Bad skate days and a little moan..

[Squeeze]

Hi all,
Does anyone else have really crappy practice days, the ones where nothing is right?
I’ve completely sucked at even skating forwards today, never mind practicing Mohawk steps sequence and my spins have been awol for weeks now! Just feeling a little fed up!
I’ve just managed to get a slot for some 1-1 coaching and work have changed my days off so I’m going to have to give up my slot, and lose a practice day too.
Sorry for the grumble....

[Jo]

I'm quite new to skating but I think I can relate to how you feel.
On my last practice day it felt like everything I skated was much harder than it should have been. Even skills that I've pretty much got the hang of felt more difficult than usual. In fact even my just plain forward skating was off and I kept stumbling over my feet. I put it down to the fact that I must've been more tired than usual because when I'm tired my balance is the first thing to go (even when just walking!). But it all felt pretty dispiriting to me.

Fingers crossed it goes better for us both next time.

[WednesdayMarch]

Ah, plank days.  Those days when you feel more like a plank of wood than an elegant skater...

Everybody has them.  Everybody.  Even champions.  Admittedly their plank days still look bloomin' brilliant to the rest of us but that's just scale.

I always think that skating goes in a succession of "P"s, ie Practice, Progress, Peak, Plateau, Plummet.  And then you start all over again, usually at a higher level, even if you can't immediately spot that.

Keep going.  The progress days are great and once I had a day when I felt that I could do ANYTHING.  Admittedly, that was in 1982 but I've never forgotten it... 

[Squeeze]

Plank days, I love that! Perfectly describes my skating lately! Thanks both for your posts, I have been tired this week so maybe that had a lot to do with it, I was also in a mood! Due to work stresses, and having my rota changed!
I have noticed that the more I progress the more critical I get, like I’m gaining experience in what I’m actually doing wrong... hoping for a day when it all starts to feel like it’s going to click.

[WednesdayMarch]

... hoping for a day when it all starts to feel like it’s going to click.

Aren't we all...! 

Even on plank days, you're learning and improving. 

[transmissionoftheflame]

Still have the odd off day 13 years and maybe 4,000 hours skating later.  Learning to skate even moderately well is a lesson in patience, humility, stubbornness, ability to enjoy the learning process, you name it.


If things are not going right I slow it down and go back to basics, whatever it is you know how to do best, and try to do that really well.  Build it up from there and relax, regain confidence, regain the feel for the ice.

[spinZZ]

Yes, we all have good days and bad days.  A good day can actually trigger a subsequent bad day.  For example, my goal is a decent scratch spin (definitely still a work in progress).  Some days I just hit it off, but then I overdo it.  So the next day, certain joints are stiff, and certain muscles ache, and my spins go poof.

[CurvyIceSlider]

Wow, all the time! And thanks for bringing it up. Sometimes everything just won't flow and my body has other ideas, things I can do in my sleep got to pot...it can be really disheartening.

Sometimes its just an off day but usualky I reflect on the following when things don't work out. Am/was I...
-tired
-hungry
-dehydrated
-talking myself down (negative self talk)
-over thinking
-setting too high expectations
-carrying an injury
-not properly warmed up in all the right places
-otherwise stressed or pressured
-overly serious
-not having fun (and I skate for fun right?)

I find a good barometer is whether I laugh a fail off or get huffy with myself. The fun factor might seem trivial but for me, unless its there, I'm almost certain not to skate well and if it's not there over time, I'm going to give up. Course encouragement is always welcome on an off day, so thanks for sharing and for everyone pitching in with their stories and support! I'll keep this thread handy!!!