So, what’s the best way to get fit for skating? How do we get strong for skating? What’s the best way to improve our fitness so we can get through 3 back to back routines without any complaints? And ultimately, how do we become the best athletes we can be?
With Oceania squad fast approaching, I thought it’d be a good idea to get some experiences up on the blog for us to enjoy! But especially for the newbies in the team. Bonny and I don’t want to be the only ones to write on here, we want it to be a one stop shop for lots of different ideas and stories for New Zealand skaters! (and maybe in the future some overseas skaters as well!) So to start us off, I asked my sister Mercedes to write a little about her first Oceania experience. Hope you enjoy!
How many times have you seen a talented athlete not perform their best because they fall victim to their own anxieties? How do you think they would have performed had they been taught how to regulate their emotions, thoughts, feelings? How many times has your coach (or you’ve stood there as the coach) told you to do the jump/step/sequence/spin again because you’re still making the same mistake and no matter how hard you try, you just can’t do it? If you’ve been in this situation, keep reading and you might just find out something you didn’t know before.
This topic is just as important as our last post on discipline and motivation. It is important to know when to push through the pain and laziness and when to stop before we do some real damage to our bodies! First off, we have to get in touch with our body so that we are aware of when to go for it and when to back off. I touched on this at the squad and I want to expand on what I mean and also fill in those skaters who missed out.
After my workout the other day, something caught my attention. During my workout, I had wanted to stop several times but I didn’t. I could hardly breathe and yet I just had to finish the workout. The same happened the next night at training. There was something that kept saying I needed another round even when I wanted to stop. What kept me going? What is that voice that says “one more round/rep”?