Balance, stance and posture baseline are all terminology used to convey the basic physics that keep inline skaters on their feet. Simply put, a skater is balanced properly if the big parts (head, chest and hips) are positioned over the small parts (feet).
Inline Skating Ready Stance or Ready Position
The ready stance is easy to assume. Just stand with your knees bent and your hands in front of your body. Your feet should be no more than a shoulder's width apart when preparing to skate. Feet should be closer and side-by-side under the center of your body, if inline figure skating is your goal. Bend knees enough to cover your skates when you look down. Do not bend your upper body forward. If your head, chest and hips are over your inline skates, your body is stable.
V-Stance or V-Position for Inline Skaters
The v-stance is achieved by starting in the inline skating ready position and then bringing the heels of your skates together until they are touching while pointing the toes out in a "V" shape.
T-Stance or T-Position for Inline Skaters
The t-stance is achieved by starting in the inline ready position and then bringing the heel of one skate behind the other skate in a perpendicular position to form a "T" shape.
Staggered Inline Stance or Staggered Position
The staggered stance is achieved by starting in the inline ready position and then sliding one skate forward until it is about one skate length ahead of the other skate.
Posture Baseline for Any Inline Skating Position
The posture baseline is an imaginary line that will be used in some illustrations and photographs or verbalized by some instructors or coaches to demonstrate the presence or absence of good posture and proper weight distribution for balance while inline skating.
As long as any of the positions above have a good posture baseline with the head erect, the positions and motions of the arms and hands as well as the amount of knee bend are optional and can vary for training in specific inline roller sports.
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