Went to skate again today after... more than 3 weeks. In fact, I've been pretty consistent in finding time to skate once every 3 weeks... Withdrawal symptoms are setting in!

In withdrawal
- flying camel has been hit the worst! can't fly, can't spin... oh well...
- double Sal and double toe are mostly rotated, but all 2-footed
- Axel didn't seem all that great either, though I did land a few combinations

On a roll - almost nothing today. but wait, ok, ok...
- I did land a few Axel-loop-toe loop combinations
- sit spin combination is still nice, even the backsit is feeling a bit lower
- I actually can change edge in my spiral sequence!

Thinking about reviving an old program, will see how that goes.

~ Chow

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Blog: http://chowskates.blogspot.com

Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/chowskates
~~~~~

On a Roll

I'm jumping again, Wheeeee!
Have to be very careful and not do too many in a session, but it's a start.

In Withdrawal

Of course my timing has gone on some jumps, but I know that will come back.
Why is it my spins didn't get a lot better when I could only do spins & dance?

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Katz

Saved by Synchro!
I was over it, now I'm into it again !

On a Roll: I got up and skated this morning for the first time in two weeks!!! It was my first time that I skated at the school rink (or went in it...), but the girls were all super nice and the coach agreed to look over my moves later today.

In Withdrawal: My spins kinda sucked. My camel came back towards the end, but any attemps at a catch-foot completely flopped. My pancake wasn't all that pretty either. I think I'm too high.

On a Roll: I ran through the program I used for my pre-juv test. I did all the elements, but it was kinda off... I completely forgot the beginning and I felt completely off the music. Oh well. I think I'm going to have someone help me re-choreo parts of it and re-do some of the elements. The layout will probably be the same, but maybe upgrade some of the elements. I also decided I'm buying a new dress!

In Withdrawal: The first comp is in October!!! YAY! But I have no time to get ready. I need to re-work my program in the next month and do tons of run-thrus. And I'm kinda working towards getting my juv moves passed in the next few months, getting music cut for my juv free, and testing that.

On a Roll: I landed a 2sal and an axel today!! WOOHOO!!! Considering how inconsistant my sal is, its a miracle.

On a roll - had a good practice with partner. We're having a fun time with the program - it's a different style for both of us, so we're enjoying playing with it. It's not quite finished yet, but hopefully soon!

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Recycle Love - Adopt a homeless pet

I'm mostly in withddrawal, since I have been largely off the ice since July. Skated twice last week and this morning. It's funny that no matter how much I think I've stayed in shape (hiking, kayaking, swimming etc.) skating just uses different muscles than most other activities.

On a roll - how come the first spin I did coming off that long break was perfect? It has been getting progressively worse since. My coach would probably say I'm trying too hard.

Great to have you back, Chow!

I must say when I saw this thread title, I thought someone must have been spying on me all week! I have skated a total of 45 minutes in the past 10 days, putting me squarely in the "In Withdrawal" category.
I have a lesson tomorrow at 6:30am, though, so I will have no choice but to drag my lazy butt to the rink. . .

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

Withdrawal: Didn't skate for 10 days prior to yesterday. Allergy symptoms plus new thyroid medication have left me depleted, itchy, runny, ugh!

On a roll: First synchro practice of the season last night. We got a new person for our adult team, yay! Former senior-level skater, double yay! Nice session on both skating basics and on synchro basics.
Practice today: Bronze fwd XOs getting better.

Withdrawal:
-Back XOs still not covering enough ice, but they're at least steadier, and I think I have the basic action down.
-3s are scrapey and I can't quite figure out how to get them less so.
-Back XOs to BO edges kind of wobbly.
-I can do all of a salchow except the actual jump. Figured I'd work on the prep, and I swear I just get stuck there, looking like an idiot, going round and round on my BI edge with the L leg and arm all out there and ready to come in and up . . .
-spin entries suck. I DO need a lengthy spin lesson this week!
-Car died on the way home from last night's synchro practice. Only $1300 to fix the blown gasket etc. . . new car won't be in for 4-6 weeks

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"Go wash an elephant if you wanna do something big." -Baby Gramps

Ouch! I KWYM, put over 5K into our two cars this summer.

Withdrawal:
