How to Start Cross-Country Skiing?

Are you tempted to try cross-country skiing and wondering how to start this winter season? Time spent on cross-country skis is gaining more and more fans every year. This unique type of winter sport allows you to be active, improve your physical fitness and mental well-being, and enjoy the beauty of winter nature at the same time. How do you start cross-country skiing and what do you need for it? How should you prepare for cross-country skiing? We’ve put together a practical overview where beginners in cross-country skiing will find plenty of useful answers.

What do you need for cross-country skiing?

When you watch an experienced cross-country skier move, it may look effortless and easy. But behind that smooth movement there is the right equipment, solid physical abilities and usually many years of practice in perfecting technique. That’s not meant to discourage you from getting into cross-country skiing – quite the opposite…

Cross-country skiing – the official term for „bežkovanie“ – is essentially an endurance form of skiing focused on efficient movement on groomed tracks or in natural terrain. Real joy in motion will come not only from good equipment, but especially from mastering a suitable cross-country skiing technique. A beginner does not have to know all the techniques – it’s enough to gain confidence in one of them, and that will naturally open the door to further progress.

Do you want to ski in the classic style or the skating style? The classic style, based on the diagonal stride (usually in prepared tracks), is considered less physically demanding and easier to learn. The skating style, in which the skier moves similarly to ice skating, may look more difficult, but it allows you to travel in ungroomed terrain and reach higher speeds.

Are you interested in skiing on groomed tracks and trails, or does touring cross-country skiing in open terrain appeal to you more? For beginners, groomed tracks are a better choice, as they allow you to gradually improve your technique and fitness. As your experience grows, nothing will stop you from stepping „outside the track“.

Preparing for cross-country skiing

For cross-country skiing you will need:

• cross-country skis, cross-country ski boots, cross-country bindings and ski poles,

• suitable functional clothing that offers good thermal insulation, breathability and freedom of movement,

• for longer outings, also a small backpack with a water bottle and snack, reflective elements, goggles or sunglasses and other basic accessories to increase your safety and comfort in winter conditions.

Before you step into the track, it’s good to go through some basic preparation for cross-country skiing. You should learn the basic stance, walking with poles, turning and stopping.

Basic cross-country stance

1. Practise this stance first without skis.
2. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
3. Slightly bend your knees so that they are roughly above the front part of your feet. Then lean your upper body gently forward.
4. This position should give you the feeling that your body wants to pull you forward.

Gliding walk with poles

The basic walk with poles is based on a diagonal (alternating) movement of arms and legs. This means that when you step forward with your right foot, your left hand goes forward, and when you step with your left foot, your right hand goes forward. With every step, lightly plant the pole into the snow. You will get used to this natural gliding movement very quickly – often after just a few steps.

Turning and stopping on cross-country skis

Even if, as a beginner, you haven’t skied more than 100 metres yet, you still need to know how to turn and stop safely on cross-country skis. For stopping, you use:

• a single-side snowplough (one ski points diagonally towards the other, which stays in the track),

• a full snowplough (both ski tips point towards each other, forming an „A“).

The principle of stopping is that you replace the straight forward motion of the skis with an angled movement, with the tips pointing inwards. You turn on cross-country skis by simple, gradual stepping in place.

Cross-country skiing technique

Classic style

For beginners it is recommended to first learn the classic cross-country technique, which most closely resembles walking. The movement of arms and legs is diagonal, as described above (right foot with left hand forward, and vice versa). Classic cross-country skiing can be done both in prepared tracks and in open terrain. It is a perfect way to handle flat sections and gentle climbs. You will achieve fluent movement by gradually lengthening the glide phase between pushes.

Double-poling style

On groomed tracks in flat terrain you will also see skiers moving in a double-poling style. In this technique, the work of both arms at the same time and the strength of the skier’s core are crucial. At regular intervals you push off with both poles simultaneously, while your legs perform alternating strides. You plant the poles in front of you roughly at the level of your boot tips.

Skating style

You may have noticed that some cross-country skiers move in a way that resembles ice skating. This is the skating style, which requires better balance and generally more time spent on cross-country skis. In this technique, the glide of the skis is used similarly to the glide of skates on ice. Your body weight rests on one leg at a time, so this style demands better physical fitness and a good feel for the terrain.

Tips for safe cross-country skiing

The growing popularity of cross-country skiing has brought more and more skiers onto the trails. It’s therefore useful to know a few simple tips that will help make cross-country skiing safer.

How to overtake another skier in a groomed track?

When you ski in a prepared track, you will sooner or later catch up with another skier you want to overtake. If you drive a car, you’ll recognise the logic of this manoeuvre. First, check that no faster skier is coming up behind you. When there is free space behind and beside you, step out of the track, ski past the skier in front of you and then return to the track with enough space so that your skis don’t collide. It’s always good practice to politely call out your intention to overtake to the skier in front.

How to move safely in a cross-country skiing area?

With all the excitement of cross-country skiing and the desire to explore new places, it’s easy to overlook the signage in a cross-country area that clearly marks the direction of skiing. If you set off in the opposite direction, you make things difficult not only for yourself but for everyone who is skiing the loop in the proper way. Always pay attention to signs on boards and trees. Ski safely!

How to climb uphill without slipping?

Classic cross-country skiing in a machined track has its limits, and uphill sections quickly test a skier’s fitness. As soon as you start losing strength in your legs and instead of moving forward you keep slipping in place, step out of the track and climb the hill using herringbone technique. Turn your feet outward so that the tips point away from each other and step alternately uphill, using your poles to help maintain balance. The track behind you will form a pattern resembling the branches of a small tree.

Cross-country skiing in Slovakia – popular areas

Cheeks tingling from frost, the joy of movement, a clear mind and beautiful nature everywhere you look… No wonder that cross-country skiing in Slovakia thrives in every winter season and in many different areas. Where should you go for cross-country skiing? Where can you find groomed cross-country trails? Here is a short overview of popular locations.

Western Slovakia:

• Pezinská Baba

• White Carpathians (above the towns of Myjava and Stará Turá)

• Beskydy–Javorníky ridge trail

Central Slovakia:

• Kubínska hoľa

• Skalka nad Kremnicou

• Terchová and Vrátna

• Donovaly

• Čertovica

• Jasná

Eastern Slovakia:

• Tatranská Lomnica

• Štrbské Pleso

• Veľká Lomnica

• Ždiar

• Volovské vrchy (Volovec Mountains)

• Levočské vrchy (Levoča Mountains)

If you want to go cross-country skiing, prepare all your muscle groups and good equipment. Your desire to continue will grow with every kilometre you ski – Slovakia has many beautiful winter cross-country trails. We invite you to visit Kubínska hoľa, where in the winter season you’ll find downhill slopes of various difficulty levels, attractive conditions for freeride skiing, ski touring, and a groomed cross-country skiing trail.

• Kubínska
• 18. November 2025