Wednesday Night Skate

Skated again tonight. I think I'll make Wednesday Night a regular thing. Worked on 3-turns extensively and I was able to do ALL of my forward 3-turns!!! Even the RFI3, which I was convinced i was going to snap my ankle on at some point.

I skated with more speed and power and it felt great! Not so fun dodging the little hockey boys though. They skate so wrecklessly sometimes!

I even tried some edge exercises I've seen other skaters do. I don't know what it is called, but say you're skating forward on your left foot, and your right foot is extended to the front. Then you do a slalom type move on the left foot going from outside edge to inside edge and repeat for the length of the rink. I can do it pretty well on the left, but not so much on the right yet.

Overall skating is improving and I feel I am finally getting back to where I was prior to October. N0w if I can just get a hold of my coach, I can have another lesson!

LFI3 and backspin

Not a lot of time to post...but, I actually did a few LFI3s last night! yaay!!! These have been so hard for me. The right side should come along soon. My forward spins are really inconsistent. I tried spinning on my right foot for a change and realized I was doing backspins! They felt really comfortable too. Not centered though. I thought backspins are supposed to be harder....I don't get it.

Thank you US Junior Nats!!!

My Husband rocks! He works at the airport and happened to help a customer last night....get ready for this....One of the Spiteris from SP Teri. He came in town for the U.S. Junior Nationals, which is being held at my rink this week. My husband told him about me and my skating, so he already knew of me when I stopped by the SP Teri booth tonight. I told him I have unfortunately already ordered Jacksons which will be in next week. But I went ahead and had a fitting done. I learned a lot about skates and breakdown and propper fitting. He gave me some suggestions for my pronation, and they have a custom insole that can be added to the stock boots (ProTeris in this case).

Here's the dilemma: I was fitted for a 6D in Jacksons, though the heel size was not taken into consideration. I have a narrower heel, and I'm afraid my Jacksons are going to fit well in the toes, but slip in the heel. For SP Teri's, I'm a 6B with a C ball. If I have a combination fit in one brand, does that mean I'd have a combination fit in another brand? I know that all boots (like street shoes) are different, but I'm sure there's some similarity in sizing. As for blades, he suggested a few, including the Coronation Ace. I've heard tons of good things about that blade from www.skatingforums.com.

So....If the Jacksons don't fit right, I'm going to try and get a refund and go with SP Teri's. He said he'd keep my info for about a year. Whatever happens, I'm going with the boot that fits best! And maybe I can upgrade when necessary to SP Teris.

I haven't skated for about a week due to work and rink schedule conflicts, but my last skate was amazing! I felt that I had so much power and control with alternating crossovers and edges - especially backwards edges. 3-turns are also happily coming back - both directions! And I did a few good spins. Mohawks are about the same. Still holding off on jumps until I'm out of these darn recreation skates. Sometimes I think skating is 90% Mental. If I think I can't get an element right...welll...I end up messing it up! If I skate with the attitude of "I can do this!" then, I can!

The Basics

Felt like skating today. Went to the outdoor rink. The ice feels really different - much harder. I worked on just the basics: Edges, crossovers, mohawks, and a few lousy FO3s. Ok, so maybe a couple of them were good. And crossovers felt really good! My spins have gone missing, though. It may seem crazy, but I think the sweet spot on my blades got sawed off when it was last sharpened.

Skating outside is wonderful, but people walking by like to stop and stare...and I'm a bit bashful... But the weather was great, and nothing beats skating in mild fall weather during sundown.

Two weeks and counting until I get my Competitors...

Winter is Here!!!

Image from www.utahvacations.org

Yesterday the Gallivan Center Rink opened up downtown. I dragged my husband along, and he just observed from the sidelines. It's a decent size rink for outdoors, but much smaller than the olympic sized rinks I'm used to. And there were SO many people! Everyone was having tons of fun. And the ice was all snow when I got on. I never knew it was possible to skate on snow. :)

Then they zambonied the ice. And I have to say, the ice was fantastic! And many many people slipped and fell on their bums once they discovered the glossy ice. hehehee.....

The weather was perfect, the sky clear, and no polluted inversion air. It was sweater weather, and although I could only do a single 3 turn and a couple of crossovers, and basic stroking (minus good extension due to the crowdedness) it was a blast!

Update on New Skates

So....because of my duck feet my skates won't be in until at least DECEMBER 2nd! It's a long time to wait, but it will be worth it. And as much as my skates are hurting my feet and hampering my progress, I WILL skate downtown once the outdoor rink opens up Nov. 16.

As for skating, I haven't been to the rink lately. it's been a rough month and to finish it out on Halloween, my car and my husbands car were both wrecked and mine will take at least a month to fix. Back to skating: I am getting a bit better at my FI3s, as well as change of edges.

Ordered new skates!!!

I had an official fitting at a local rink today. I have decided on Jackson Competitors since it's a good freestyle skate and will hold up to my extra weight. The fitter agreed with me. I found out that my right foot is smaller than my left foot, but only slightly. And I told the fitter I have wide feet. She measured them, and looked at what was available in the Competitor and said "you do have wide feet! - I measure you at an 'E' and the widest it comes in is a 'D'". No wonder my husband calls me "duck feet." So, I bought size 6D. I can have it punched out if needed. She said if it is too wide in the heel, then we can add padding/insoles whatever is needed. I'm so excited!!! They should be here in a couple of weeks, depending on if they are already made or not.


