There is no single group of skaters more vulnerable to dislike than what I call Adult Onset Skaters. Please note that I don't endorse, or share, these opinions. Just giving you the low down on the haters. So what is it that annoys people so much?
Out of place
Girls Rule at ice rinks. Adults, especially at the lower levels, just look out of place, especially on freestyle sessions. In a universe largely populated by pre-adolescent girls and skinny superstars, standing out is the original sin. And there's this giant on our pretty ice. And it isn't only, or even mostly, the kids who resent us-- a lot of coaches are extremely resentful of adults on "their" ice. You'll find people don't resent you, and in fact don't notice you, if you learn how to fit in-- don't show up in a parka and snow pants; keep moving, follow the standard ice patterns, don't yell at people for "getting in your way" (they aren't).
Slow
Personally, I like slow ice. Find me ice full of skaters moving at a lumbering gait, and I'm a happy camper. Freestyle ice moves FAST. On a typical freestyle session, in fact, slow-moving (or worse, unmoving) skaters are a hazard. If you've got to skate on a fast session, learn the rules of the road. Don't hog one spot--move around the rink. KEEP MOVING! The worst thing you can do is stop in the middle of the ice. Understand the patterns (no circles of cross overs in the lutz corner), etc.
Skittish
We startle easily. A lot of adults freak if someone skates within a couple of body lengths, especially if they're going fast. But if you watch practice sessions, you'll notice that collisions are relatively rare (spectacular mishaps at the Olympics, Grand Prix and other elite competitions notwithstanding). This can be extremely annoying to other skaters, especially if you make a big deal out of it. If someone is outside the reach of your arm, they aren't close.
Distractible
I can't work if anyone else is on the ice. I'm worried about where they are, what they're doing, whether they are judging me. This makes me skittish, and slow.
Rude
Adults, unlike most kids, are not at the rink to meet people. We do, of course, meet people at the rink. But the kinds of adults you find working on skating (as opposed to recreating), are usually extremely focused and can come off as unfriendly or even rude. Mostly I think, though, they're just shell-shocked from all the hate and have retreated into their happy place and screw you anyway.
Clumsy
We aren't, actually. But it's one of the criticisms you hear from coaches about why they don't like to work with adults.
So what do you do with the haters? Well, happily, you're not a pre-adolescent girl anymore, so who cares what they think. Get out there and skate!
Showing posts with label figureskating_adults. Show all posts
Showing posts with label figureskating_adults. Show all posts
Dec 27, 2012
Nov 19, 2012
Organizing practice time
Everyone should follow the same basic plan to warming up: ten to fifteen minutes off-ice to bring your heart rate up and raise your core temp before you step on the ice (this is why they call it a warm up). Before skating you want just a light stretch. Don't over stretch cold muscles.
Once you're on the ice have an on-ice warm up pattern. This can be something your coach gives you, or your own plan. It can be as simple as stroking around for 2 or 4 laps, or it can be a combination of forward and backward skating and turning patterns. A great warm up pattern is the power moves from the last Moves test you passed (unless you haven't taken a Moves test. In which case, use the Pre-Bronze/ PrePreliminary test as a warm up). Don't worry too much about skating quality on the warm up.
A specific warm period is important for health and safety reasons, and to get your head in the game, as it were. You want to see who is on the ice, and if you're an adult, exactly what creaks and groans you're dealing with today.
Once this is complete, you're on to the actual "practice." So, how do you organize the actual practice?
Notebook
A lot of coaches insist that their students carry little notebooks around. These contain teaching tips, suggestions on what needs work, and sometimes very specific practice plans. I mostly observe these being used as an excuse to hang around on the boards.
Move through the moves
This is my own method. I do my warm up, and then skate through all the Adult moves starting with Pre-Bronze and finshing with those skills at Adult Silver that I can actually do. For someone like me, who isn't trying to acquire new skills, this is a great way to fill practice time without clock watching, while making sure that you cover a range of skills and keep moving. I don't jump, but you could also use this method with freeskating skills...
