As most of you know, I've recently returned to the ice after 2.5 years of major knee surgeries. I'm only allowed 30 minutes, twice a week, with no jumping or spinning. I violated the NO SPINNING rule today.

Anyway, just thought I'd jot down some things that I'd forgotten while off the ice. Others in the same situation are welcome to add to the list as you REdiscover skating ...

1. You get dizzy when you first start spinning! I tried 2 scratch spins and a sit spin this morning. I was fine during each spin, but thought I would hurl immediately afterwards.

2. Skates hurt your feet! Even though my skates are custom Klingbeils, my feet had gotten used to being free -- to having all the room to spread out that they want. They are cranky that they have to get squeeeeeeezed back into those hard skates.

3. The old alignment problems don't miraculously go away while you're off the ice. I had trouble with RO edges before the surgery, and guess what? I have trouble with them now.

4. You can forget things you spend hours and hours and HOURS on. At the time I was testing MITF, I thought I'd never forget those blasted patterns. Apparently I was wrong. I thought that starting back at pre-pre and working back up through where I'd tested would be a good way to relearn. I now have to drag the rulebook out to the ice with me just to remember what they are.

5. Skating will consume all your disposable income. 'Nough said.

Other thoughts?

I can remember me trying to spin the other direction when I started, so that I would "unwind". And, I still get dizzy sometimes

Here's some other things you'll have to "remember":
No matter what other activities, exercise, sports that you do, it's not the same muscles that you use in figure skating. The insides of the thighs especially.

You'll have to build back up the calluses on your fingers from lacing. I guess that depends if you use nylon or cotton, but I still seem to have them with the cotton/nylon blend laces.

You'll have to remember to put your name on everything and anything you take with you to the rink. There's nothing worse than having your forgotten stuff put in the Lost and Found bin with all the hockey stuff. If you have your name in it, someone will keep it for you.

Great to have you back on the ice!!!!!!!

Rob

__________________
Geriatric Figure Skating Crew - President for Life!
Georgia Figure Skating Club - President (again)
Facebook
____________________________________________
"I'm too old to die young, and too smart to be happy" - Kinky Friedman, The Mile High Club

2010 Adult Nationals - earning a gold - "Priceless"
2009 Adult Nationals - competing with a cold is not much fun.
2008 Adult Nationals - Too little sleep, too much vodka!

Or YEARS and YEARS! I skated from age 14 to 19 and was then away until age 56 ..... retention? ZERO! Started all over again as a non-skater.

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

I have a lot of the same problems I did before the 2 hip surgeries, what I forgot is that I am still spatialy dyslexic, and also I have issues with being aware of where my limbs are in space. I have a great deal of trouble telling when my leg is straight or slightly bent, no ideas where my arms are or how high they are, at no time can I tell you what edge I am on. I must mentally run through my dances and moves and make my mind think of where I should be and which edges. This is the reason skating has always been so difficult for me, I take forever to learn new dances and new moves once I have them I'm okay it is very hard for me in the beginning.

I have noticed if I relax going into my spins, especially my camel my body knows what to do, today I did my first camel back camel and I was truly surprised I could do it. I also managed the novice spiral sequence, even though a moth fluttering across the ice out paced me.

I wonder what it will be like to jump in...oh...8 months.

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

I'm back after a 12 year break and although my brain remembers how things should be done, my body seems to have amnesia. I know it'll all come back. At least, I hope it will.

You have to remember to take off your guards before stepping onto the ice . Your knees are never as low as you think they are.

__________________

second one is SO true. i always think i have my knees super bent. that is, until my coach informs me that i am trying to do a double flip off a straight leg. oops.

__________________
Youtube Videos

When I came back after 9 or 10 years off I felt like my upper body and lower body were two different, disconnected entities. That was no fun at all...

__________________
Revised Official 2010 Goals checklist
Skate __
New boots __
(lowering the bar for 2010 as I haven't skated in a year)

Skaternum, it's great to have you back!
Clearly, there's one thing you didn't forget: Once an ice addict, always an ice addict!

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

It will!! I had that problem at first too...I KNEW how to do things, but doing them was another issue

Oh, yeah. I skated (not particularly well, mind you, but I did have a few jumps and some good spins) when I was in college, back during the Carter and Reagan administrations. Then I was away from it for years. What did I retain? Zip, nada, diddly squat. Back to uber beginner. Infuriating.

So very true! I was just ... um ... noticing that I *have* innter thighs again.

Oh, man! I totally forgot about this. Looking forward to the bleeding pinkies again.

Haha!. This reminds me of something totally stupid I did last week. I'm just not in the habit of getting my skatebag packed & in the car anymore. When I got to the rink, I realized I'd put my laptop bag in my trunk. Had to go all the way home and get the skates. I felt so stupid.

Thanks. It's really great to be back.

Welcome back, Skaternum! I've missed you. I hope that one thing you haven't forgotten is all the friends skating has brought you from around the world!

I find, with spins, I get dizzy at first and the adjust. But every time Husband and I try out a new spin, I get dizzy again.

