It’s a well-known fact that confidence is critical for success in many areas of life. It can be difficult to get, but it doesn’t have to be! With the help of this article, you’ll learn 15 tips and tricks on how to become more confident when riding your BMX bike.
These will work for beginners or people who are already confident riders looking for ways to improve their skills. You don’t need anything other than these fun exercises and techniques that will make you feel great about yourself while learning new things at the same time!
1. Ride your bike with your hands in the air.
A lot of BMXers focus on tricks and don’t work much on their overall balance, so they often approach their bikes like it’s a skateboard. But not riding with your hands in the air makes it harder to gain confidence.
If you take away one thing from this article, let it be that trick-related skills are secondary to balance skills. When you ride with your hands in the air, you are forced to rely on the bike’s momentum and how it moves underneath you.
2. Position yourself feet forward over the bars for even more confidence.
Almost every BMX trick involves being in a position that is feet-forward over the bars. Learning how to ride in this position feels great and will help you become more confident on your bike. To do so, start by riding forwards without the pedals attached, just like you would when learning a manual trick.
3. Turn your bars up for increased balance and confidence!
This is another one of those “secrets” that BMXers don’t tell each other about. You can use your bars as a tool for gaining even more control over the bike and become more confident with it.
With them turned up, you can lean on them to keep yourself balanced over the frame of the bike, especially if you’re doing a trick that requires you to be closer to the ground or facing the ground.
4. Ride a 20-inch bike if you’re shorter than 5’6″.
This one might not apply to you if you’re already confident on your bike. But for beginners or people who find it difficult to ride their BMX, it can help with becoming more confident overall by riding a bike that is more manageable for you. If your bike is too big, it can be hard to stay confident and comfortable on it for a long time.
5. Try learning front flips, but only if you have a safe environment in which to do them!
Front flips are one of the best ways for people who want to learn more complex tricks but aren’t quite ready for the more difficult skills, such as 360 flips. But if you don’t have a big area in which to do them and cushion your fall, they might not be the best choice of trick. So try practicing them on a grassy surface or soft dirt before immersing yourself in doing front flips off of ramps.
6. Practice your manuals often.
Manual is a great way for you to increase your confidence in your BMX because it forces you to focus on the bike and its movements. There are three main types of manuals: front, back, and brakeless. You can pick whichever one suits you the most!
7. Learn how to do a BMX bunnyhop.
A bunnyhop is another great skill that will teach you how to control your bike in different situations and increase your overall confidence in the process.
The best way to learn it is by rolling away from an object, crouching down, pushing off with both feet at once, then jumping up when you’re just past the object.
8. Try learning an alley-oop to increase your confidence in tricks that require you to jump high.
An alley-oop is a great trick for becoming more confident in your ability to flip, but it’s only effective when you know how to ollie first! You can’t expect yourself to be able to jump high enough to do the trick if you aren’t good at ollies.
9. Increase your confidence by trying to go faster on your bike for longer periods!
When you’re riding much faster than usual, it means that you’re going through the course at a much more challenging rate than you’re used to. This forces your brain and body to pay close attention because doing so will increase your awareness of the bike and how it responds to different movements.
If you ride much faster than usual for a longer time, then this will allow you to become more confident in your ability to control your bike at higher speeds.
10. Work on pulling your front wheel off the ground as much as you can!
A great way to increase your confidence is by being able to pull your front wheel off the ground a lot. This will especially help if you’re trying a trick that requires it, such as a tailwhip or a 360 flip.
11. Work on your barspins to increase the height of your tricks.
Barspins allow you to take advantage of the momentum that you already have, which means that doing them can take a trick and make it higher and more exciting for you!
Learn how to do them by first practicing regular spins and other skills, like manuals and ollies (if you haven’t already).
12. Clean your bike to feel more confident when riding it in front of other people!
No one likes showing up to a session and finding out that their brakes don’t work, so make sure to check all parts before leaving the house so you can focus on practicing and playing with your friends. More confidence comes from being confident that your bike is working properly!
13. Focus on doing more 360 flips, even if you’re scared to do them at first.
It can help with becoming confident in your tricks by learning how to do a trick that takes a lot of balance and awareness to pull off properly, so you’ll feel empowered once you learn how to do it. If you’re scared, then try practicing on a grassy surface with soft soil or dirt that will absorb any impact if you fail!
14. Focus on maintaining your balance for longer periods when doing barspins.
When you’re working on tricks with barspins, focus more on staying in the same position for longer periods. This will allow you to become more confident in your ability to keep the bike upright, no matter what position it might be in.
15. Ride with a friend that’s better than you at BMX so they can push you harder and faster!
You’ll feel better about yourself when riding next to someone better than you because it gives you a chance to learn from them and see what they’re doing differently. Riding next to a friend will also allow you to push each other harder and faster, which means you’ll both become better riders in the process!
The end of this article has given you 15 ways to become more confident on your BMX bike, but it is important to note that all are not for everyone. It will be up to the individual how they want to spend their time practicing and what skills they would like to work on.
For example, someone who wants a high-intensity workout might focus more on faster speeds with shorter distances while another person may want something less intense so they can have longer sessions without feeling tired or stressed out afterward. Whichever skillset suits you best, just remember that there’s no one way of doing things when it comes down to BMX biking!
And don’t forget about our free resources if you need some help getting started–we’re here every step of the way!