As for skating in my current skates, I'm not going to jump in them, but I will practice MITF. I have been very hesitant about jumping in my skates because they don't offer enough support, and the toepicks are so small that they are useless. I can always go back to jumping. Lately my skates have been cramping my feet within 10 minutes on the ice. So, I think MITF is a good option - especially my FI3s, FO3s, and crossovers. I even printed the Pre-Bronze MITF patterns so that I can work on them.

One very cool thing to look forward to: November 16. The outdoor rink in downtown SLC opens! yay for outdoor skating!!

Wednesday Skate

Got back on the ice this past Wednesday. Very slow to warm up, and my boots definitely don't feel right. They are way too big! But I dealt with it. Worked a lot on edges at first to warm up, as well as some crossovers. Then some mohawks. These still feel the same. My 3-turns took a while to come back, and FO3s are SO much easier than FI3s (which need A LOT of work).

I then attempted some jumps. Waltz jumps are still resulting in being glued to the ice. I did observe some other skaters doing waltz jumps with good height and noticed they really bring that free leg up so they fly in the air. That's what I need to do! So I practiced quite a few bunny hops (evil, yes, but they help with swinging the leg through and getting height on jumps). I actually did a few really good bunny hops, except I think I bent my free leg too much. Oh well. I'm getting the concept of the "swing through and jump."

I then tried some half-flips. Not happening yet, but I did work a lot on jamming the toepick into the ice and jumping straight up (no rotation). This is to help gain height on the jump so I can make the half rotation. Doing this seemed to help out a lot. It may take a few more sessions until I'm up to attempting full jumps.

Spins: I did a couple of one foot spins, albeit very wimpy. But my balance is back! There is no way I can get a one foot spin yet from BXO's (which was taught in my lesson), but I'm getting there from a pivot. I've got to start somewhere, right?

So it was a semi-productive skate, and I didn't lose as much skill as I thought I would. Hopefully I'll make it to the rink this weekend.

Break's Over

Ok, so I was pregnant until I miscarried this weekend. It was a very devastating experience, but I'm doing much better now. So I'm returning to the ice this week - maybe Wednesday. I never looked at skates when I was out of town since I was in baby mode. So now I get to look around town and hope there are some good skate fitters around.

I've been thinking about my waltz jumps and and I seem to have a hard time actually jumping off the left foot. It seems like my foot is glued to the ice!!! Is this just a mental thing?? I think I may be holding back and thinking about the jump too much. Any suggestions on how to get past that mental block??

Taking a looooong break...

So I'm taking a much longer break than anticipated. I found out about a week and a half ago that I'm pregnant! According to an ultrasound done yesterday, I'm just barely 5 weeks.

I've been debating whether to skate or not (no jumps or spins or anything...just skating around), but I've already recognized balance changes and due to a slight complication I've decided to NOT skate. It was somewhat hard to come to that decision, but I can always come back to skating. In fact, my husband and I discussed this very topic. Skating will be my way of getting back into shape after the baby arrives, and we'll invest in new skates then too, since my feet may change.

I'll still read up on the blogs and post on skatingforums.com, and maybe post here occasionally too. Wish us luck in this new adventure!

Taking a Break

Friday's practice was blah... I keep hitting a mental block when trying jumps (waltz and half-flip) and it's like my feet are glued to the ice. I have the hardest time jumping. I did a few so-so waltz jumps and wimpy half-flips. Spins were unsuccessful and my balance is very off at this point. It seems to take me a long time to warm up on the ice and I'm beginning to get tired easily.

I've been skating very regularly since June - about 3 times a week plus lessons. It's time for a bit of a break. I'm going on vacation this week to destress. I may be experiencing some life changes, however...which could temporarily keep me off the ice. So I'll be off the ice for at least a week, if not longer. Breaks can be a good thing. When I do return, things will be much better. :)

First Private Lesson, First Jump EVER

Ok, first private lesson...about 45minutes long. And boy did we cover a lot!!! I hope I can remember everything. And I know this is long, but this is also doubling as my skating notebook for the time being, so I'm describing things in great detail...

Change of edge: Outside to Inside, Inside to Outside. It took me a little while, but I finally got the concept. When on a LFO edge, the arms are open and the R leg is in the back. Then swing the R leg quickly to the front, then to the back. When the R leg is in the front, change arms so that the R arm is more in front, and the L arm is towards the back, and lean into the LFI edge. It is reveresed for RFO-RFI, with the left leg swinging to the front. This is a great thigh workout!!!

FO3s: These looked good...no work needed.

FI3s: These are not very different from FO3s, though I'm losing most all momentum with the turn.

One foot spin entry from BXOs: Ok, so I pretty much don't even know how to do a one foot spin, but I'm learning the entry. Do a couple of CW BXO's and hold the crossed foot position. Rotate the upper body to the outside of the circle. Then bring the free leg (Left) around and step forward onto a LFO edge, making a very small circle (think LFO3), BENDING THE KNEE. Keeping the arms aligned with the legs as if they were connected by a string, bring the R arm and leg around the the front, thus creating a spin. Yeahh........I'm having troubles with the step forward part and the whole spin thing. But I know what I need to work on.

Waltz Jump: First jump ever! I pretty much already knew the steps for this, but never attempted it. From a RBO edge keeping the arms open, step forward onto a LFO edge with arms behind and jump off the L toe, bringing arms in. Do a half-rotation in the air, landing on a RBO edge with arms open and L leg behind. After stepping through it in the lesson, I attempted this multiple times and had a couple of decent ones - though only a millimeter off the ice!!!! I get the concept...now to just practice. I find if I don't jump right away after stepping forward, I lose most of the momentum for the jump. No more hesitating!!!

