guitarist

I think some coaches are hesitant to adjust blades until they're sure it's an issue and that it's the last resort. Strength does play into it, as does technique. For example, I read on another forum that dropping your hip (free leg) can also pull you to the inside edge. If the skate techs aren't that knowledgeable, talk to a podiatrist or orthopedist, if you can find one who's worked with figure skaters. They might be able to do the insoles.

Yeah, @shanshani I'd recommend this, or talk to coaches, skate techs, and/or a podiatrist about insoles. I have issues with overpronation, especially on my right foot (easily noticeable because both on skates and sneakers, the tongue always shifts to one side after a few min of walking/skating). It got much better after a coach adjusted it! (Also, yuzuangel, if you're in the city, ask one of the coaches, Ken, to do it. And if you need your blades sharpened, he's your guy. Probably the best in the city)

Oh, Italy!!! Awesome. I've been wanting to go ever since I took Italian in college. Should be fun! I should probably start looking at hotels now, though...

Crazy to think that it'd be his second

So I got my blades sharpened for the first time in a while. I can hold my edges again! But... after weeks of frustration and a very puzzled coach, we figured out that I really do have pretty bad pronation issues with my right leg. So she asked one of the other coaches to realign my blade. Now I can hold the right outside edge so much better! But I'm still not used to it, something just feels off and a little bit scary. So I can barely do 3-turns It's for the best (because every time I bent my knee I got pulled to the inside edge), but for the next session or two I'll probably be a complete mess... It's amazing how tiny little things make such a big difference. We also figured out that my problem with clockwise back crossovers is that my left hip is too open, so when I'm crossing I'm opening it and it throws me off balance (and feels frightening). I still can't control it, but now that we figured out the problem I know I what to work on... My body is clearly not really meant for skating, but I guess slow progress is still progress...

This weekend my rink public skate was an hour longer. I totally overdid it. I always fail at the Salchow because it freaks me out, so I forced myself to do 20 in a row. Result: I ended up exhausted, and my left ankle was a bit swollen by the time I left. I need to learn moderation... On the plus side, I'm finally improving my outside spread eagle. My body is still not straight, but it's much better now, and at least my knees are straight. One of the coaches complimented it Ina Bauers are still a big Nope, though... @Murieleirum that's kinda scary! Are your boots rated for all singles?

I think Tsuboi gets it automatically? But the other one will be determined later. Guess it'll depend how they do at Nationals and how Koshiro does at JGPF. Knowing JSF though, it'll be hard for Sato to get it...

LOL I don't love GS, but I just read this comment on there: "Also, on the lighter side, if someone else withdraws, that means we can get Kirill in the Final and conclusively prove that he and Stephen are different people." They really do look alike...

I know how I did it. Vodka. Lots and lots of vodka.

Ugh, mine do that on occasion. Do you know the reason they do that? In my case what helps is to tighten the skates more (which unfortunately results in knee bend becoming harder ). But I still can't find a way to completely fix my issues with overpronation, so my outside edges are a mess half the time. The worst is when it happens during spin entries, my coach has pointed it out several times by now, but idk what to do about it

If I go it's usually 7-8, but I've only been going on Wednesdays lately (plus weekends). I'll be there tomorrow, if I manage to get up! Might need to leave early, since I have an 8:30 meeting at work

Yeah, it's so hard, outside requires so much turnout. When I do outside my body ends up looking like this: / \ And I can't fully straighten my knees... But I don't feel that bad about it, most of the kids who compete and train in the mornings still do the same thing and they've been at it for years! Now my edges... those I feel bad about

No, but I'll ask my coach to teach me on Sunday! Or well, she can try, I'll probably fail Outside is so much harder I still can't do a decent outside spread eagle, no matter how hard I try...

You were in Chelsea Piers today?! I was there from 6-8 today. I wonder if we saw each other without realizing. And nice!! I tried Ina Bauers way back, and sort of succeeded (not layback!) a few times, fell on my butt 3 times. Haven't tried since

It's really hard to raise kids bilingual, especially in countries where few people are fluent in the other language. Several of my coworkers are raising their children bilingual, and it is challenging because for the first few years it results in very weak language skills in either language compared to other children in the same age group. And often they'll lose the language by the time they're teens because they only speak it at home. But hopefully she'll be able to understand the new coach. She probably understands skating lingo, at the very least.

I did it little by little, but I got lucky because I already had a ridiculous amount of turnout. Even when I started my legs were fairly straight. Of course, this is a double-edged sword, since I have to work very hard to keep my feet from turning out at the wrong times... One of my friends at the rink is a guy with an even more ridiculous amount of turnout. He took a few ballet lessons and the instructor told him he had "just gave birth" hips

Thank you!

So I finally made an Instagram account. To celebrate, here's a crappy spread eagle because I suck at just about everything else

If the swelling is mostly gone and you're walking without pain you might be fine to skate by now, as long as you ease into it and don't do anything that puts too much stress on it. An orthopedist (and one of the coaches at the rink) told me that it's usually ok to skate before a sprain is completely healed because the boot is stiff enough to offer support. It's also good for the ankle to get exercise so it can regain strength and flexibility, otherwise it becomes stiff. I mean, I'd check with an orthopedist or physical therapist first, though, especially because you said you had a stress fracture or something like that iirc, right? But I feel your pain, soft tissue injuries are so annoying

Well, she thinks Brian's training program is quite good (one of her skaters did a summer there and improved a lot) and likes his training philosophy, so I think, the answer to your question, is an emphatic "No."

Oh, yeah, it's so much fun! I can't go very low, but it's still one of my favorite things to do.

Ah, my mom is so glad I took up figure skating. My posture had always been awful until I started skating. I don't see my parents very often, since I live in another country, but last time I saw her she said, after seeing my posture: "I should get your coach flowers!"

Ah, on the subject of recording oneself, I recorded myself for the first time in a while yesterday. It's so depressing. My waltz jump is tiny, and my crossovers are so slow. But one good thing is that my posture and form are pretty decent. Yay for my ex-ballerina coach and her obsession with posture. I'm also learning the Salchow. But jumps freak me out so much. I understand the technique, and I knooooooow I can do it, but every time I freak myself out and can't get my feet off the ground. I tend to find a lot of stuff scary. It took me a while to get used to leaning to the side on outside edges, so for a while my outside edge looked like this: | My coach keeps telling me: "Why are you so scared? Spread eagles are much harder, and you can do those just fine." But my brain keeps freaking me out... This sport is just as mental as it is physical...

Resist the temptation! Embarrassing story about how I sprained my ankle a couple of months ago... I was watching LGC while going down the stairs holding a heavy backpack and my phone on one hand and a guitar on the other. Needless to say, it didn't end well and I learned my lesson. Damn that beautiful back counter 3A.

My actual reaction: