*What doesn't kill you....(as the saying goes)*

I can't believe it's been so long since I posted anything on here! Life's obviously been getting in the way. Naughty life!

Now, I started this particular post about two months ago, and all I managed to write was the title - only now I'm not sure what I was going for... But it's a true saying, nonetheless, so let's keep it and work around to it.

I came up with a theory today when talking to a friend who was a bit down in the dumps about her skating. I'm starting to believe there's such a thing as, let's call it, the improvers' dip. I'm sure someone has said a similar thing to me before and I wasn't quite sure it was the case, but now I am.
I'm not sure if the kids suffer it (probably not), but adult skaters definitely do.

It's when
you get on a downer because something you've been able to do before suddenly stops working. What I now think happens is this:
You've been doing something ok-ish for a while.
Your coach then wants to improve it because actually it's a bit rubbish by his/her standards.
They start telling you to do this with your arms, or point a toe there, or not lean forward so much, or put your shoulder back, etc etc.
You try to improve it by doing as they say and it just stops working altogether. You start chickening out of the jump/spin/whatever it is.
Cue super frustration because you could do it before, so WTH is going on???

I now think this is because you've become comfortable with it as it was and now that you're trying to change it, it starts to feel unfamiliar, and The Fear sets in.

So how do you combat it? I don't think you can. You just have to roll with it because you WILL come out the other side, and likelihood is that spin/jump/whatever will be better than it ever was. At least by being aware of what's probably happening, maybe we'll feel a bit less depressed. Let's see.

Looking back at the whinges in my last post, it seems some of the things I was struggling with are starting to progress a little bit, thank goodness. Spins are still rotten, but at least I manage to do it sometimes as opposed to the NEVER I was getting before. Still a massive wimp on jumps - but at least I've stopped (most of the time) chickening out altogether. It's just frustrating the hell out of my coach because I can't bring myself to just "go for it". Trying very hard to change that! And I can at least now practice those pesky backward crossrolls without someone's hand to hold - woohoo!

In further good news, I had my first full-height fall since breaking my wrist and came out intact. High fives for that! I have no idea what happened - I'm just glad it did - such a relief to know I CAN fall and not break bones (I was questioning whether that was the case). One minute I was practising backward Russian stroking (or whatever you call it in your neck of the woods), next I was sitting down and bouncing on my butt across the beautifully smooth ice. Perhaps because it WAS so smooth I didn't hurt myself at all. Though my backside did feel a bit bruised for a couple of days, haha!

Anyway - I'll leave you with this little beauty, which someone sent me the link to earlier tonight. If only, eh?? One day, folks.....;-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2VuosSk9zU