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Across the floor air position ankle clicks: Foundation-Elite
Purpose: This is a great exercise for skaters to add to their warm-up. Skaters should complete exercise across the floor alternating feet and always getting to their air position (either snapping behind or in front). This exercise will help to warm-up hips, knees and ankles, and will also allow s...
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Forward and backward skips: Beginner-Elite
Purpose: Skaters can use this exercise in their warm-up to warm-up hips, knees and ankles. Practice both forwards and backwards down the floor pumping arms back and forward with the knee to simulate the axel take-off on the ice.
Focus: hip, knee, and ankle extension; power, roll up to the toe, co... -
Bell jump: Foundation-Elite
Purpose: This is a great exercise for skaters to add to their warm-up. It warms up key muscles for jumping, helps to practice spacial awareness and get their core firing. This exercise also helps skaters to practice their axel take-off. Skaters should try to do 5-6 of these in a row down the floo...
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Forward inside to back outside rocker cluster: Advanced-Elite
Purpose: This exercise helps the skater get into their knees and ankles during warm-up. It encourages the skater to work to build power and speed on one foot which is necessary for clusters in a step sequence.
Focus: Turn placement, Upper body control, balance, edge quality, across the ice, knee...
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Russian stroking warm-up: Foundation-Advanced
Purpose: This pattern allows skaters to work on combining their crossovers with an inside edge hold. The change of edges and the alternating sides makes it a good pattern for skaters to work on their general skating skills and quality of edges, as well as build power and speed.
Focus: Edge quali...
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5 key knee and ankle warm-up exercises: Beginner-Foundation
Purpose: This video introduces 5 key stroking exercises skaters should practice to warm-up their ankles and knees prior to getting into other skating elements.
Focus: upper body control, across the ice, flow, glide, balance, power
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Foundation: Off-ice counterclockwise hip twists drill
Purpose: Skaters can improve their quick twitch firing on their jump take-offs by doing hip twists. This helps the skater learn how to generate vertical height and then rotation through their hips rather than the upper body. This variation also helps skaters practice quickly getting into a tight ...
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Foundation: Off-ice spiral to sit position on the floor drill
Purpose: This challenging skill helps skaters test their balance and their strength; even if they can do a camel to sit position on the ice, they will be surprised to find it is much more challenging to do it off the ice!
Focus: Strength building, lower body strength, balance, alignment
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Foundation: Off-ice two foot forward and backward quick feet ladder drill
Purpose: Doing ladder drills can help skaters develop coordination and body awareness. These skills help them learn new skills and choreography more quickly, and also help them have tidier foot placement when skating.
Focus: Coordination, rhythm and timing