Easy to hard
...in other words easy to hard. From simple stroking through Senior power moves. Waltz jump through your highest jump. Scratch spin to combination spin. Et cetera.
Hard to easy
I encourage my students, on the other hand, to start with the hard stuff. For one thing, this gets it out of the way, so you're not spending the whole practice worrying about screwing up the axel again. You screwed it up early on, now you can move on. Also, if you do the hard skills while you're still fresh, you're less likely to do them poorly, not to mention being less susceptible to injury. The other advantage of starting with the hard stuff is that it allows you to finish your practice session on an upnote, with skills that you're good at.
Counting
5 laps stroking. 5 crossover circles. 10 of each jump. Etc. This is also a good method for clock watchers, or for people who are bad at organizing their practices, like little kids. This sort of thing is also conducive to the notebook. Make a list, and check it off as you complete each item.
MHR
This one is for competitors and adults. Work out a practice that keeps your heart rate in the cardio range for a specified period (generally 20 minutes, and usually defined as 60 to 70% of MHR or maximum heart rate for an adult doing exercise, and 70 to 85% for a competitor). Here's a calculator). This basically means a strong warm up period and then continual movement to keep it there.
Run-throughs
If you're a competitor, then you need to work run-throughs of your programs into some, though not necessarily all of your practices. Where in the sesseion the run-throughsgo, and the nature of those run-throughs, depends where you are in the competitive season. I'll talk about run-throughs in another post.
Once you're on the ice have an on-ice warm up pattern. This can be something your coach gives you, or your own plan. It can be as simple as stroking around for 2 or 4 laps, or it can be a combination of forward and backward skating and turning patterns. A great warm up pattern is the power moves from the last Moves test you passed (unless you haven't taken a Moves test. In which case, use the Pre-Bronze/ PrePreliminary test as a warm up). Don't worry too much about skating quality on the warm up.
A specific warm period is important for health and safety reasons, and to get your head in the game, as it were. You want to see who is on the ice, and if you're an adult, exactly what creaks and groans you're dealing with today.
Once this is complete, you're on to the actual "practice." So, how do you organize the actual practice?
Notebook
A lot of coaches insist that their students carry little notebooks around. These contain teaching tips, suggestions on what needs work, and sometimes very specific practice plans. I mostly observe these being used as an excuse to hang around on the boards.
Move through the moves
This is my own method. I do my warm up, and then skate through all the Adult moves starting with Pre-Bronze and finshing with those skills at Adult Silver that I can actually do. For someone like me, who isn't trying to acquire new skills, this is a great way to fill practice time without clock watching, while making sure that you cover a range of skills and keep moving. I don't jump, but you could also use this method with freeskating skills...
Easy to hard
...in other words easy to hard. From simple stroking through Senior power moves. Waltz jump through your highest jump. Scratch spin to combination spin. Et cetera.
Hard to easy
I encourage my students, on the other hand, to start with the hard stuff. For one thing, this gets it out of the way, so you're not spending the whole practice worrying about screwing up the axel again. You screwed it up early on, now you can move on. Also, if you do the hard skills while you're still fresh, you're less likely to do them poorly, not to mention being less susceptible to injury. The other advantage of starting with the hard stuff is that it allows you to finish your practice session on an upnote, with skills that you're good at.
Counting
5 laps stroking. 5 crossover circles. 10 of each jump. Etc. This is also a good method for clock watchers, or for people who are bad at organizing their practices, like little kids. This sort of thing is also conducive to the notebook. Make a list, and check it off as you complete each item.
MHR
This one is for competitors and adults. Work out a practice that keeps your heart rate in the cardio range for a specified period (generally 20 minutes, and usually defined as 60 to 70% of MHR or maximum heart rate for an adult doing exercise, and 70 to 85% for a competitor). Here's a calculator). This basically means a strong warm up period and then continual movement to keep it there.
Run-throughs
If you're a competitor, then you need to work run-throughs of your programs into some, though not necessarily all of your practices. Where in the sesseion the run-throughsgo, and the nature of those run-throughs, depends where you are in the competitive season. I'll talk about run-throughs in another post.
