Summer Grease: Off-ice workouts July 7 - July 13, 2008

[singerskates]

Since it's summer, hot and the teens are out of school, let's have a little "Grease". It's got movement. It's got feeling.....

For our troubled off-ice areas of our work outs let's use the song "Hopelessly Devoted To You".

When things are working great in our work out let's brag about our "Summer Nights".

[singerskates]

Hopelessly Devoted To You: Because of riding my bike a little too much on Sunday with the heavy workout on Saturday, I was still sore in my abductors and couldn't do my abductor machine exercises today. I tried but they were too sore to budge any weight at all.

I also felt some pulling in my hamstrings after today's workout.

Summer Nights:
Was able to keep the weights up for all the weight machines except one (see Hopelessly Devoted To You). My leg press was increase up to 260 lbs. Before using any weight machines, I warmed up (ha, who am I kidding...I was already dripping wet with sweat before I moved a muscle in the gym, I was so hot.) with the EFX for 5 minutes and then another 7 minutes on the stationary bike. It took me forever to reach my cardio limit. Just when I thought I had reached it, it would slip a bit and then I'd have to push harder again. My friend and I then stretched for a while before going into the pool. I worked out my arms more with water weights including simulated pulling in and out as done in jumps while on my knees to keep my shoulders mostly in the water. Then I did all kinds of stroking in the water using only my arms (trying to gain strength in my arms to fix my jump landings and take-offs). Raced a few laps against others in the pool and won. The I did in-water-jumps waltz jump through to half Axel. I actually intended to do only a waltz jump when I did the half Axel but then thought, why not keep doing them. I took off for the waltz jump but landed fully forward after 1 rotation and then I did a few more and got a bit more than one rotation. Who knows? Maybe I'll get my Axel in the pool first. I then did my toe loops. They sprang straight up and around quickly. The bottem of the pool was quite slippery so I had to be spot on not to lean on take-off, in the air or on the landing. I did slip a few times on take-offs and twice on the landings. What a cool refreshing fall! Then I did loops. They were much more controlled today. I then did my combo's not including the flip or Lutz until after doing them on their own first. Was able to do a Lutz/loop/loop/toe combo in the water more than once. Talk about control. I hope all this transfers to the ice on the 15 of July when I start back on the ice. Then I just floated around weight for my friend to finish her pool exercises before getting out to go.

[littlerain]

ooo i like what you've called it this week. =)
makes me want to watch grease!

unfortunately, no working out for me thus far (and i dunno if any can be expected!)... unless you count walking up and down the stairs at work all day long, or walking around nyc, or carrying groceries on my shoulders in my purse & a tote bag... lol

[singerskates]

Summer Nights:
Rode my bike 4.79 Km one way and then another 4.79 Km back home...

Hopelessly Devoted To You:
in 33 C very humind weather.

[karliey]

Hopelessly Devoted To You: I've been off-ice for a month waiting for the rinks to open (seasonal). I've been stretching maybe once a week, especially spirals and my spiral is usually passable.

Today I got my skates out and put them on, to soften them a little bit and try some catchfoots. Well, I tried the normal spiral position and my skates felt so heavy! After a month of spirals off ice with no boots my back had totally unadjusted.

So here is a lesson to you all, practice your spirals with your skates! Otherwise you won't be able to lift them anymore :mrgreen:

[momsk8er]

Thanks for this thread, even if I'm on ice for the summer, I still really need to keep myself going on the off ice.

Sunday and Monday did 30 minutes on the elliptical and a circuit of weight training. I need to go tonight, so I better stop posting on this board, get out of the office and get to the gym!!

[singerskates]

Summer Nights:
Tuesday, Rode my bike to and from the gym. Did all of my leg exercises with the machine weights. Did my arm exercises in the pool with pool weights in the water.

Hopelessly Devoted To You:
Tuesday, couldn't do ab machine because I've strain my upper ab muscles. They are healing and doing much better today but I'm going to wait until Saturday before I do them again.

Summer Nights:
Tuesday, ran through my off-ice in pool jumps. Waltz ok. Toe loop is popping up high and around fast with good landings. Sachow was at first hard to control with the resistance of the water but eventually did 4 or 5 of them OK, Flip was 95% on target. Lutz was there about 60% of the time being that I was slipping on the bottom of the pool on take-off when I missed them. Half Axel was either on with good height or a total miss because I either slipped on take-off or my brain did a waltz jump. Of the combos I tried there was only one that had the loop slip on the landing (refreshing!) and one time it was the toe loop that fell apart on the landing. Otherwise, not bad.

Anyone else practice their jumps in a shallow 3 or 4 foot pool?

I don't jump in the pool from out of it to do my jumps. I start my jumps from within the pool and compete them in the pool. The only time that most of me is out of the water is when I'd have air time if I were skating on ice.

The last time I got serious about doing off-ice in pool jumps, I was doing the half Axel on ice quite a bit and almost had my 2 Salchow clean. I think doing in pool off-ice jumps helps your legs to get strong from the jumping without over doing it because of the water buoyancy.

[singerskates]

Hopelessly Devoted To You:
Didn't ride my bike or go to work out at the gym today. Took the day off from off-ice training.

Summer Nights:
Ate out at a decent restaurant (not fast food) and stopped eating to take the leftovers home. But better than that, instead of going home in my hubby's car (1 mile and half from home), I walked home. It was hard on the asthma being that it was hot, humid and probably an air action day. But by the time I got home, I was feeling pretty good and glad the air conditioner was running inside of the house.

[momsk8er]

I am so jazzed that I've lost a few pounds, enough to make a pair of my smaller jeans fit again (note the word smaller, not small). Gotta keep going at this!!!

Took Friday and Saturday essentially off. Did a little walking both days. Today I ran almost a mile and then went to yoga for an hour. I so love that yoga class. I hadn't been in several weeks, as I had family responsibilities. So I thought I'd be out of shape and stiff. But no, I got through it fine, even the shoulder stand. It feels soooo good! Interesting that my achilles was what was the tightest. hamstrings not tight at all.

[Skate@Delaware]

Oooh! WTG momsk8r!!

I "officially" started off-ice last friday, and didn't do too bad (long story of "Why Terry is Training Herself"-not getting into that)...:evil:

---GREASED LIGHTNING!!!---
Anywho...I did:
negative pistols- squat, stick one leg out, then rise up, do again on different leg (yeah I wish I had different legs-stronger!!!)
Squats-no weights, proper technique
Lunges-proper procedure
Cariocas-both directions 20' 4x as a warmup, working on closeness of feet
Jump Rotations-1/4 turn 2-foot; 1/4 turn 1-foot (try these, you learn to "stick it")
ankle bounces-for those that still land flat-footed (besides me???)
Spiral stretches and holds-both legs 3x
Bielman-why do I bother? i have no flexibility....
Loop jump-managed to survive through 5 with the proper check-out, then got tired...

No workout over the weekend, will pick back up tomorrow (Monday) and do these twice/week. So, my routine is:

Monday/Friday: Plyo/footwork (see above
Tuesdays/Thursdays: trampoline-backspins, lateral jumps (no more than 5 minutes for now)

Plus, my regular workout (bodyweight routine) and intervals, and belly dance each are 3x weekly.

[singerskates]

Summer Nights:
Had a romantic 13 Mile bike ride with my hubby with the have way point being a romantic supper at the Keg over looking the Detroit River in downtown Windsor. We had Chicken Fajitas for dinner and then just sat in our comfortable chairs for another half hour before riding back home.