Not progressing at all

[zjcarter22]

So been ice skating for about 4 years now... Although i can do most single jumps and spins, i felt like i am not progessing at all.. There is this guy that ask me for help a year ago about how to do crossovers as its his first time in the ice.... So i taught him and he said he wants to be a good figure skater... I saw him last week and boy he can do double jumps and axels and camel spins etc. Hed come a long way in comparison to me.. I come ice skating at least once a week and spend 4 to 5 hours in ice... Still not making any progress".......im a bit disappointed and let down

[skater15]

its okay! i feel similar as im at age 15 and doing singles nd other people younger than me can do double jumps but this isnt about me..
If you could reply in what you are struggling with exactly and we can help you?
Also do you have lessons?

[Noorah101]

I understand how you're feeling, but try not to compare yourself with other people.  Just compare yourself to yourself.  Look back a year or two ago and try to realize how far you've come since then.  There will always be people who progress faster than you (and also slower than you!), so you can't judge yourself by that.

I progress slowly, and I know that.  I don't want to get hurt, I want to take it slow and easy, I'm not trying to compete or achieve any time-frame goals.  I skate because I enjoy skating, regardless of how far I might progress and/or how fast. 

Rene

[Steve+Kayleigh]

I think sometimes we all reach a plateau that's difficult to get over, and then move on quickly. Also, initially it's easy to progress - it doesn't seem like it when you first start, but when you look back you realise how much you have learnt, and the more complex moves take longer to learn. The learning curve is always steep at first, and levels out as you go.

When I've studied some martial arts, progression through the early grades is relatively quick - the later, harder grades take more effort and time.

Don't worry about other skaters - the guy you mentioned will soon hit his plateau and be in the same situation. Just enjoy your own level of training/skating.

Steve

[lostatsea]

To go from not skating at all to doubles in a year is fast I think (still learning about skating) but that guy may have been training 4/5 times a week.

As others have said, with everything in life, try not to compare yourself to others. It's natural to want to benchmark yourself against others but there will ALWAY be someone better so the key to enjoyment is just to compete with the skater you were yesterday I think. Remember all the things you enjoy about skating and why you do it.

[granita]

That's pretty impressive progress from that guy, so yes, I'd guess he's putting in several days a week AND may have other sports training in his pre-skating background that's given him some advantages in power/control. Unless you're part of a carefully controlled twin-study there's rarely any point in comparing your progress with people who've lived and are living different lives to you.


But about your own rut... I find that I need to skate once a week to just maintain my level, twice to slowly eke out improvements and more than that to really make solid progress (alas finding that much time a week isn't easy!)

[transmissionoftheflame]

As others have said, don't compare yourself to others.  Or if you do you must use it to channel energy or focus that helps you become better by being more determined or using approaches that have worked for others.  If you cannot compare yourself to others without it becoming negative, don't do it.


Consider practicing little and often rather than in one big chunk per week.  I don't think many people can do any activity for that long without getting tired and sloppy.  Make sure during your time on the ice you are really focused on what you are doing.  Make every edge count.


Consider changing your coach, if you have one, or asking them to try some new approaches to things.


Does music help, or having others to share training with?


Remember why you started, enjoy it, play with it.  As soon as a session becomes negative, pull back, do something different, mess around, try something new.


You have passion.  You have improved, you will improve more.  You can work out what works best for you.

[Noorah101]

But about your own rut... I find that I need to skate once a week to just maintain my level, twice to slowly eke out improvements and more than that to really make solid progress (alas finding that much time a week isn't easy!)

I totally agree with this.  I used to have one 1/2 hour lesson a week, and would try to practice one other day if I could.  My skating was OK but I felt like I was at that plateau.  Then I decided to add in a 15-minute off-ice lesson with my coach on a different day, so for the past 4 months or so, I have one 1/2 hour lesson per week, plus the 15-minute off-ice lesson (and then I skate afterwards), plus I go in a 3rd day if I can.  Just adding in that extra day and the short off-ice lesson has helped my skating progress beyond that plateau.  I agree it's very hard to find that much time in a week!

Rene

[Noorah101]

Consider practicing little and often rather than in one big chunk per week.  I don't think many people can do any activity for that long without getting tired and sloppy.  Make sure during your time on the ice you are really focused on what you are doing.  Make every edge count.

I agree with the above. It's the most irritating thing when my mind and soul want to skate MORE, but my body says "that's enough for today".  I can tell when I'm getting sloppy with my moves, because of tired legs or a drop in energy level.  I try to take a 5 or 10 minute break and then get back on the ice, but that's usually only enough for another 15 minutes on the ice, then I feel sloppy again.  As much as I really want to skate more at that time, I have to remind myself that it's not really productive skating, and my chances of falling increase when I'm sloppy, so I stop for the day. 

I usually only skate 45 minutes at one time, because that's how long our freestyle sessions last (and I don't want to pay for 2 sessions back to back).  I don't often go to public sessions, but when I do, I can really tell when I've gone beyond the 45-minute mark.  I push myself to stay about an hour and a half, but that's when I start getting sloppy.  I admire those folks who can skate 2 or 3 hours at a time (or more!).

Rene

[skatersoph22]

Maybe try having energy bars, they really helped me. Sometimes even the best figure skaters have phases like this. It also depends on your age, if your going through just starting your period etc. then your body has to just get used to it! Could also be a change in your height as when you start to grow taller and skate, your center of balance starts to go off but you'll get it back soon! Xx