How do you (or your skater) organize your practice time?
Jun 27, 2012
Afraid to fall
Well, I could be snarky and tell you "get over it."
But in fact, it's perfectly rational. Falling hurts. And it's scary. Sadly, it's going to happen. You're tightrope walking on a slippery surface, after all.
In my experience, however, falling is scariest in the anticipation. Once you slip, it's in the hands of fate. What you need to do, then, is learn how to fall, and more importantly, how to overcome the fear.
The first, and most important thing, is to fall.
I teach this the same way at both ends of the age spectrum--toddlers and adults, who tend to be the most fearful of falling. Sit down, stand up. Sit down, stand up. Sit down, stand up. You get the idea. You want that ice surface to be your friend. If you're skating with a young child, have a race-- who can get down and then back up the fastest (always let the little guy win). Pretty soon, the kids will be throwing themselves to the ice and scrambling back up and having a blast at it.
Or not
Adults are really really afraid of falling. And they have good reason to be. Most of the injuries I've seen in non-competitive skaters are adults. They fall poorly, and it's a long way down. They come in with more physical deficits, even the healthy ones. So go with that. With most adults, I leave them in their comfort zone, or just barely over it. (The comfort zone of course is a moving target. Once they get comfortable somewhere, you push the bar ever so slightly.)
Except
If you're really not going to let yourself fall deliberately, you have to do everything else the coach says. My favorite skating mantra is that doing the scary, counter-intuitive thing (bend your knee, lean into the edge, turn your shoulders not your hips) makes you safer. If you fight the design parameters of the equipment you are more likely to fall.
Learn how to fall well
Tuck and roll. You want to hit the soft tissue, not the hard stuff. This means chin to chest, hands to tummy, curl your back, hip to the ice. It's better to fall in motion rather than from standing because a lot of the energy will go into the slide instead of your kneecap. Never ever catch yourself on your hand. Whatever position you are in, roll over when you hit the ice. You can practice this.
Do the scary thing
For adults this might mean crossovers. For kids, it's the jumping. The less you practice a skill, the more likely you are to fall when doing it. But don't attempt skills you're not trained for. If you're just learning a loop, you shouldn't be playing around with axels. If you're unsteady on a one-foot glide, what until it's solid before trying crossovers.
Safety equipment
All beginning adults should wear wrist guards. As regular readers of this blog know, I'm a big fan of head protection, in particular the Ice Halo®, basically a "stealth" helmet that just looks like a really attractive hat. Don't wear bulky kneepads--they make you stand funny and get in the way. A simple sleeve with a soft pad over the kneecap is plenty. If you're in hockey skates, especially beginners, you should have a hockey helmet.
Crying
Adults are allowed to cry (sort of). Children are not (sort of). As a coach, I need to know when a child is injured and when they're just scared. If I treat every fall like an ambulance-worthy injury, I'm helping to create the fear. If your child falls, observe her for a moment; she's probably watching you for cues-- "am I hurt?" I have a "no crying on the ice" rule-- you can't cry until you step off, then it's okay. If a student cries despite the no crying rule, I know they're hurt.
Adults need to suck it up. If you pretend you're hurt worse than you are in order to save face, I have to go with that. But you're just reinforcing your own fear if you do this. Accept the level of injury--if it's just to your pride, move on. By the end of the lesson, no one will even remember that you fell.
Try a different type of skating
Some people can't get past the fear. But that doesn't mean don't skate. It really just means don't jump. There's still hockey (nice, padded hockey), ice dance, figures, speed skating and moves. There's also just skating-- come to public and skate around. I am exasperated by people who take lessons and then refuse to learn things because they're scared. If you don't want to learn new things, don't waste everyone's time with lessons. Taking lessons implies a desire to learn new stuff. Just come and skate for fun.