Worked from 2:30 to 7:30 yesterday. While it feels good to be on the ice, and I do improve just from teaching, I went home with achy feet and hips, and woke up this morning with a very painful R hip. It hurt to stand and is still aching, though not so bad as first thing this morning. Going to start my prescription NSAID tonight and see if I can knock this thing out before my lesson on Friday. There are no public sessions at my rink M-W this week, and no freestyle till Wed afternoon, so I should be able to rest it a bit. Wish I could figure out if it's something I'm doing.

On a Roll:
Did spiral stretches at table today, and although the sideways stretches still hurt, the actual spiral position does not.

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On a roll - skated an hour and a half today, including power

withdrawal - tried to do the Swing to music and couldn't get on time the whole time - but the good news is there was not a two foot transistion the whole time. Unfortunately I fear I'm going to get good at this nit picky stuff and fail something very basic and crucial - like TIMING.

Pulled out my freestyle music and did my program. I need to work on waltz jumps with my coach again because I'm doing wonky things and it resulted in a hard fall on my knees

on a roll - inside 3 turns are improving...and I tried power pulls on the line and both forward and backward can sort of go across the rink on my left foot - right foot is weaker.

j

Do you count the beats for each stroke? That was how I managed when I was a roller dancer. Counted my way through every dance and can still count any I remember today. For example: 1,2 1 1,2,3 with 1 being the first beat of any stroke. The example could be a chasse in a waltz. Referring to the diagram can be a big help with this. Sorry if you know all of this already.

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In withdrawal:

Me... my home rink will probably not open 'til next week! Whatever the problem is with the pipes... it's serious.... Needless to say, the coaches are scrambling to find another place to teach and I'm scrambling to find a BART station where there's parking so I don't have to drive into the rink across the bay... b/c going thru there during rush hour is just AWFUL!!!

Meanwhile, I'm practicing as best I can... (And I swear I will NEVER EVER let myself not have my blades sharpened for more than 3-4 months!!! )

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

[On a Roll]
Finally on a somewhat regular schedule. However, skating at 6am is getting rough...at least I have been able to get to bed early.

[In Withdrawl]
I need to pay my ice bill tomorrow...

[On a Roll]
Went through my entire program today and only had to really think about a couple of parts

[In Withdrawl]
The footwork sequence is going to kill me...there is a part that is bracket/bracket/ballet jump/R outside swing roll/R inside twizzle and it is giving me fits...I just need to work on it...

[On a Roll]
I really like my new music and program....it fits me

[In Withdrawl]
darn axel....I think part of my problem is that I am not rotating quick enough, which means I am probably not getting enough snap...I am also not staying in long enough...grrrr...I just want to land this freaking jump...why can I not land it??????

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Skating Dreams

"All your life you are told the things you cannot do. All your life they will say you're not good enough or strong enough or talented enough; they will say you're the wrong height or the wrong weight or the wrong type to play this or be this or achieve this. THEY WILL TELL YOU NO, a thousand times no, until all the no's become meaningless. All your life they will tell you no, quite firmly and very quickly. AND YOU WILL TELL THEM YES." --Nike

Doesn't every dancer count?

But it's hard to stay on count...you start thinking about your posture, and your extension, and your edges, and keeping your arms in the right position and then you loose count.

j

In Withdrawal: I'm sure the older ones on this board will sympathise with me when I say that we had to skate without having showered this morning! Not good - I was just about warm and loose when it was time to go home! I think maybe next week, when the water will again be off, I will sit with my wheat bag in the small of my back! We shall see.

On A Roll: I think our hard and serious practice is paying off now; the coaches are back next week just in time to put a final polish on us before Oxford.

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Mrs Redboots
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I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

Every dancers counts, but I've never counted the way DBNY explained. Is that common in ice dance?
I've just started ice dance, but have done other forms of dance my entire life. I always counted each phrase? of the music 1-8, or 1-6. DBNY seems to count each step starting back on one. (Or maybe I misread her suggestion?)

But I agree- it's hard to keep counting when you think about everything else. At least for sycnhro, that's why I count "chasses, 2, 3, 4, look, 6, 7, 8" but so far for dance I'm so worried about the beat I can't add steps or thoughts into the counts yet.