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

I've now logged a total of 13 hours on the ice, after the 2.5 year absence. You guys were dead on about some of the things I'm relearning. My "lacing callouses" are starting to come back. LOL.

Not surprisingly, the elements that always came easy have come back pretty easily. I've always been more of a jumper, and they're coming along nicely -- even with restrictions on the number of jumps I can do per session. I landed a couple of clean lutzes yesterday, along with some big ol' flips. However, I cannot spin my way out of a wet paper bag now! I've never been much of a spinner and always had to work extra hard on spinning. Now I can't find the sweet spot on the blade to center most of my spins. I get dizzy when I exit (although that's getting better). And I actually fell on my first camel attempt. Bah! Unlike coskater64, I do NOT find that my body knows what to do going into a camel spin if I just relax. When a hard fought skill goes, it REALLY goes.

Still, I wouldn't trade this crappy skating for anything!! I actually look forward to getting up at 5:30.

With everything going on in my life right now (work, school, boyfriend in hospital for three weeks) my skating has temporarily taken a back seat. I got on last week for the first time in nearly a month, and boy did I pay for it the next day. It wasn't my inner thighs, it was my butt! It hurt everytime I took a step. Made for a long day at work the next day!

Hey, SkaterNum, I was wondering the other day if you were back on the ice yet.

Welcome back, 'num. How long before we see you and David doing pairs again???!!! (He's still skating, right?)

__________________
Doubt whom you will, but never yourself.
"Do what you love, and you'll never have to work a day in your life."
-Haha, I've *arrived*! I am listed as a reference on Wikipedia.

skaternum: BOY do we miss you being on the ice!!! WELCOME BACK!!!

Geez, I was gone for 17 years before coming back about (almost) 9 years ago! Back when I was a kid (around 9-12) I had a decent one foot spin, a nice waltz jump, a nice spiral, crossovers (both directions, both forward and backwards), and a killer shoot the duck.

What do I forget when I first came back? ALMOST EVERYTHING!!! I got back my crossovers on the first day. I think I got my spins and waltz jump about 2-3 months after I started skating though. Spirals? I think it took years to get it to hip level. Shoot the duck? Still working on them, though I now have hips and butts to deal with! I also had to remember those ill fitting rental boots too and how after the session I would LIMP (as opposed to "WALK") out of the rink too.

OTOH, I used to have to start a spin from a standstill as a kid. Now I have SPIN ENTRIES!!! (So needless to say, I'm a MUCH BETTER SKATER as an adult than as a kid!)

__________________
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!!!

I was told if you turn your head to the side of which direction you're spinning it will help with the dizzyness

SHEEE'SSSSS BAAAAKKKK!!!

Welcome back to the ice, skaternum!!!

__________________
Adult Nationals, 2009 "The Time of My Life"

{{{HUG}}}

Thank gawd! I felt like the ONLY one who started all over. So many are away for 10 years, start in their 30's, and they are doing doubles the first year!

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

Welcome back Skaternum!
I realized who you are when I read Starskate's post about your memorable "Crazy For You" program (I'm still impressed by all those elements you pulled off in the straightjacket). I hope your knees recover quickly and that we see you in competition next year!

Ah, I feeeel your pain ! I too am more of a natural jumper than spinner. If it's any consolation, my spins go back to beginner status after missing one week, sometimes even 1 session. After my 2 week break due to concussion, I am resigned to starting them again.

__________________
Karen

I skate - therefore I am

Yep, that was me. (Although it was actually Patsy Cline's "Crazy" that I used for music.) Thanks for the good thoughts!!

Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't think that will help much. I think it's just that my optic muscles need to shape up, much the same as the rest of my muscles need to shape up. The optic muscles just have to relearn how to quickly refocus after I stop spinning. I think it's worse this time because I can spin faster now (even on the crappy spins) than I did when I was first learning to spin. When I first learned, I was spinning very slowly and gradually increased my spin speed. My optic muscles and nerves sort of learned spinning right along with the rest of my body. Now, they're woefully behind. It's like I'm asking them to start benchpressing 250 pounds. Hehe.

Great to hear an update. And, great to hear that things are coming back.

I'm a pretty good spinner (for an old, fat guy), but camels are still difficult for me. Having a left knee that is acting up isn't helping though.

My newest checklist as I go into the camel spin, is "left arm in front, bend the ankle". I find that if I leave either out, it just doesn't go. The "bend the ankle" forces the bend in the knee. However, the knee should stay over the foot - don't let the hips go back. Bobbe Shire always talks about enough knee bend on the entrance of the camel spin to be able to hold a mitten at the hip between the top of the leg and your waist.

Rob

__________________
Geriatric Figure Skating Crew - President for Life!
Georgia Figure Skating Club - President (again)
Facebook
____________________________________________
"I'm too old to die young, and too smart to be happy" - Kinky Friedman, The Mile High Club

2010 Adult Nationals - earning a gold - "Priceless"
2009 Adult Nationals - competing with a cold is not much fun.
2008 Adult Nationals - Too little sleep, too much vodka!