I want to go to Nationals, but I'm afraid of falling
Yes, I have had people say this to me. It is a nonsense statement. If you're afraid of falling to the extent that you can't train, you have zero chance as a competitive skater. If you're a competitive skater, or even just going for the tests, You Will Fall. The vast majority of experienced skaters fall well. Training makes falling safer.
It's like anything. If you practice it a lot, you get good at it.
But in fact, it's perfectly rational. Falling hurts. And it's scary. Sadly, it's going to happen. You're tightrope walking on a slippery surface, after all.
In my experience, however, falling is scariest in the anticipation. Once you slip, it's in the hands of fate. What you need to do, then, is learn how to fall, and more importantly, how to overcome the fear.
The first, and most important thing, is to fall.
I teach this the same way at both ends of the age spectrum--toddlers and adults, who tend to be the most fearful of falling. Sit down, stand up. Sit down, stand up. Sit down, stand up. You get the idea. You want that ice surface to be your friend. If you're skating with a young child, have a race-- who can get down and then back up the fastest (always let the little guy win). Pretty soon, the kids will be throwing themselves to the ice and scrambling back up and having a blast at it.
Or not
Adults are really really afraid of falling. And they have good reason to be. Most of the injuries I've seen in non-competitive skaters are adults. They fall poorly, and it's a long way down. They come in with more physical deficits, even the healthy ones. So go with that. With most adults, I leave them in their comfort zone, or just barely over it. (The comfort zone of course is a moving target. Once they get comfortable somewhere, you push the bar ever so slightly.)
Except
If you're really not going to let yourself fall deliberately, you have to do everything else the coach says. My favorite skating mantra is that doing the scary, counter-intuitive thing (bend your knee, lean into the edge, turn your shoulders not your hips) makes you safer. If you fight the design parameters of the equipment you are more likely to fall.
Learn how to fall well
Tuck and roll. You want to hit the soft tissue, not the hard stuff. This means chin to chest, hands to tummy, curl your back, hip to the ice. It's better to fall in motion rather than from standing because a lot of the energy will go into the slide instead of your kneecap. Never ever catch yourself on your hand. Whatever position you are in, roll over when you hit the ice. You can practice this.
Do the scary thing
For adults this might mean crossovers. For kids, it's the jumping. The less you practice a skill, the more likely you are to fall when doing it. But don't attempt skills you're not trained for. If you're just learning a loop, you shouldn't be playing around with axels. If you're unsteady on a one-foot glide, what until it's solid before trying crossovers.
Safety equipment
All beginning adults should wear wrist guards. As regular readers of this blog know, I'm a big fan of head protection, in particular the Ice Halo®, basically a "stealth" helmet that just looks like a really attractive hat. Don't wear bulky kneepads--they make you stand funny and get in the way. A simple sleeve with a soft pad over the kneecap is plenty. If you're in hockey skates, especially beginners, you should have a hockey helmet.
Crying
Adults are allowed to cry (sort of). Children are not (sort of). As a coach, I need to know when a child is injured and when they're just scared. If I treat every fall like an ambulance-worthy injury, I'm helping to create the fear. If your child falls, observe her for a moment; she's probably watching you for cues-- "am I hurt?" I have a "no crying on the ice" rule-- you can't cry until you step off, then it's okay. If a student cries despite the no crying rule, I know they're hurt.
Adults need to suck it up. If you pretend you're hurt worse than you are in order to save face, I have to go with that. But you're just reinforcing your own fear if you do this. Accept the level of injury--if it's just to your pride, move on. By the end of the lesson, no one will even remember that you fell.
Try a different type of skating
Some people can't get past the fear. But that doesn't mean don't skate. It really just means don't jump. There's still hockey (nice, padded hockey), ice dance, figures, speed skating and moves. There's also just skating-- come to public and skate around. I am exasperated by people who take lessons and then refuse to learn things because they're scared. If you don't want to learn new things, don't waste everyone's time with lessons. Taking lessons implies a desire to learn new stuff. Just come and skate for fun.