Half-Flip: Holy cow. Two jumps in one lesson. Not successful at all, but I know the steps. We practiced this from a LFO3, bringing in the right leg back (leg straight) and jamming that toepick into the ice. Jumping off the R foot, do a half revolution in the air (arms in tight) and land on the R foot going forwards with arms open. The landing foot is the same as the picking foot. It's messy and puny and two-footed, but something I can definitely work on - on and off the ice.

So my jumping is wimpy...lack of strength??? Fear of cracking my ankle??? Boots weight too much??? hmmm...maybe it's lack of knee bend.

I feel challenged, and kept laughing at how terrible I was doing. I knew I looked horrible, but I felt great!!! My coach made sure I could at least fumble through the steps. There's no way things are going to be perfect in a lesson anyway, and this gives me tons to work on. Some things still seem impossible (one foot spin) but I will just chip away at it.

Coach agreed with me about getting new skates. No more recreational skates!!! She recommends boots with more support and better blades too. Good thing I worked extra hours this week!!!

My Husband, the coach: Part 2

My husband came to see me skate on Friday - the first time since July. He was very impressed by how much I've improved. He remembered that a few months ago I didn't have any edges, and couldn't do my two-foot spin. There I was on friday showing him BXO's, 3-turns, mohawks, and all my edges. Plus, he commented that I seem much more confident on the ice now. Here is a pic of a spiral I did (which I held for a LOOOONG time as he took the picture) my skating leg is slightly bent, but look - It's hip height!!!!

He helped me with a couple of things. Good thing he's a physics genius! I was struggling with FO3s a bit, but I was skating slow. He told me to speed things up. Speed scares me at times because the faster I go, the harder I fall!! Well, I picked up the pace, and had greater succes with the FO3s. Speed is a good thing.

He also noticed that my right foot does not look right in the skates. I drew a primitive pic to show what he was talking about. HAHA..I'm no artist. But the dotted line shows my foot alignment in respect to the boot/blade alignment.

I pronate and I already have insoles to help with that, but my whole foot is not aligned with the blade. The blade itslef is aligned with the boot, but since my foot turns out, my weight is not distributed correctly over the blade. Thank goodness for blade alignments - but that will come with new skates. These skates are cheapies and I don't think there's any way to correct the alignment. We are going to Denver next week and I'm stopping at a skate shop for some advice and maybe some new skates!!! Yipee!

Bought an annual skating pass (only $80!) so now I can skate as much as I please. First official private lesson with my first official coach is tomorrow!

Great Skate

Finally got to skate after 5 days off the ice. Crowded session with lots of figure and hockey skaters....Hockey skaters with cell phones....those things should be banned on the ice!!

FO3's: These are progressing nicely! And somehow, my troublesome R foot understands 3-turns better than my reliable L foot! I initally learned to do these by putting the skating foot arm (L for LFO3, R for RFO3) in front and then switching arms while bringing the free foot close to the skating foot, bending the knee, and then initiating the turn. I did a few in a row and some with minimal arm movement. Less karate chops! Oh, and I was starting the bad habit of keeping my chin up. The chin must be UP! Pretend you're performing!

BXO's: These are feeling a lot better, but CCW are still shaky. The power on the CW BXOs was very impressive. I didn't have that impending sense of doom that I was going to fall on my as*.

Mohawks: Piece of cake. R to L still scratchy at times, but much improved.

First OFFICIAL private lesson next week!!!

Competition and Practice

My instructor told me about a local skating competition, so I decided to check it out.

I watched the junior ladies short program and the Adult level skaters (all were women). It was interesting to see the difference. The ladies short program had lots of double jumps, and their spirals were really good. One of the skaters had an absolutely effortless spiral and had her leg straight up in the air (think Sasha Cohen). Talk about flexible!!! And these girls looked like they had been skating their whole lives.

Watching the adults (2 gold, 2 bronze), I could tell they hadn't been skating since the age of 2, and some were a bit unsteady. But their programs were really good! Even if their elements were not perfect, I could tell that each and every one of them loved what they were doing. And everyone looked so elegant. It was nice to see a range of ages, and I even heard one kid yell "yay mom!!" after one skater had finished skating. I hope that could be me some day.

I observed some of the skaters and coaches, and I could sense some tension in the air. Not much different than when I competed in speech and debate in high school. Overall, the crowd was very supportive of the skaters, and I didn't see any backbiting like I had expected. I know this sport can be cutthroat at times!

I'm hooked, I'm sold, I'm starting lessons. Calling my soon-to-be coach this week. :)

Practicing:
3-turns (FO3s): I really like these, but I seem to be relying on my arms to make the turn. It almost looks like some karate chop martial arts move. Must use the lower body too!

BXO's: getting more comfortable with these, and can even alternate them down the rink. My instructor pointed out that I am not using my hips as much. yay! no more low back pain or ugly looking BXOs!

FXO's: these have relapsed. I can't seem to get my weight where it needs to be. I'm hesitating on that outside edge, which throws off the weight transfer.

Mohawks: R to L are scratchy, but happening. :)

FXOs-Mohawk-BXOs: learned this from my instructor and another skater at the rink. You do 3 FXOs, and immediate mohawk, and then 3 BXOs. I get too much speed with the crossovers and hesitate with the mohawk! I'm much better with mohawks at a slower speed.

Spins: finally used to the newly sharpened blades and spins are mostly back. I tried a one foot spin and can get one or two revs out of it. I thought it would be cool to try at put my head back like in a layback spin and WOW I got dizzy and disoriented.

I'm trying to teach myself a waltz jump, but I'm afraid of landing wrong and breaking my ankle! I can do a waltz jump off ice, and sorta do one on ice with out the jumping part. For my readers...how did you learn to do jumps???