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-Jessi
What I need is a montage...
Visit my skating journal or my Youtube videos (updated with 2 new videos Sept 26, 2009)

I teach my dancers to count 1, 2, 3, 4 (repeat starting at 1) or 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 (repeat starting at 1).

For instance, in a waltz dance that uses back progressives, I have my skaters count 1, 2, 3 on the first back progressive and 4, 5, 6 on the second back progressive. 1, 2, 3 would then begin the next counting and so on. For a tango, on the other hand, I'd have them count 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4...

Then again, to each their own!

Withdrawl! After a BUSY weekend, the night was cold, the dog was warm, and I was warm curled up under the covers. I DID NOT WANT TO GET UP! The alarm went at 4 a.m. (as usual) - I turned it off but still managed to be on the ice 15 minutes early.

On A Roll C.W. BXO's are still there (thank you Elizabeth Manley! ) - still working on C.C.W. BXO's. Still getting used to upright spins in "the new position" (also from Liz) - they feel super fast but I still have trouble holding them centred half the time.

Withdrawl! My right ankle and knee have been sore since last week and I am just not feeling strong/secure on the RBO edge. I PLAN to have a more restful evening and be more alive at the rink tomorrow for lesson with my regular coach.

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Dianne
(A.O.S.S.? Got it BAD! )

On A Roll: The Cast is OFF!!!!!! I have a really ugly knee-high black boot to wear instead but at least it comes off for sleeping and showering. I have some little flexing exericises to do before I start Physical Therapy in a couple weeks. Progress is being made.

In Withdrawal: the season has begun and for the first time in a couple decades, I'm not skating yet.

On a roll: Last night was the first class of a new session. I was happy to get back on the ice after 3 weeks off between sessions.

In Withdrawel: I caught my toe pick trying to stop and fell. As I've only been skating for a little over a month this was my first time falling and boy am I sore today.

On a roll: I did some backwards 1 foot glides.

Not too exciting compared to what many of you are accomplishing, but I am so happy to be learning something. I wish I could have started as a kid instead of 32.

I WISH I had stayed at it as a kid instead of quitting and coming back 36 years later!

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Dianne
(A.O.S.S.? Got it BAD! )

Withdrawal: Still a month until I can do axels, doubles and flying camels for the first time in almost 2 1/2 years, getting slightly ancy but...I have changed to hinged boots so I am rather skittish about more difficult jumps. We will see what happens in October.

On a roll: Slowly but surely strengthen is starting to return, spinning is getting much better and ice coverage seem to be heading in a good direction. Trying to put my ballet lessons to work while I skate, using my arms to help my line. Still contemplating the word...extension.

Chow...welcome back!!

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Who me? Couldn't be....
http://www.youtube.com/bouldersk8r

And I'm glad I started at 27 instead of never starting out of fear of being "weird"!

But when YOU get extension. . . world, watch out! Nobody can match it!

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"You don't have to put an age limit on your dreams." - Dara Torres, 41, after her 2nd medal at the 2008 Olympics

[In Withdrawl]
Freaking axels...I'm not kicking through enough I think and not getting enough snap...it's bad because I can pretty much analyze what is going wrong with my jumps myself...I still hate, Hate, HaTe, HATE axels...

[On a Roll]
I am in love with my new program...I just need to get it polished up...

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Skating Dreams

"All your life you are told the things you cannot do. All your life they will say you're not good enough or strong enough or talented enough; they will say you're the wrong height or the wrong weight or the wrong type to play this or be this or achieve this. THEY WILL TELL YOU NO, a thousand times no, until all the no's become meaningless. All your life they will tell you no, quite firmly and very quickly. AND YOU WILL TELL THEM YES." --Nike

Thanks doubletoe (aka Lauren) yeah if I get the 34" long legs and the 35" long arms in a single line and add the body...it could be good. Just need to learn how to get it all to work together.

If I had it all to do over again I would have not skated as a teen and started skating in my 20's and skipped the whole hip debacle.

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Who me? Couldn't be....
http://www.youtube.com/bouldersk8r

Is there a BART station within walking distance of the Oakland rink? I wouldn't want to be walking around too far in that neighborhood.

Kevin