Oodles of Positivity!

Hello again!

Bit of an off-beat entry today. I just wanted to talk a bit about how crazy my life has changed since just before I started this blog. Maybe it's been noticeable and maybe it hasn't, I don't know. But I can't express how positive my life has become. Less six months ago I was more or less in a funk, close to what I'd describe as depression. No, I'm not talking crazy suicidal depression. But I was generally in a crap, low mood all the time and it sucked. For the life of me I couldn't figure out what it was...

...Then I made changes and started pursuing things that had always held my interest and had been dreams I withheld. I started DOING. And boy has it been a strangely amazing journey. I'm getting married, which is something I didn't think I would ever do and yet here I am about to commit to spending my life with someone and I'm not at all afraid of that prospect. She has changed my life in more ways than one and I wouldn't be where I am without her. I never thought I'd get married...but its about to change my life.

Then there's my hobbies. For the longest time I've kind of coasted through life. Doing things that while they kept me entertained, didn't really make me feel whole or that kind of happy you have when you're doing something you know you love. In the last year I've significantly dropped video games from my life with very few exceptions. (I still have a computer and play them on occasion.) But I've gotten rid of almost every console I own and have yet to replace ones that have gotten wrecked due to things beyond my control. (Like a cat who hated my 3DS.) It's interesting how much happier it has made me to get away from electronics and into pursuits that make me happy.

Horses have always been a love and a part of my life that isn't going away. I do love and enjoy them but I've always felt there has been something more beyond it. There is a reason I kept track of figure skating without telling people, there's a reason I've chosen to never pursue my other dreams. Anxiety is a big part of it, but confidence was too. You get yourself in such a 'funk' and feel you're never going to get anywhere and simply settle for what you have, which in my case simply made things worse. But now that I've re-discovered my passion for skating I can't describe how much happier I am.

I'm also healthier. Sure, I still occasionally eat crap food and can be lazy on occasion. But I find I get out more now. I do more and I'm enthusiastic about doing more. No word of a lie, there was a point where going for a walk was the most boring thing on the planet to me. Now I find myself excited to get out of the house. Plus I no longer look like a vampire all the time, yay <3

Alongside taking on a hobby that has made me happy. I've also discovered new things that I didn't truly expect to enjoy. Ballet for example. I opted into it to improve my skating at the advice of a few close to me. Before, I wouldn't have been confident to do something considered so feminine or something that put me with strangers or groups of people and yet I have found that I enjoyed my lesson significantly more than I expected and that I'm looking forward to the next one. (Never once have I danced while listening to music so much as I have in the last week :D)

I guess what I'm trying to say, is that there is so much positivity in my life right now. It's been a fairly long time since I've walked around with a genuinely happy smile on my face and I can only get more excited but the rest of the year holds for me.

Hopefully this entry isn't too hard to read through, I feel I sometimes repeat myself a lot. Believe it or not I don't proof-read these blogs at all so that you get my genuine thoughts and feelings as they come out whether they make sense or not. I've really enjoyed writing this so look forward to more entries in the future!

Thanks for reading!

Ciao for now!

Sam

Skating to Ballet: Additional Lessons #1!

Hello once again!

I fiiiiinally have something new to write about, skating has unfortunately slowed down due to ice availability (At least locally) and so my skating related posting ability has been limited as well. Though that doesn't mean I haven't done any skating or anything skating related. In fact, I practiced my skating techniques in a public skating session for the first time just recently.

The company I work for puts on a free public skate for 2 hours on a Saturday every year and I decided to go and enjoy it. Not many people showed up so the ice was nice and open! There was about ten of us and I convinced myself to practice my figure skating in those two hours. I even got some compliments which made me smile. I'm never in it for the compliments, but they do feel good! Beyond that though I've been unable to get ahold of any ice time which kind of stinks!

Alas, I've had to look at alternate ways to improve my skating when I can't get ahold of the ice and through both research and the advice of friends I've found myself enrolled in Ballet. There are a lot of techniques that can be shared between the two sports and I'm told that it can help with a lot of the issues I imagine most guys have in figure skating which are posture, gracefulness and positioning. Or at least those are my struggles!

Today was my first lesson and as usual...I was nervous. Not unusual for me. Anxiety-man should be my superhero name with how nervous I get sometimes. But I made it to the lesson and I have to admit. It was both fun, interesting and informative. I really should stop being surprised at how much I enjoy doing new things. I've always wanted to try some form of dance class so this was an interesting step for me as I didn't think it'd be Ballet.