Hopefully I'll start private lessons by next week!

Makeup Class

Tonight was the makeup class for the one missed due to Hockey. I was the only one there (again), so I got yet another private lesson. Yay!

I have to get this out of my system...OMG I DID A 3-TURN!!!!!!

It was amazing. I did one RFO and one LFO 3-turn (out of 15+ attempts!! haha). It was a huge epiphany for me. I have been curious about 3-turns for awhile, and I know once I am proficient at these, so much will open up in my skating potential. For me, this is a milestone. Most recreational skaters that i've observed can't do 3-turns. Some can do two-foot spins, and many can do crossovers forwards and backwards. Being able to do a 3turn makes me feel like I am progressing to a higher level of skating. I think I actually shrieked when I did it - I was so happy! A tip for 3-turns...bend the knee!!! Doing 3-turns with a straight leg leads to that awful scratching sound.

I was able to do a couple of things on the Adult 4 list, and attempted backwards chasses. I think it's a move used a lot in ice dancing. These will take a lot of practice because I'm not totally confident on where to put my weight yet. I can picture it in my head, but my feet haven't gotten that message yet.

There is a local skating competition this weekend, and a couple of adults competing. I'm going to check it out, and see what skating competitions are like.

Now I get to talk to my husband about private lessons. :) I think I'm progressing faster than the group classes are going. My instructor recommended that I take private lessons. and she's right - I'd be bored in the group class. I'm sure I could afford a lesson every other week.

Newly Sharpened Blades

I was sliding a lot in my last lesson, so I decided it was time to get my blades sharpened. It's the first time I've had them sharpened since buying the skates (the shop I bought them from did the initial sharpening). The guy did a good job, but I'm not used to super sharp blades. Stopping was difficult, but not impossible. Edges were clean - which was very nice. Mohawks were clean (except for the upper body, but that's doesn't have anything to do with the blades). The only thing that really suffered was my two-foot spin. For those who are new to reading this blog, I LOVE TO SPIN!! I was sad to see my spin run away screaming from the newly sharpened blades. I kept hitting the edges, which were very grabby, and that was the end of it. Perhaps my blades were really dull before and I was cheating by not spinning completley on that sweet spot. The spins improved slightly by the end of the session (about 1 hour), which gives me hope that I just need to adjust to the sharp blades.

OK Readers: How long is the adjustment period typically, and what can I do to help dull my blades a bit?

Other bits from this week: I skated at the Olympic Oval public session, which was on the speed skating oval. I really really like the ice there, but trying to figure skate on an oval was strange. There was no middle area for spins and such. Still, it's the best ice I have ever skated on, and if it wasn't so far away, I'd skate there all the time.

My goal this week is to make progress in controlling my upper body, especially with mohawks and crossovers. I have been consciously locking my upper body in place, which is helping a lot. I can now do consecutive mohawks, and my CW FXO's are more secure. It is very interesting to see how much the upper body influences the lower body.

My rink may not be offering Adult 4 next session. Perhaps this is the point to seriously consider private lessons....

Adult 3 Week 5 - Passed!!

Finally a skating class!!! I've waited three weeks for class. None of the other students were there to skate, so it was pretty much a private lesson. I can't believe how much we covered in half and hour!!!

BXO's: Worked more on crossing under, and holding the crossing position. I was wobbily, but my bad side felt more secure than before.

FXO's: It helps to push and extend the leg behind, then quickly bring it to the front and cross it over the skating leg. My instructor pointed out that I was extending my leg to the side, which made it harder to shift my weight. I get much better flow with extending the leg behind. It also helps to keep the upper body turned into the circle, with arms slightly diagonal, meaning the arm behind is slightly elevated, and the arm in front is slightly lowered. So no more airplane arms!!

Edges: coming along nicely. She said I don't need to lean into them so much. I find this funny because for a while there I wasn't leaning enough!!

Mohawks: Worked extensively on these. She pointed out I was putting my weight on my toes. When doing mohawks, the weight should be placed on the heel when switching feet. So with the change in foot, it helps to put the toe down first, then the heel, and keep the weight on the heel. I attempted to do multiple mohawks in a row, but I kept overrotating my upper body, making it nearly impossible to step forward to start another mohawk. I just have to keep my upper body in place, and keep that weight on the heel. This improved in practice today.

Two foot spins: Not much time on these. I can spin and love to spin. Worked more on delaying bringing the arms in, which helps me find that sweet spot on the blades.

So I've already passed Adult 3. I will still go to the makeup class next week, and then hopefully move on from there!

Great Skate!

Practiced today for 45 minutes. Great skate!!! Went towards the end of a long public session, and the ice was much better than expected. I was the only one on the ice for the first ten minutes I was there. :)

Edges: All of my edges were there! and BI edges are coming along, a little shaky though. FI and FO were great!!

Mohawks: A bit scratchy with the R to L weight transfer. Still beautiful L to R.

FXO's. Steppy today. I don't seem to have as good of flow with CW. I think it is a mental block more than anything. Keeping knees bent helps a lot.

BXO's: Fell once on these, but that's a good thing. I got right back up and tried the same maneuver. Scratchy with the cross. CCW feels a bit more comfortable now. I just have to look behind me and keep my head and arms up!

Spins: a couple of good two-foot spins, nice and centered. If I don't keep my upper body stiff, my spins travel and I wobble all over the place. I just have to remind myself to keep my core strong and my shoulders square.

Stroking, etc: I have been practicing dips and stroking with the knees waaaay bent...good quad workout! Also tried a spiral...it's only at hip length. and sorta did a "shoot the duck". The other day, I tried a few "bunny hops" which are kinda fun, but feel very unnatural.