I want to go to Nationals, but I'm afraid of falling
Yes, I have had people say this to me. It is a nonsense statement. If you're afraid of falling to the extent that you can't train, you have zero chance as a competitive skater. If you're a competitive skater, or even just going for the tests, You Will Fall. The vast majority of experienced skaters fall well. Training makes falling safer.
It's like anything. If you practice it a lot, you get good at it.
Apr 22, 2012
Adult-friendly rinks
Last week USFS Adult Nationals was held in Chicago, with hundreds of competitors on the ice. Adult Nationals (and other adult competitions) are wonderful, inclusive events with lots of opportunities for skaters at every level, minimal qualifying requirements, and a positive warm atmosphere.
I almost never hear negative stories about the big adult competitions. Whatever it is that ISI and USFS is doing for the adults, they are apparently getting it right.
A great experience at adult competition starts with a coach who understands adults. And where do you find them? In classes. Here are some of the things to looks for:
Community
For a lot of adult-onset athletes, the community and the friendships (or the shared misery) are almost as important as the skill. Look for a "Cheers" class- where everybody knows your name.
Schedule
A lot of rinks crowbar the adult classes into the ice times that no one else wants. Look for a rink with mid-evening, weekend morning (Saturday or Sunday), and Sunday evening classes, as well as the more typical weekday midday times, and you've got a winner.
Ice show
I was stunned to find out that not all ice shows include their adult skaters! And then I looked at the program and, yup, not very adult friendly. An ice show number for adults says "we care about this part of our program."
Experienced coaches
A lot of younger coaches hate teaching adults. I hear this again and again. They think it's weird to teach someone their mother's age. And you know what? It is. A program with experienced coaches teaching adults is a good sign.
Pacing
A great adult coach will let the skater set the pace more than for a kid. But only up to a point. Adults are notorious for stopping just shy of their comfort level. A good adults coach can push this limit back without triggering the fear response.
Privates
Are the same coaches who have adults in privates the ones teaching the adult classes? If so, you've found coaches who like teaching adults. If the adult class coach has no adult private students, that coach might as well hang a big red flag saying "I'm not good with adults."
A famous skater at a local rink actually killed a fairly robust adult program because the adult skaters hated the coach so much. They begged the skating director not to assign this coach. Director wouldn't listen, so they stopped taking the classes. End of program.
I almost never hear negative stories about the big adult competitions. Whatever it is that ISI and USFS is doing for the adults, they are apparently getting it right.
A great experience at adult competition starts with a coach who understands adults. And where do you find them? In classes. Here are some of the things to looks for:
Community
For a lot of adult-onset athletes, the community and the friendships (or the shared misery) are almost as important as the skill. Look for a "Cheers" class- where everybody knows your name.
Schedule
A lot of rinks crowbar the adult classes into the ice times that no one else wants. Look for a rink with mid-evening, weekend morning (Saturday or Sunday), and Sunday evening classes, as well as the more typical weekday midday times, and you've got a winner.
Ice show
I was stunned to find out that not all ice shows include their adult skaters! And then I looked at the program and, yup, not very adult friendly. An ice show number for adults says "we care about this part of our program."
Experienced coaches
A lot of younger coaches hate teaching adults. I hear this again and again. They think it's weird to teach someone their mother's age. And you know what? It is. A program with experienced coaches teaching adults is a good sign.
Pacing
A great adult coach will let the skater set the pace more than for a kid. But only up to a point. Adults are notorious for stopping just shy of their comfort level. A good adults coach can push this limit back without triggering the fear response.
Privates
Are the same coaches who have adults in privates the ones teaching the adult classes? If so, you've found coaches who like teaching adults. If the adult class coach has no adult private students, that coach might as well hang a big red flag saying "I'm not good with adults."
A famous skater at a local rink actually killed a fairly robust adult program because the adult skaters hated the coach so much. They begged the skating director not to assign this coach. Director wouldn't listen, so they stopped taking the classes. End of program.
What clued you in that you'd found a great adult coach, or someone who should NOT be teaching adults?
Mar 22, 2012
My name is Xan and I'm an adult skater
Some people have flying dreams.