I learned plenty in the lesson and my instructor was very knowledgeable, and friendly. Which helped my nerves a lot and while I'd love to do an individual breakdown of the things I learned like I do with my skating lesson entries, for the life of me...I can't remember half the French words for all the moves just yet. I know we practiced basic Plie positions and I vaguely remember the word 'demi' used a lot when we were doing things half-way. Buuuuut alas, it was all so new and exciting that I kind of flubbed remembering all the wording. I'll make sure to include the wording and descriptions of what I did in future entries as I remember them.

Also, I move like an ox. Haha. I do hope in time these classes will help me be at least a touch more graceful.

Now, I recently had a discussion with my skating coach about skating and what makes her love skating and its nice to know that someone shares the same feeling as I do:

"I love skating. Something about it, just gliding and speed and riding the edges out of jumps. Expressing yourself through music and getting tossed around is fun. It's lonely, chaotic and full of life. A peaceful place to call home."

I couldn't have put that in better words myself. While I may not have done any crazy jumps yet or anything. I get those feelings and sentiments. There is just something deeply enjoyable about figure skating for me and seeing that answer really reinforces my choice of coach. It's one thing to find a teacher, but another to find someone who feels the same way you do about skating.

Just a bit of a tidbit in there, but thanks to my coach for being awesome!

Ciao for now!

Sam

Skate Carnival - Norwich, Ontario/Summer Plans

Hello again!

So on a past Saturday I attended my local skating clubs end of year Carnival and I have to admit, it was great. It was well put together with a fair share of talented skaters and dedicated staff. It was just over an hour long and I actually saw the show twice. It was a lot of fun and Im noticing I am becoming more acclimated to the cold the more time I spend at the arena, which my fiancee loves because she likes leaving the window open all winter.

Now, my plans for summer are slowly coming together. Ive got a fair plan potentially laid out. After the wedding I intend to go into skating as often as I can as well as take a few ballet lessons mixed in between. Ive been told ballet helps a lot with body positioning, posture, gracefulness and your lines while skating which are all things I need. Im in talks with a few local places. about both. Ingersoll for ballet and cambridge/london for potential skating lessons over the course of the summer. At the time of writing this, Ive actually booked my first five ballet lessons. Ill blig about them and how it can be applied to skating as I do them.

Ive also been thinking about potwntial ice rental options through the summer and have done a fair amount of research on it. By the looks of it, moat nearby places charge 40-60 bucks an hour for casual ice which cant be booked more than 24 hours in advance. Which I can certainly work with!

Anyways, Just a short entry this time.

Ciao for now!

Sam

Achievement Unlocked: Backwards Crossovers/Cross Cuts!!

Hello everyone!

So my coach asked me to help her do some videos for Skate Canada so she can get her next coaching level. Since she has been so awesome I decided to help and I'm really really glad I did. We went through a few things I already know. All my edges and stroking techniques that I'm familiar with, although my forwards crosscuts done on each edge are a bit shaky. Ill practice those when I get the chance, but it was a lot of fun re-running through all of it so she could get some video. I feel like I'm improving, hopefully I don't lose TOO much over the course of the summer.

We also did some of my first attempts at jumping. Three-turn jumps, bunny hops and we did attempt a few jumps where you go from backwards crosscuts to a turn and then a jump. You end up backwards at the end of it. I don't remember the name and I probably explained that poorly. It was AWESOME though! I had a ton of fun and admittedly, I'm really not looking forwards to a pause on lessons for the summer. At least it opens up time for wedding planning!

My biggest achievement this time I think though was my backwards crossovers/cross cuts. Up until this session I've struggled to wrap my head around the concept of them and getting the footwork down. This time I totally managed to nail them! I managed to do them around a full circle and get the footwork down more. I also am working on figuring out where my arms go and how to counterbalance my movements. I was SO excited for this! I've tried it a few times at a few of the adult skates but I have yet to really nail them until now. Yay!

I really have to find out how to practice during the summer so I don't lose all of the knowledge I've gained. It's interesting, I've noticed with skating that the more I do it, the happier I am doing it. I keep getting driven and motivated to go back to it. I think over the summer I'm going to focus on skating where I can while getting into better shape for skating, as well as improving my gracefulness and body placement which are both things I can easily do off-ice.

I've got the skating carnival this Saturday I'm going to watch as well, a friends daughter is skating in it and it should be a lot of fun!

Anyways, that's about it for this entry!

Ciao for now!

Sam

Skating Show: Preston, Ontario

Hello once again!

So as the skating season comes to an end in most places, so too comes the series of shows and carnivals that most clubs put on. I personally haven't got to put a skate down in any of them but I do have tickets to several, the first of which was last night at the Preston Figure Skating Club in Cambridge. My current skating coach was skating in it and I decided to go and see it and support her in doing so.