Great skate overall. Just as I was taking my skates off, someone came on to the intercom and ordered everyone to evacuate the building immediately. Turns out there was an ammonia leak in the building. Very dangerous stuff to breathe! It even ended up being breaking news.

I can't wait until next monday for another class. It's been almost 3 weeks!!! The make up session with be one week after that. Then onto Adult 4!

Class Cancelled

Class this week was cancelled. The rink was overbooked and high school hockey got the rink instead... >:(

No word on whether or not class will be rescheduled. I will be skating tonight though, at the public session, and one of my classmates may be there as well. She's really good controlling at her edges, so I hope I can learn a few tricks from her.


So I've decided to post video....It was only me recording, so there is a delay in actually seeing me skate. And a hockey guy skated right in front of me when I did my mohawk, so it is difficult to see. I can't get the second video to load but I will try again later.

Review and Progress

I am very camera shy, but using the digital camera helps me to see what I'm doing right and what I'm doing wrong. It is a tool to help improve how I skate.

I looked at pictures today from when I first started skating (I think they were taken sometime in early July). I then looked at video of one of my practices from last week (that would be mid-late August), and noticed a huge difference in my confidence and abilities. Here is just an example of what I noticed:

First and foremost: My figure is slimming down :) Yay for unexpected benefits of skating!

First Pic: I believe this is a LFO edge...or mabye an attempt at a LBO. I'm trying to lean into the edge, but only my hip seems to be leaning. My shoulders are tensed and my leg is way out in right field somewhere...lol....I was afraid of falling, too.

Second Pic: LBO edge - body more relaxed, better alignment. I seem to be more comfortable leaning into the edge - trusting the edge. Still a long way to go, but I definitely see (and have felt) improvement in just a month and a half!

My advice is to use cameras whenever possible if you seem to be having trouble with technique. It helps to see what you are doing, so that you can improve in areas that are lagging. Of course, coaches are much better! but at least when I practice, I find that cameras help :)

Adult 3 Week 4

Another very productive class

Backwards Edges: Looking much better! Inside edges are tricky to control, but I finally figured out where my arms go. If doing a RBI edge, the right arm goes in front, if doing a LBI the left arm goes in front. I spend more time in class wondering where my arms go, rather than what my feet should do!

Mohawks: R to L coming along. just practice practice practice. I can now go from a L to R mohawk into backwards crossovers. I'm starting to piece moves together!

Step sequence: Learned forward progressives, which seemed more like forward crossovers - just less "steppy". I think I've been doing my CCW crossovers more like progressives anyways. From what I gathered from SkatingForums.com, crossovers become progressives as a skater's ability advance. We also worked on Chasses and Lunges. Somehow it will come together into a step sequence.

Backwards Crossovers: I still tend to face forward or to the side when doing these. My instructor made two little corrections - putting my arm farther back and turning my head to look behind me in the direction I'm going. Voila! My crossovers were instantly better. BOTH directions. Much more power too. Once my head and arms knew what to do, my feet caught on.

I took video of myself in practice this week, and if I'm courageous enough, I might post them. I can already tell I'm getting more confident on the ice, and getting into shape!

Success!

I was desperate to go skating on saturday, so I tried a new rink - the Utah Olympic Oval where they claim they have the "fastest ice on earth." They weren't kidding! The ice was absolutely perfect - I felt as if I were flying. It was so smooth! Plus, the rink monitors were checking for imperfections in the ice (i.e. bumps and dents) and repairing them on the spot! They really take care of the ice there. Since it is a speed skating facility, there were some people in speed skates. And I thought I had troubles catching my blades with BXO's - I can't imagine what would happen if I were on speed skates! yikes!

My backwards edges have come back from a long vacation, and the LBO edge feels really good! I know I need to lean more into the edges, but for a beginner, they are ok. I worked a bit on BI edges, which are improving. I did a couple of good R to L mohawks, as I worked more on rotating my body and not just my feet.

Spins were fun, but hard to center on the ice. It's easier for me to spin on hockey-type ice. I even did a couple of cheated one-foot spins just to see what spinning on one foot feels like. I can't wait to progress to layback and scratch spins.

Feeling ambitious, I thought about 3-turns, and did a bunch of two foot turns, but putting most of my weight on one foot in preparation for the real deal. I did my mohawks a bit two-footed at first, and it really helped me out.

The last five minutes was spent on Lunges. And I fell on almost every single one. But falling is good. If you're not Falling, you're not trying!!!

Lesson tonight, then a loooong 12 work shift. blah. I'd better sleep.

"It was a dark and stormy night..."

The public session I attended this week was more crowded than usual, and very dark. There was a power outage and only a few dim lights were lighting the rink. It was great! Very different than what I'm used to, but fun.

Practiced more mohawks and BO and BI edges. They are coming along at glacier pace, but still improving. Crossovers felt better, but I did have a heck of a fall. My legs were too close together when crossing and I caught my blades and fell on my hip. I actually heard a "thud"! LOL!!! But then I got right back up and tried again. Some kids nearby looked horrified when I fell, but that just shows how strong I am with getting right back up. :)

Saw one guy at the rink who I swear was my biology professor from five years ago. He was pretty good too!

There was also a young skater (maybe early teens) who was practicing double jumps and spins. she would whiz right past me with remarkable force, and the jumps were so powerful! She landed one about three feet from me and I could not believe how much strength and force was exerted with the jump. Truly amazing. I know I want to jump, but I'll have to get into much better shape to do it well.

