Blue Cross Blue Shield Vermont: Inline Skating


			This article is republished from our Summer 1999 issue of Vigor. In-Line with Fitness Goals If you‘ve spent any time lately on Vermont’s bike paths, we don‘t have to tell you that in-line skating (a.k.a. rollerblading) is one of today’s fastest growing sports. Likewise, it shouldn’t shock you that it’s not just a kids' sport. In-line skaters in Vermont include skiers using the sport as training as well as businesswomen using the blades as transportation. The sport attracts six-year-olds with its speed and their parents with the speed at which it burns calories. Why all the interest? In-line skating is a great way to get exercise while enjoying the milder of Vermont’s seasons. It imparts great aerobic benefits – producing, on average, a heart rate of 148 beats per minute. You can burn anywhere from four to 20 calories a minute rollerblading, depending on your speed and your weight. (An average skater burns about 285 calories during a 30-minute skate.) In-line skating is also low-impact, causing less than half the shock to joints of running. You’ll also see and feel the effects of skating on your muscles. It builds hip and thigh muscles better than either running or biking. A study at the Human Performance Lab at St. Cloud State University in Minnesota found that in-line skating develops muscles in the entire upper leg, rear end and hip, as well as the lower back. It also builds hamstrings, which see little effect from cycling. Even muscles in the upper arms and shoulders can get a workout if you swing them vigorously while skating. Getting Started Sold on the benefits of in-line skating? If so, you may want to rent skates to try them out. (This could be an especially good idea for children, who tend to grow out of skates and hobbies quickly.) If you live in a more populated area, you can probably rent skates for about $8 a half-day or $15 a day. If you live further out in the country, consider picking up some rental skates on your next trip to town. For example, a few laps around Burlington’s bike path on Lake Champlain can make for a nice afternoon. When you’re ready to buy skates, you may need additional information. You may even want to pick up a consumer’s guide, since skates can run you anywhere from $20 to $1,000. The higher-priced skates usually come with more features (though the quality between $150 and $300 pairs of skates may be equal, notwithstanding the features.) The very low-priced skates may suit the needs of children (although you may want to consider whether the quality of the ride on the cheap skates might dampen a child’s enthusiasm.) To complicate matters, in-line skates come in a bunch of varieties — hockey skates, speed skates, freestyle skates, recreational skates, fitness skates, even stunt skates. You’ll likely want to start with recreational or fitness skates, but you may want information on the full gamut. Stopping . . . and Other Safety Matters Like other sports, in-line skating does carry with it some risk. Your wrists are particularly vulnerable when you skate. Remember these important safeguards: You can vastly reduce the risks of skating by wearing appropriate safety gear. Get yourself a helmet, wrist guards, elbow pads and knee pads. Make sure your equipment is in good condition. Get your skates inspected periodically at a sporting goods store. Check out the surface on which you’re skating. Sand, oil, grates and other hazards can take away your control. Make sure you know what you’re doing before you take off down the nearest hill. Stopping on rollerblades isn’t the easiest part of the sport, but it is important. You’ll want to practice striding, stopping and turning in a relatively risk-free area, at a relatively risk-free speed before you really get going. Think of yourself as a cyclist or a motor vehicle when you wear in-line skates. Obey traffic rules, yield to pedestrians and pass other skaters only on the left.