Join Signe Ronka, founder of FLEXAFIT, as she walks you through proven techniques to help you conquer this challenging jump. With expert guidance and actionable tips, you'll learn how to fine-tune your approach and achieve more reliable landings.

What You'll Learn:

- Alignment: How to optimize ...

Level: Foundation
Jump: Axel
Jump phases: Entry and take-off
Equipment: Resistance band
Rotational direction demonstrated: counterclockwise
Body alignment focus: Shoulder position, arm position.
Common mistakes used for: Swingy axel, lack of control on entry edge, chicken arms, timing of arms and...

Purpose: This video introduces what some common errors are when skaters are working on axels, and introduces exercises that help fix these common mistakes.

Focus: Axel troubleshooting, swingy axel, axel control, axel take-off, axel follow-through, axel transfer.

Purpose: 0:14 Introduction + defining swinging
1:09 Axel entrance edge explanation and exercise
1:20 Skating side lead
1:40 Why practicing stability and alignment during take-off is necessary
2:41 Common mistakes stepping into axel edge
3:30 Exercise for keeping a narrow follow-through
4:40 Follo...

Level: Advanced
Base exercise: Double axel entry to take-off walkthrough
Variation: Stationary, finishes with follow through into air position
Purpose: Doing this drill from standstill allows students to work specifically on the direction of their head, arms, and free leg on the take-off of th...

Purpose: This drill helps skaters build strength and power in their free leg during the drive up into h position of the axel follow-through

Focus: Axel follow-through, h position, free leg strength

Purpose: This drill helps skaters control their free arm on the axel take-off so that their shoulders do not release too soon before the follow-through.

Focus: Axel take-off, axel follow-through, upper body position, upper body check position, free side shoulder strength

Purpose: This drill helps skaters maintain awareness and pressure over their skating side throughout phases of the axel.

Focus: Axel take-off, axel, follow-through, axel transfer, axis and alignment, body awareness

Purpose: This drill helps skaters work on the pull back and muscle engagement of their free leg in the axel take-off
Focus: Axel take-off, glutes, hip flexors, external rotation, free hip lifted, knee turnout, free leg pathway

Purpose: This drill helps skaters build vertical height on their take-off leg of the axel without using the free side to create the vertical explosion. Skaters also need to maintain good alignment and pressure over their take-off side on the second half of the drill

Focus: Axel entry, axel take-...

Purpose: This drill helps skaters build awareness of their skating/leading side on the axel take-off. The weight helps them maintain pressure on the take-off leg instead of swinging the free side to create the jump

Focus: Skating side, skating side arm position, vertical height, axel take-off, a...

Purpose: This drill helps skaters work on the awareness and stability of their skating side shoulder and arm position of the axel take-off

Focus: Axel take-off, upper body position, skating side arm, skating side check, shoulder abduction

Purpose: This drill helps skaters work on the axel take-off to follow-through position with vertical and horizontal projection. Skaters should focus on generating power through their take-off leg, as well as keeping their free side checked behind. If the skater feels too swingy or they can't do t...

Level: Advanced
Base exercise: Axel entry to same leg 1/2 turn lockdown
Variation: Starts on a circle, outside twizzles in lockdown position after the outside edge
Purpose: This drill helps skaters work on maintaining pressure on an outside over their take off side. It also helps condition th...

Level: Advanced
Base exercise: Axel take off to 1/2 lockdown same leg
Variation: On a straight line, back outside three turn after landing to turn forward, check, and repeat the drill
Purpose: This drill really works on the control of the axel take off side throughout all phases of the jump. By...

Level: Advanced
Exercise style: Axel
Key exercises: Walley entrance
Purpose: If skaters are able to do high quality walleys, doing a walley into an axel entrance can help skaters gain more flow off the back outside edge entrance into the step forward
Focus: Entrance, variation, difficult entrance...

Purpose: This video helps break down three technical aspects for the double axel to help skaters get into rotation more quickly. And then Signe addresses three common errors that happen on the double axel and gives some tips for exercises that can help fix them.

Focus: Axel troubleshooting, qui...

Level: Advanced
Base exercise: Axel entry to lockdown walkthrough
Variation: Axel entry into lockdown while in a forward upright spin
Purpose: This drill really focuses on helping skaters feel and improve their outside edge take-off of an axel. The skater needs to be able to push into a strong...

Purpose: Signe breaks down common mistakes on the double axel and demonstrates on-ice drills that can help with those common mistakes in this masterclass.

Focus: Double axel errors, double axel troubleshooting, axel entrance, axel entry, head position, hip position, shoulder position, axel coord...

Purpose: This video demonstrates an off-ice double axel from a step forward entrance.

Focus: Double axel, demonstration, step forward entrance.

Purpose: This video demonstrates an on-ice double axel from backward crossovers

Focus: Entire jump, basic technique