I've been a bit frustrated with my RFI mohawk, so while I was on dry land, I tried to go through the motions of the mohawk. I first did a LFI (my good side) and then a RFI. I realized I am not rotating my free leg enough, resulting in losing balance and falling forward whne I switch feet. I'll try to get it right on dry land and see how things go at the rink tomorrow.

I'll be starting a skating notebook to take to the rink, and will work diligently on my edges, using very helpful tips from fellow skaters. Thanks to everyone who has helped me out!

Adult 3 Week 3

Things are getting harder! Only two students in class today. Here's what we worked on:

Backwards Crossovers: I'm trying very hard to not lean forward so much with these. My instructor had me work on the crossunder and maintaining edges, as I tend to miss that. She showed me how to do a half swizzle, bring the skating leg to the front while crossing under with the other leg, then holding that position - legs crossed. It's SOOOO hard, but worth it because it forces me to find the inside edge. My CW crossovers are miles ahead of my CCW.

Backwards Edges on a circle: This is the hardest element on Adult 3 for me to "master". I have a heck of a time getting the BO edge. It helps if I put my weight on the ball of my foot and near my little toe, but I seem to loose a lot of momentum with that. And it seems that a month ago I was doing great. Maybe I'm thinking too much about it...
On to BI edges, which are much easier for me get, but harder to control - I end on the inside edges too much and nearly spin. The thing I mostly struggled with with the inside edges was the arm position, which is opposite of the arm position for BO edges. My feet and arms don't communicate well and I ended up doing more BO than BI edges! And my BO edges that time around were ok! (See - I think too much about it when I'm trying to do it) These edges will take A LOT of practice in the coming weeks if they are going to be passable.

Mohawks: Mohawks feel nice and look pretty when done right. I've practiced these a lot this week and my LFI mohawks are good - not nearly as over-rotated as before. My RFI mohawks are lagging, but I somehow did a couple of good ones when the instructor was watching. :)

Lunges: I've done these before in the past in rental skates, but that was years ago! I tried one, and caught my edge while coming out of the lunge and did something funky to my hip and felt something *pop*- but it's OK now. Just felt weird. I almost did that fun breakdancing move where people spin around on their back!!!

Hope to make it to the rink a couple more times this week. I am determined to get those backwards edges!!!!

Adult 3, Week 2

After two lousy practice sessions, things are most definitely improving.
This is week two of this LTS session. Here's what we worked on Monday.

Mohawks (Forward Inside)- far far away from the barrier! I've been practicing these throughout the week, but kept leaning onto my backwards inside edge causing me to over rotate and nearly spin. I asked the instructor about this and she suggested putting my free leg behind my skating leg more to counterbalance...and voila! I'm still over-rotating at times, but my mohawks are much improved. I was able to do both right and left sides. and I'm finally learning what to do with my arms and head! My lower body tends to understand things before my upper body does...

Two-foot spins: We already started on this last session, with the forward pivot. I'm a CCW spinner like most people, and think one of my classmates is a CW spinner - cool!! I love to spin, as I had mentioned before and I want to do so much more like scratch spins and all sorts of one foot spins. I think the Bielmann is the prettiest, along with the layback. Someday I'll get there. My spins were pretty centered, but I was a little wobbily as I had a hard time getting on the rocker of the blade. Still much fun though!
Tips on the two foot spin: make sure your toes are "pidgeon toed" with your heels out and your toes turned in, nearly touching. I find that keeping a good posture and keeping a stiff upright stance helps center the spin, otherwise it's all wobbily and travels. oh, and never look down when spinning :)

I am also becoming very curious about 3-turns, which I think doesn't get covered until Adult 4. I've been trying to attempt some near the barriers, but not much success with these yet.

Busy work schedule coming up this week. Hopefully there will be enough time to practice!

Foggy Skate

Someone left the door open....
Dry, hot summer air + damp cool rink air = FOG!
It was definitely the most humid place in the state of Utah. I don't mind the humidity, but the fog was very thick and I could barely see people across the Olympic sized rink. It was distracting and I had a less than pleasant skate.

My backwards edges have dissappeared. I don't know if I am afraid of falling, or just having an "off" week. Please come back soon LBO and RBO edges! LFO and RFO are good - and my RFO has greatly improved, including the leg extension.

First BIG fall!!! I was doing a BXO going CCW and completely tripped over myself leaving me landing on my butt and my two feet straight in the air!!! It was a slow-motion kind of fall, but left me stunned for a few seconds. And I luckily thought to lift my head slightly during the fall, saving it from cracking on the ice. At least I made it through my first really nasty fall. Slightly sore, but definitely OK.

BXO going CW are coming along nicely! Arms still flailing at times to keep my balance, but looking and feeling better. CCW are lagging. My "knock=knees" may make things more difficult, but definitely NOT impossible. :) Anyone else have "knock-knees" or are the opposite: "bow-legged"?

Found a cool "glow in the dark" skating session held weekly at a rink about an hour away. I'm going to try to convince my husband to go along with it. Sounds like it might be fun...maybe dangerous?? I'm picturing a rink that is pitch black with glowsticks swirling around the rink....

Crossing fingers for a better skate tomorrow...

Adult 3, Week 1

Yay! Finally starting the next session of classes. Just two students today, and same instructor as lass class :)

What we worked on :

Backwards edges : I have been practicing these regularly at the rink, but I just couldn't get the hang of it today. Oh well. I did get some pointers on posture, arm and head position, and worked on keeping my free leg in the front before bringing it to the back. Also worked extensively on leaning into the edge to achieve a curve, instead of a straight line. This will take balance, practice, and a lot of patience, but I know it will come with time.