I have skating dreams. In these dreams I sail across the ice with marvelous ease; I can do fast, competent turns and perfect flowing spirals. I skate without hesitation; in fact, they are flying dreams.
In reality, I pop mohawks. Yep. That skating phenomenon where your body says "nope!" and refuses to obey your wishes. My brain thinks it knows how to do perfectly lovely mohawks, and I have the test credentials to prove it. But there are days when my body simply refuses to understand the concept of "rotate, step, check."
My right hip is also extremely uncooperative. It knows better than to drop and point forwards. I've told it many many times. And yet it absolutely insists on staying in the "closed" position at the most awkward times. I really wonder who is in charge here.
It's hard to admit these things in public, especially because I can teach them perfectly beautifully--in fact when teaching, I execute perfectly beautifully, in lovely slow motion (I love slow motion). But put me in a skating situation and my lizard brain takes over and tells me that what I am asking it to do is unacceptable at best, impossible at worst, and dangerous in all situations.
But adult skaters, fear not. There is power in admitting your failure. For one thing, if you just avoid attempting certain moves out of embarrassment, you'll never learn them. Plus, the coaches I know who "get" adults find a lot of inspiration in working with us--they feel especially proud when a skittish adult skater finally masters something, and they feel proud when a talented one is really good, and they feel proud when a beginner dares to try!
I've come to terms with the things I'll never do, because I'll never try them, like axels. I know what I've already accomplished that I can't (or won't) do anymore, like the skills in the second figures test. I know the skater that I want to be now, and how far it's safe to push myself. I really know, in my heart of hearts, when it's me and when it's my beat-up old skates holding me back.
I haven't trained in almost four years. I've been on the ice a lot, teaching, but not actually skating. The first day back on the ice was a horrible let down, because I had lost a lot of skills while gaining a lot of years (and weight). But the really solid stuff came back, and the nerves diminished, and my mantra took over, with a caveat:
Oh, the caveat? "But only if I want to."
I have skating dreams. In these dreams I sail across the ice with marvelous ease; I can do fast, competent turns and perfect flowing spirals. I skate without hesitation; in fact, they are flying dreams.
In reality, I pop mohawks. Yep. That skating phenomenon where your body says "nope!" and refuses to obey your wishes. My brain thinks it knows how to do perfectly lovely mohawks, and I have the test credentials to prove it. But there are days when my body simply refuses to understand the concept of "rotate, step, check."
My right hip is also extremely uncooperative. It knows better than to drop and point forwards. I've told it many many times. And yet it absolutely insists on staying in the "closed" position at the most awkward times. I really wonder who is in charge here.
It's hard to admit these things in public, especially because I can teach them perfectly beautifully--in fact when teaching, I execute perfectly beautifully, in lovely slow motion (I love slow motion). But put me in a skating situation and my lizard brain takes over and tells me that what I am asking it to do is unacceptable at best, impossible at worst, and dangerous in all situations.
But adult skaters, fear not. There is power in admitting your failure. For one thing, if you just avoid attempting certain moves out of embarrassment, you'll never learn them. Plus, the coaches I know who "get" adults find a lot of inspiration in working with us--they feel especially proud when a skittish adult skater finally masters something, and they feel proud when a talented one is really good, and they feel proud when a beginner dares to try!
I've come to terms with the things I'll never do, because I'll never try them, like axels. I know what I've already accomplished that I can't (or won't) do anymore, like the skills in the second figures test. I know the skater that I want to be now, and how far it's safe to push myself. I really know, in my heart of hearts, when it's me and when it's my beat-up old skates holding me back.
I haven't trained in almost four years. I've been on the ice a lot, teaching, but not actually skating. The first day back on the ice was a horrible let down, because I had lost a lot of skills while gaining a lot of years (and weight). But the really solid stuff came back, and the nerves diminished, and my mantra took over, with a caveat:
"If someone can do it, it's possible, and if it's possible I can do it"
Oh, the caveat? "But only if I want to."
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