Why does my daughter always two-foot her Salchow?

Two-footing a Salchow is really common, and it usually means one of two things is happening: either she's losing confidence in the landing leg, or she's not fully committing to the takeoff rotation.

Here's what's likely going on. The Salchow requires her to launch from the back inside edge of one foot while already moving backward—that's genuinely tricky. If she hasn't internalized feeling that back inside edge, her body defaults to safety mode and brings the other foot down to steady herself. It's protective, but it breaks the jump's technique and means she's not getting the full benefit of practicing it correctly.

The rotation piece matters too. Sometimes skaters two-foot because they're not rotating far enough in the air, so they need that extra contact point to "catch" themselves. This often happens when the takeoff edge isn't clean or when she's pulling her free leg in too early.

The good news? Two-footing is fixable with focused practice. Most skaters at the Pre-Preliminary and Preliminary levels work through this phase.

Here's your next step: Have her practice the Salchow entrance and takeoff without actually jumping—just the three-turn entry, the back inside edge, and the arm position. Let her feel that edge under pressure before she launches. It builds the muscle memory.

Want to see this in your child's skating? [SkateMarks analyzes every jump with per-second AI coaching notes.]