Backwards crossovers: My arms and body were all over the place!! lol. The instructor told me to slow down on the crossovers, and then had me focus on arm and head position,, NOT catching the toe-pick like I always do, and maintaining a curve so that I'm not going in a straight line. And then, hallelujah! It all came together. Its' not consistent, but at least I know how it feels when I get it right (or at least not entirely wrong!)

Spent five mintues on mohawks, and I did a decent one, except I lost all momentum on it with the foot exchange and stopped dead on the ice as if I hit the wall - haha! It must have been the toepick.

Much to practice this week! And I bought a yoga mat so I can do pilates comfortably at home. :) I'm already noticing that I'm a tad bit more flexible than eight weeks ago, just from skating. I know pilates will do much more for me and my skating. :)

As for my boot problem mentioned in the last post, I thought it might be the socks I wear to skate (thick athletic socks). So I bought some microfiber socks with are about the same thickness of skating tights. What a difference!!! No pain with todays lesson! and the ankle doesn't slip like I thought it would. Now to just cushion the ball of my foot and i'll have a nice fit finally.

Practice, Practice, and Pronation

No group lessons this week. Starting Adult 3 on Monday (guess i should hurry up and pay my money!)

Practiced pivots, two-foot spins, and edgework. I attempted some more forward inside mohawks, but I must be leaning too much on my back inside edge because I nearly go into a spin! Considering only 5 minutes was spent on mohawks during the last class, I'm going to bet that I just need some more instruction.

WHEEE!!! I can't believe how much I love to spin. I wish I could spin all day and not get dizzy! My best spin had about 6 revolutions. I'm even starting to experiment with arm positions - behind the back, above my head - just to see what I can do. Too bad spins aren't really part of the Adult class cirriculum.

Other things practiced:

Forward Crossovers: No longer falling going CW. CW still weaker than CCW, but becoming more fluid. Leg extension improving with both directions. Gotta bend the knee!!

Backwards edges: Coming along, but not 100% consistent. Still have instances where doing half-swizzles on the hockey circle, then attempt either the LBO or RBO edge, only to find I'm going straight and the hockey circle is getting farther and farther away...wait!! Come back!!! I know my edge is there!! A quick analysis of my weight distribution and posture usually presents better results with the next attempt.

Spiral: ummm....I can picture it in my head beautifully!! I need to get flexible. My leg is nowhere near where it needs to be. Balance is OK though.

BXO's: Not as scared anymore to try these. Easier going CW. Due to limited instruction, I want to wait until we go over this more in class before I teach myself the wrong technique.

OUCH! My Right skate is giving me grief!!! I am having consistent pain on the outer side of the ball of my foot, but only when skating. FYI: My right foot is pronated much more then the left. Any suggestions on how to help stop the pain??

Zombies, Tests, and Mohawks

Zombies: I worked three 12-hour night shifts in a row, with the last one being a horrid shift. I was a walking zombie and had not been skating since friday morning. :(

Tests: I passed my Adult 2 test today! Yay! I was a bit nervous at first, but then I felt pretty confident. My instructor said I will progress very quickly through the LTS program. I've already learned nearly half of Adult 3 content.

Mohawks: We had about 5 minutes left after the three of us students were done testing, so our instructor picked something off of the list of upcoming content - Mohawks! I had no idea what these were, but I have read about them on various figure skating sites. She taught us the basics and I LOVE mohawks. It made perfect sense, and I can do them well as long as I am along the barrier (hehe!). I'll practice on getting more confident with it this week. And all 3 students in class are going to be in Adult 3! It starts in two weeks, but of course I'm going to skate lots before then.

Skate classes

I've posted the adult skating class cirriculum in the sidebar, since it seems to differ from rink to rink. I wish adults could do the Basic level courses since they have more jumps and spins (I LOVE to spin!). There is also a link to where I got my info.

Not much skating this week due to night shifts, a job interview, and staff meeting. Oh, and Harry Potter 5 in IMAX 3D :)

For readers who have blogs, feel free to leave a comment with your link. I will add you to my links list. :)

Dodgeball: Daycare style

I went to the public skating session today at Steiner's to practice my backwards skating and forward pivot. There were a few other adult skaters on the ice, and then...dum da dum dum....came 20 very enegertic tykes on hockey skates, all under the age of 8. Yikes!!! They were skating and falling in every different direction and I almost tripped over a couple of them. I guess the rules of skating in a CCW direction around the perimeter did not apply. It was absolute chaos. LOL!!! Then things got scary because their advisors/chaperones/18-year olds in charge brought out two hockey pucks and were kicking them around across the rink with their skates!!! Now I had to make sure I didn't faceplant by tripping over a puck, and that I didn't severely lacerate a kid's head with my blades as i'm practicing leg extension on one-foot glides. It was short lived (I only put up with it for 20 minutes), and looking back, the chaos on the rink was just hillarious. Let's hope this was an isolated incident! Lesson learned from this: Always be aware of your surroundings when you skate!

Lesson today in Adult 2-3 was working more with the forward pivot and crossovers (CCW). I can now do three revolutions on a forward pivot, bring my leg in for a two-foot spin (wobbily!), and exit on a LBO edge, then skate forwards. It was glorious because I felt like I was putting more than one move together, and it was like a super-short program! yay! My instructor also told me to practice my spins a lot and that I'm already doing more advanced spinning. She encouraged me to keep it up and keep progressing. :)

Next week is our Adult 2 TEST. EEK!!! Just the word "test" raises my blood pressure. My instructor assured us that we've passed and that the test is more of a formality. She also pointed out that we have already completed part of Adult 3, so there are no problems with passing Adult 2. phew!

