Axels...

[isakswings]

Dd's axel has not been consistant lately. I was actually worrying about going ahead with her skating pre-pre in September. I was thinking maybe we should try non-test and then pre-pre. Coach felt we should just take the plunge and go for it. Yesterday, axels were not great. Today...her over all skating was sooo much better! Coach started re-doing her program and had dd jump her axel. She jumped and landed it!!! She actually got a good bit of height with it too! YAY DD! After that, dd kept wanting to try her axels in program! She didn't land all of them, but she tried and she is feeling great about it!

Anyway, she moves to new skates next week(once her blades come in), so we'll see how she does after she breaks her skates in enough to jump in them. Oy! For today, we will enjoy the moment and dd's burst of confidence!

[Tennisany1]

.. For today, we will enjoy the moment and dd's burst of confidence!

I'm glad to hear things are now going well. I really think a huge part of jumping is about confidence. When kids think they can do it and they are feeling strong, they have a much better chance of success. If she does have a bad session with the axel and makes a comment about "losing it" you might want to rephrase that for her and say it is just a bad day. Everyone, even World Champions have bad days. The jump is not lost, it is still there. Confidence that her axel is still there, even when she is falling all over the place, will really help her keep the frame of mind she needs to land it.

[isakswings]

I'm glad to hear things are now going well. I really think a huge part of jumping is about confidence. When kids think they can do it and they are feeling strong, they have a much better chance of success. If she does have a bad session with the axel and makes a comment about "losing it" you might want to rephrase that for her and say it is just a bad day. Everyone, even World Champions have bad days. The jump is not lost, it is still there. Confidence that her axel is still there, even when she is falling all over the place, will really help her keep the frame of mind she needs to land it.

Thank you! She's feeling pretty good! She wants to go practice again today. :) WOO HOO!

[Tennisany1]

Thank you! She's feeling pretty good! She wants to go practice again today. :) WOO HOO!

That's great!!! It is so neat when they make a leap forward after all the months of hard work. My dd recently made a huge leap and she is so pumped about skating. She has always loved it and it amazes me how she keeps going even when she doesn't seem to be improving. I'm always pleased for her when the work pays off. She has now landed all the doubles up to Lutz! The Flip and the Lutz are definitely still in the "working on it" category (and to some extent the Toe although it is much closer to consistent) but she knows she can do it and that makes all the difference.

[isakswings]

That's great!!! It is so neat when they make a leap forward after all the months of hard work. My dd recently made a huge leap and she is so pumped about skating. She has always loved it and it amazes me how she keeps going even when she doesn't seem to be improving. I'm always pleased for her when the work pays off. She has now landed all the doubles up to Lutz! The Flip and the Lutz are definitely still in the "working on it" category (and to some extent the Toe although it is much closer to consistent) but she knows she can do it and that makes all the difference.

Good for her! I agree... they feel TONS better when they know they can do it! I hope dd's axel stays and isn't too hard for her to get when she is in her new boots and blades. :) She didn't get to skate today...I worked late and dh was at cub scout camp with my youngest son. :)

[Tennisany1]

Interestingly, my dd's jumps (including axel) actually improved with the new boots we bought earlier this year. We went up on level of stiffness and she loved them right from the start. It took a couple of weeks to do a sit spin, but she was landing axels on the second session. She says she feels much more secure and didn't realize how soft her old boots were.

You might want to mention to your dd that the new boots will give her more security when she is doing bigger jumps. Sometimes just the suggestion helps them get their mind in the right place.

[isakswings]

Interestingly, my dd's jumps (including axel) actually improved with the new boots we bought earlier this year. We went up on level of stiffness and she loved them right from the start. It took a couple of weeks to do a sit spin, but she was landing axels on the second session. She says she feels much more secure and didn't realize how soft her old boots were.

You might want to mention to your dd that the new boots will give her more security when she is doing bigger jumps. Sometimes just the suggestion helps them get their mind in the right place.

I keep hoping the new boots and blades will help. :) It certainly won't hurt her to practice her moves while she is breaking her skates in. I'm actually excited to see how she does in her new boots and blades. We bought her Professional blades this time... she has never had blades this nice. One of the other girls she skates with upgraded to Professional blades and she says she can tell the difference between the new and old blades. I hope my daughter feels the same way! :)