the ankle and the bottom hooks; the top two hooks can be a little looser so the ankle can flex. Cross extra lace neatly over the hooks instead of leaving loose bows, which Learn to Skate USA says often lead to accidents. Then check that one finger fits between the back of the boot and your leg, and relace if anything hurts.

Practice walking a few steps in your skates on the rubber matting before you reach the ice.

Step on at the door with a hand on the wall and get both blades on the ice before letting go. Then find the stance from Learn to Skate USA's Basic Techniques handout: knees and ankles slightly bent, chest and head up, arms slightly in front of you and parallel to the ice. The skating tips posted at Worcester's Common Oval add two warnings: do not lean backward, and do not look down at your feet.

Start by marching. Learn to Skate USA says marching across the ice is the first skill taught. Its handout describes forward skating as small stepping actions with the toes slightly turned out; after three or four steps, hold a glide on both feet for about three counts, then repeat, pushing a little harder each time.

Falling well is a skill, and Learn to Skate USA instructors spend several minutes on it on day one. The program teaches beginners to fall to one side rather than forward or back onto the tailbone, and not to break the fall with their hands. Lower your center of gravity, slide onto one hip, relax, and tuck your chin so your head does not snap back onto the ice.

To stand up, roll onto your hands and knees, place one foot on the ice between your hands, then the other, and slowly push up with your knees bent. Get up promptly and move to the wall if you need a rest: rinks ask skaters not to block the flow of traffic.

The first stop most beginners learn is the snowplow. The safety tips at Worcester's Common Oval describe it: bend your knees, turn the toes of each foot inward and the heels out, and push outward through the blades until you slow to a stop. Practice it at walking speed near the wall before you need it at speed.

Learn to Skate USA lists stops among the first skills in both its Snowplow Sam levels for young children and its Basic Skills levels for older skaters, alongside forward and backward skating.

Public sessions mix first-timers with fast skaters, so the posted rules exist to keep traffic predictable. These matter most on day one:

Skating improves with short, regular practice. Learn to Skate USA tells class skaters to practice what they learned at least once after each lesson, and public sessions are where most of that happens.

A group class is the most structured route. Learn to Skate USA says it has nearly 1,000 locations, and its membership costs $20 per season, which runs July 1 to June 30; class fees are set by each rink. By the end of a first session of classes, the program expects beginners to skate on their own, get up from a fall, attempt a stop at slow speed and handle a public session.