Oh! My edges are looking much better - thank you to all those who have helped me on and off the ice with this!

My Husband, the Coach

I went skating Friday night, and my husband came to watch, armed with the camera. I wanted to at least get some pictures of how I skate, since I can't see how my posture is, or exactly what my arms and hips are doing. I forgot that he is a jack of all tradea, and he was able to give me a lot of pointers about my skating.

First thing he noticed was that I lean forward and stick my bum out (see pic). I already have a larger lower body thanks to genetics and lack of exercise, and my posture wasn't doing anything to help it or my skating. No wonder I have lower back pain! He helped me stand straight, shoulders and hips aligned with my chin up. Then he had me skate that way. What a difference!!! It took me a minute to find my center of gravity, but my movements were more fluid and graceful. I will need to practice better posture off-ice as well if I am going to see any major improvements.

Another thing he noticed was that I don't lean into my turns. My upper body and lower body are trying to do two separate things. After having me practice leaning side to side while against the rink boards, he had me try it out on the ice. Putting all fears of falling aside, I finally felt my body leaning into the turn, and I was most definitely securing the outside edge (LFO). My right side is weaker and will take practice.

My FXO's also improved greatly with fixing my posture and leaning into my edges. Even CW are looking better than before.

We finally looked at my skates and realized I don't have them tight enough around the ankle, of course making it difficult to control the skate. My husband tightened them (way too tight!!!) but I got the idea that I need to support my ankle more.

Friday's skate was full of frustrating moments and EUREKA! moments. All in all, I learned a lot from my husband who has never dared put on a pair of figure skates. It was like a physics, kinesiology, and P.E. lesson all in one. He didn't need to know what a swizzle, spiral, or pivot was. So now I have a free coach for keeping an eye on my posture and presentation!

It's back to the ice on Monday for practice and group lessons. A bit of good news: My work schedule is allowing me to continue with group lessons! And I think I will ask about private lessons this week.

"do you teach lessons?"

I was at the public skate session yesterday and a couple of kids asked me if I taught lessons... I must either dress like some of the instructors, or my skating is better than I thought! LOL... (I was only working on forward stroking and RFO, LFO edges.)

I asked the kids if they had questions about something and explained that I am taking lessons. I helped them out on two foot glides and doing backward swizzles. It was fun, but it distracted me a little from working on by backwards edges.



I know I don't have a lot of readers yet, but if anyone has any suggestions about skating on RBO and LBO edges, it would be greatly appreciated! I think I've finally convinced my husband to take pictures of me at the rink, so I should have some pics up soon. I'm sure if I could see myself skate I could fix half of my problem moves.



What I worked on at the rink yesterday:

*FXO (forward cross-overs) are looking better. CCW seems very rhythmic and smooth, and I'm at least not falling going CW.
*I'm attempting BXO's and I'm actually getting somewhere...and with a lot of power. My whole body alignment is off though, especially shoulders. Maybe I'll just put this move on the bench for now until I have a formal class or lesson about it.
*Two foot spin: great fun, as long as I stay on the sweet spot of my skates. I get dizzy easily, and have only attempted the spin going CCW.
*Forward stroking - I've got this down! yay!
*RFO, LFO edges: Looking much better than a couple of weeks ago.

No class today, but plenty of practice time.

There's no class today due to the 4th of July coming up., so I just went to the rink for an hour to practice. My RBO edge is coming along nicely, but the LBO needs more work. In my last class, we learned a two-foot spin, which is SO much fun!! I'm working more one that, and since my RBO edge is working, I can now somewhat exit my spin. I am getting much more confident skating backwards, and backwards one foot glides are just about as easy as forward one foot glides. I seem to be getting into shape too - my husband commented on my figure the other day. :)

Skating is also encouraging me to eat better and take multi-vitamins. More fruits and veggies and less soda and candy.

I am considering taking private lessons, maybe once every two weeks to supplement my weekly classes. I feel that I need help with correct posture and arm position, as well as edges. I think edges are going to be something I can always improve on.

I am also considering joining the figure skating club at the rink. Not sure if this is something I should do now, or wait until I am close to testing. As of right now, I am still far far away from being able to test.

Lessons resume next week, and surprisingly, the rink is open on July 4. Maybe I'll take advantage of the holiday and skate when there are less people.

RBO...LBO...GRR!

Edges are so finicky!

I have been progessing nicely in the Adult 2-3 claass. I catch on quickly and practice at least two or three times a week. I had some troubles with crossovers (clockwise), but those are improving each day I skate. I'm even mastering a pivot and two-foot spin, although it is slow at best. Then we started working on backwards outside edges. yikes!!

A little history: I have pronated feet and my arches tend to collapse. My skates are off the rack (Jacksons...love them!), and I bought arch supports since I kept falling on my inside edges. The insoles help a little, but I still have a tendency to fall on the inside edge. this makes outside edges VERY difficult. bottom line: I probably need a blade alignment and no one in reasonable driving distance from the Salt Lake Valley does blade alignment! But that's for another day...

Anyways, I couldn't get on the outside edges! At best I could do a backwards one foot glide. and I felt that my body was completely out of aligment whenever attempting the outside edge. I was so frustrated in class!!! And there's not much time for one-on-one instruction. Well, I went to the rink yesterday and practiced for an hour, spending a considerable amount of time on those outside edges. Of course I fear falling, but I just happened to put my weight far enough to the outside, and I finally got it!!! BOTH right and left. Maybe it was just my fear of falling. it's still going to take a lot of practice and strength, but I know I can do it now!

Work is taking over this weekend, but I should be back on the ice on Monday.