Speed and flow - an update on my Adult Gold freestyle program
Coach B asked to see my Adult Gold freestyle program a few weeks ago. She hadn't seen it yet because we have been working on my program elements. Plus, Coach S was the one who choreographed my program so Coach B wanted to see how it was coming along.
The first thing she said to me after I finished was that she wanted to work on the speed and flow of my program. She said that I didn't have much speed because the connecting elements were slowing me down. Also, she said that I looked like I was walking on the ice rather than gracefully gliding.
Nothing like a good old smackdown.
Seriously though, I really appreciated the honest feedback, and Coach B and I started altering parts of the program so that it flowed better. We added a few more crossovers here and there so I could gain speed into jumps, and we also changed up some of the transitions so I didn't lose momentum.
After 30 minutes, my program felt so much better. I had more energy and skated quicker. At my next lesson, Coach B will work on altering my footwork and the end of the program. My footwork has to span the entire length of the ice, and what we both learned last weekend is that even though the footwork itself only takes up 3/4 of the ice, my flip-toe combination stretches it to the full sheet of ice (from goal line to goal line). In IJS rules, a jump sequence in the middle of a footwork sequence is permitted and legal. Whew.
I'm so thankful that we're making these changes now rather than after the competition. Coach B had been watching other Adult Gold skaters on icenetwork.com and said that the big difference between the ones who placed versus the ones that didn't was how the skaters executed their programs. Required elements aside, the ones who did well had good power and flow throughout the entire 2 minutes and 40 seconds of music. That is something I am striving towards, and I hope to get there soon.
I wasn't sure if there was anybody else who would be skating against me, but I found out that there are two other skaters, both of whom have competed at Adult Nationals and placed (one lady won 1st place in the Adult Gold Ladies 2 division, which would be my level). I need to remember that this is my first competition, so I am using it as a practice to see how I do. Even if I get last place, it is good experience, and then I will know what I need to work on for the next competition. It will also help me determine whether I want to test out of Adult Gold this fall.
One more week to go until the competition!
Coach B asked to see my Adult Gold freestyle program a few weeks ago. She hadn't seen it yet because we have been working on my program elements. Plus, Coach S was the one who choreographed my program so Coach B wanted to see how it was coming along.
The first thing she said to me after I finished was that she wanted to work on the speed and flow of my program. She said that I didn't have much speed because the connecting elements were slowing me down. Also, she said that I looked like I was walking on the ice rather than gracefully gliding.
Nothing like a good old smackdown.
Seriously though, I really appreciated the honest feedback, and Coach B and I started altering parts of the program so that it flowed better. We added a few more crossovers here and there so I could gain speed into jumps, and we also changed up some of the transitions so I didn't lose momentum.
After 30 minutes, my program felt so much better. I had more energy and skated quicker. At my next lesson, Coach B will work on altering my footwork and the end of the program. My footwork has to span the entire length of the ice, and what we both learned last weekend is that even though the footwork itself only takes up 3/4 of the ice, my flip-toe combination stretches it to the full sheet of ice (from goal line to goal line). In IJS rules, a jump sequence in the middle of a footwork sequence is permitted and legal. Whew.
I'm so thankful that we're making these changes now rather than after the competition. Coach B had been watching other Adult Gold skaters on icenetwork.com and said that the big difference between the ones who placed versus the ones that didn't was how the skaters executed their programs. Required elements aside, the ones who did well had good power and flow throughout the entire 2 minutes and 40 seconds of music. That is something I am striving towards, and I hope to get there soon.
I wasn't sure if there was anybody else who would be skating against me, but I found out that there are two other skaters, both of whom have competed at Adult Nationals and placed (one lady won 1st place in the Adult Gold Ladies 2 division, which would be my level). I need to remember that this is my first competition, so I am using it as a practice to see how I do. Even if I get last place, it is good experience, and then I will know what I need to work on for the next competition. It will also help me determine whether I want to test out of Adult Gold this fall.
One more week to go until the competition!
Coach B asked to see my Adult Gold freestyle program a few weeks ago. She hadn't seen it yet because we have been working on my program elements. Plus, Coach S was the one who choreographed my program so Coach B wanted to see how it was coming along.
The first thing she said to me after I finished was that she wanted to work on the speed and flow of my program. She said that I didn't have much speed because the connecting elements were slowing me down. Also, she said that I looked like I was walking on the ice rather than gracefully gliding.
Nothing like a good old smackdown.
Seriously though, I really appreciated the honest feedback, and Coach B and I started altering parts of the program so that it flowed better. We added a few more crossovers here and there so I could gain speed into jumps, and we also changed up some of the transitions so I didn't lose momentum.
After 30 minutes, my program felt so much better. I had more energy and skated quicker. At my next lesson, Coach B will work on altering my footwork and the end of the program. My footwork has to span the entire length of the ice, and what we both learned last weekend is that even though the footwork itself only takes up 3/4 of the ice, my flip-toe combination stretches it to the full sheet of ice (from goal line to goal line). In IJS rules, a jump sequence in the middle of a footwork sequence is permitted and legal. Whew.
I'm so thankful that we're making these changes now rather than after the competition. Coach B had been watching other Adult Gold skaters on icenetwork.com and said that the big difference between the ones who placed versus the ones that didn't was how the skaters executed their programs. Required elements aside, the ones who did well had good power and flow throughout the entire 2 minutes and 40 seconds of music. That is something I am striving towards, and I hope to get there soon.
I wasn't sure if there was anybody else who would be skating against me, but I found out that there are two other skaters, both of whom have competed at Adult Nationals and placed (one lady won 1st place in the Adult Gold Ladies 2 division, which would be my level). I need to remember that this is my first competition, so I am using it as a practice to see how I do. Even if I get last place, it is good experience, and then I will know what I need to work on for the next competition. It will also help me determine whether I want to test out of Adult Gold this fall.
One more week to go until the competition!
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