Those weeks when you seem to go backwards

We all have those weeks, those bad skates.

But I don't think my tough Russian coach believes in such nonsense as "a bad skate". I distinctly remember saying to Coach A recently that I was "having a bad skate today" and was met with the simple, ever-so-serious response: "Why?"

It's a fair question when you think about it. Why? The ice is still ice, your boots and feet haven't been altered overnight, so it must all be in the head, right? So although it's definitely not as simple as "Well, don't have a bad skate then" (which was the next thing Coach A said to me, haha!) - it's surely worth a word with yourself about whether you can get your head out of that mindset.

Think I've needed a few of those words myself this past week.

So with that in mind, I'm sharing this video of my program practice from about a month ago. It's not great - pretty poor show, in fact, but even this is better than I've been coming anywhere close to this week, so I'm trying to remind myself of what I was capable of just a few weeks ago, and kick my own butt into gear ready for my next lesson!!

10 reasons you should take up figure skating

People often think of figure skating or ice skating either as a fun activity for children/teens or as something there's no point in taking up seriously if you didn't begin aged five.

Here are 10 reasons to take up skating as an adult - share this with your non-skating friends and encourage them to try something new!

1) Fun

If nothing else, skating is fun. Huge bags of fun.

And the better you get at skating, the more fun you can have with it.

Say no more.

2) Friendships

As an adult, it can become very difficult to make new friends, and many of us have found ourselves in a situation where friends have moved away, got married, lost touch etc. 

Taking up a new activity is a great way to make new, lasting friendships with great people. It also means you can start skating alone, because you'll quickly find skating buddies to keep you company on the rink.

3) Health and Fitness

Trust me, when you start to love your new sport, nothing will stand in your way to get fit and eat more healthily, and you'll look and feel great for it.

Not even chocolate tempts me, most of the time ;-)

Additionally, scientists say regular exercise makes immune cells more active and ready to fight off  infection. People who regularly exercise take fewer sick days than couch potatoes.

If you can, why aren't you?

The title of this one says it all, really. This is the question I've been forced to ask myself, and I'd encourage every other adult skater to figure out if they need to be asking themselves the same.

I don't know about you, but I think a great coach is one who not only teaches you the physical elements of skating (or any other sport), but also motivates you and/or gives you a metaphorical kick up the bum when needed (on a regular basis, in my case!).

Who knew? Your coach was right all along...

It seems like forever since I posted anything here! It's been mainly because I've been on a minimal skating regimen for the last couple of months so I feel like I haven't even done any skating to write about really.

I put myself on a skating "time budget" before Christmas because I had two injuries that just refused to heal - neither caused directly by skating, but continuing to skate was probably the reason they persisted as long as they did.

So I decided that, as the rink would be busy out of term time anyway, it would be a good time to cut down skating to literally my half-hour lesson once a week plus one other short practice session (usually an hour), and I banned anything that really pulled on the muscles, spirals, for example.

The hip flexor injury's not bugging me anymore, but four months down the line I'm still suffering with a strained adductor..however, it's feeling like it's on the mend finally after the rest(ish) period, so, although I'm not overdoing it, I have gone back to "proper" skating this week.


I've been making sure I warm up properly before every skate (I was often guilty of getting straight onto the ice before) - running to get my heart going then stretching before I even get my skates on, and I think I've discovered an interesting side effect of the warm up: I skate better.

It's a strange little phenomenon, because as I'm running, and getting out of breath, and my legs are starting to ache, I'm always thinking "This is a terrible idea. I'm going to be too knackered to skate!"

But then every time, I've found that by getting on the ice physically warm, not shivering, and already with loosened-up joints, I instantly feel much more energised, and therefore seem to skate a little bit faster, bend my knees more and "bounce" a bit easier (I'm usually so stiff-legged).

Who knew? What our coaches are telling us is actually right - you really do seem to fare better if you warm up before skating. Haha!

*A year in pictures - 2014 edition*

Not one to break tradition, here's my skating year in pictures for 2014 - hope you enjoy!

I'd love to see some of your favourite pictures from your skating year so please do share them in the comments or on Facebook.

I actually haven't taken many skating photos this year (maybe partly because I've had a lot of time off the ice due to injuries). Must fix this in 2015!

At the end of March, I got a fantastic opportunity (through the work I do) to go to the Dancing On Ice live tour's opening night and also the after party. I took along a friend and we had a great time. I have so many pictures from the night but here are a few of my favourites: