50 Years Old. Artistic Program. Adult Figure Skater. Song: “Both Sides Now“

Starting as an adult doesn’t have to limit you. Do whatever it takes to feel great out there. Compete, perform, feel it with all of your movement. So what if you didn’t skate as a child. Go ahead and create experiences for yourself and the audience to enjoy. I started around age 30 and have only worked with coaches for about 4 years total. Just started competing at age 49, so it’s not too late. So if you are older and love skating, get out there and train smart and love every moment! Be safe and Skate Happy! My advice (what works for me anyway): 1. Stay hydrated! Injuries pop up immediately when I don’t follow this. 2. Listen to your body immediately & every time! The instant you feel an increase in or onset of pain, PAUSE (yes, I actually do mean EVERY time). Immediately do slow careful movements / gentle stretching if you can. Try again but only do things that don’t hurt that day. If you can only skate forward and backward, do that. If you are in a class, tell them what you can /can’t do. Rest and try again tomorrow. Seriously... don’t do what makes you hurt. Find the cause and solve it. 3. Condition smart... Alternate what you practice so it’s not too repetitive/ not over taxing the same muscle groups (ie., don’t repeat the same movement over and over and over and over like everyone else around you. Do a little of this, then a little of that.) 4. Slowly push the most simple moves to their limit (example: how far can you lean, squat, raise, or extend without hurting? This should get better over time, not overnight) 5. Prioritize developing coordination, flexibility, balance, posture, strength, and free flowing movement over getting obsessed with jump/spin practice, especially before your body is ready. This can mean the difference between skating for a couple years / having to take a lot of time off vs skating steadily for a lifetime. 6. Always warm up and make warm ups enjoyable so you do them. Create a routine to favorite songs and move to the music. 7. Stretch religiously! And always stretch warm, focusing on each muscle group. It shouldn’t hurt and shouldn’t be held for too long. 8. Get really REALLY good at turns, speed, and flow because you need that to be good at jumps and spins. 9. Do squats / other off ice training. I’ve been biking / doing karate for several years which has helped so much w/ knee issues & skating generally. Search up “karate horse stance“... I swear it’s the secret to knee longevity, just don’t go overboard with it. Biking really helps the knee (usually) for most people too. 10. Eat well... (I don’t, but it’s good advice) Why all this??? Without flexibility, strength, and slow, steady conditioning, your body will break down alarmingly fast under the stress. You don’t want to do irreparable harm to your body or do anything that keeps you AWAY from skating. My “practice“ routine (after learning the hard way): Warm up with music Stretch (often dynamic on ice movement to music) Specific skills practice (5 to 15 minutes of focused repetitive practice, w/alternating skills) General practice to music (up to 30 min. Many connecting moves w/ occasional jumps/ spins) Specific skills practice (5- 15 min of reps & alternating what to work on. Ex. 5 min jumps / 5 - min spins, or spins one day / jumps another day, etc.) General practice again to music (up to 30 min w/ occasional jumps /spins in there) Specific Practice again (5 to 15 minutes General Practice again (I take some breaks in there of course and not every day looks the same) Stretch off ice (extensive and all muscle groups)