In this lesson I was skiing in Zermatt with Caitlyn and Theodora, who'd come over from Romania. They were both skiing pretty much identically — turning a lot with their whole body — so the fix was the same for both: learning to turn from the top of the legs, and pressing on the ball of the foot to start each turn with grip.
The problem: turning with the whole body
When Caitlyn and Theodora went to turn, they were swinging round from the waist — turning the upper body to steer the skis. It's one of the most common habits out there, and it has a specific downside: when you turn with your body, your weight ends up on the inside ski and the skis come apart. That's the tell-tale sign.
What we want instead is to turn from the top of the leg. The idea is that you're turning the skis underneath a quiet, balanced body — rather than throwing the whole body around to drag the skis with it.
The drill: move the top of your leg
To get the feeling, take your uphill ski off and stand on the downhill one. Put your free foot out in front of you and turn the whole leg from the top — not just twisting the foot, but rotating the entire leg.
The easiest way to see it is to watch your knee. Point your knee down the slope, then turn it so it points up the slope — that rotation is coming from the top of the leg, exactly the movement you want when you ski. Turn as much as you can with the legs, and the skis turn underneath you while your body stays balanced.
Within a few runs both skiers had it. Theodora was turning much more from the top of her legs (still a touch of body in there, but that was because she was skidding sideways from not quite having enough grip yet), and Caitlyn was doing the same. They were both turning their legs really, really well.
Starting the turn: press on the ball of your foot
Once the leg turning was there, we looked at how to start each turn. The sequence I use: as I go to begin a turn, I press down on the ball of my foot, and then I turn the top of my leg. It's the same feeling as stepping up onto something.
So the move is: go down, stay down, get onto the ball of your foot — then turn. Treating it like stepping up gives you a really clear feeling for it. You want to stand right behind your big toe, pressing and flexing up through your ankle.
Exaggerate it: we even went right up onto tip-toes to feel where that pressure sits. That's the position you want on the ski — standing right on the big toe, then twisting the top of the leg. Press first, then turn.
Why it works
Pressing down at the right moment gets the ski to engage and grip, and then turning the ski from the top of the legs steers it cleanly. Put the two together and you get a much more rounded turn shape and far more control — instead of a skiddy, body-thrown turn that pulls your weight onto the wrong ski.
The takeaways
- Spot the fault: if your skis come apart, you're turning with your body and loading the inside ski.
- Turn from the top of the leg: rotate the whole leg from the hip — watch your knee point where you want to go.
- Press to start: get onto the ball of your foot (right behind the big toe), flex up through the ankle, then turn.
- Result: grip, a rounder turn shape, and a balanced body over the outside ski.
Great work Caitlyn and Theodora — both turning beautifully from the legs by the end of the day.
Visiting Zermatt? Book a lesson
If you're heading to Zermatt and would like a ski lesson with me, get in touch and let's get you skiing better.