I'm really really glad I went. What an amazing show! It was all well thought out, put together and choreographed beautifully. It even had stuff you wouldn't typically expect in a skating show like kids on swings hanging from the ceiling and ice ramps that the skaters went down to make their entrances. It was AWESOME! It was also a touch bittersweet as well because it made me realize how much I'd love to be involved with something so awesome.

The hard work all the skaters put in was really showcased at the show. I had a lot of fun.

Just a quick entry!

Ciao for now!

Sam

Final Lesson of the Season

Hello once more!

So the time in which my lessons will essentially be on hold until September has come. Yesterday was my final figure skating lessons before the current season at the arena ends and I have to say it has been an awesome (But short) journey! I didn't expect to enjoy it nearly as much as I have. Nor did I expect to do as well as I did. I'm certainly no professional, but I definitely did better than I anticipated I would.

A big part of why my experience was so good is owed to the club and my coach. The club was super flexible in allowing me to join and I don't think I could have landed a better coach. I've been told that one of a students greatest strengths is their coach and their ability to teach skills to the student. I've grasped a lot more concepts than I expected to and I find her teaching style, much like my horseback riding coach. Really works with me. As many know, I'm more of a practical learner than a theoretical learner. So seeing it and then simply doing something is much easier for me to learn. So thank you to my coach, Lindsay for being great! Hopefully we can continue in the near future.

The club itself, has been great. While I had plenty of things to do in order to register and sign up. Once I got my foot in the door, they were all great. Going into something primarily done by kids, as an adult. Can be a bit of an intimidating experience. But the club has been from what I can tell, very accepting which I'm more than thankful for.

Skill-wise, from day one. I've learned a fair amount. I've got most of the basics down and my balance has significantly improved over all. From simply riding my edges to doing stuff like three turns and twizzles. It's been SO fun. I'm really making this sound like a goodbye aren't I? My bad. It's not. I intend to continue practicing and skating through the summer and then registering when the new season begins. Whether that is with the local skating club or otherwise.

I've mentioned before that I used to skate as a kid and the decision to get back into it has kind of bounced around the back of my head for the longest time and while anxiety held me back, I'm glad I decided to take the plunge. The experience overall is just not something I can put into words. It might seem silly to some people, but for someone like me it is significantly more special. Hopefully, it continues this way as it has improved several aspects of my own life. My balance while horseback riding I feel has improved because of it, my anxiety levels in crowds are definitely a little more settled. Time will tell!

So, I guess the next real step is where and how to practice and retain my skills through the summer? I know a fair amount of my skills can be translated to rollerblades which I have a good pair of. But I am hoping that I can find time at public and adult skates that run through the summer. I still have to inquire if Norwich still runs these through the summer or not. If not, then I'm sure other nearby cities will.

So, this concludes my lesson-based sections of my blog for now. With the season coming to a close my writing in here will likely slow down a bit. But I'll make entries whenever I have skating related stuff to post. I might even consider putting my horseback riding endeavors in here as well. I've enjoyed writing this so much more than I expected to.

Thanks for reading and commenting!

Ciao for now!

Sam

Fear and Anxiety used to hold me back: Lessons #4, #5 and Public Skates Galore!

Hello!

WOW! Has it been a while since I did an entry. (Admittedly...I did several and haven't published them because they were sub-par in my opinion. Not much meat and potatoes to them.) It's mostly because my ventures during afternoons in skating are limited to the adult public skates. Whiiiich I only got to attend two of because of wedding planning. Not a bad tradeoff though. I wouldn't have done it any other way.

So today I'd like to talk about myself a little bit. I'm a 25 y/o male. I work full-time at a factory and my hobbies include Writing, Horseback Riding and Skating. (I did gymnastics for a while, but it has fallen through many a time so it's kind of on the back burner at the moment.) Now, the latter two hobbies are what has become a big change in my life. I've explained before that I get anxiety when doing just about anything but I've noticed over the course of time (With some pushing from coaches and otherwise) that with these activities, my anxiety drops significantly. Instead of worrying what people thing I find myself actually getting excited to get out there.

It's strange, because less than a year ago I was freaking out about going out to get on the back of a horse. Now it's the reverse, I can't wait. I owe a lot of this change to my coaches, fiancée and few family members that I've told before. As per the title, there was in fact a time when fear would hold me back. Not anymore. At least with my hobbies. I still don't do crowds well.

Enough about my personal issues though! I need to combine my last two lessons, as well as all my public/adult skates into this singular post before I get back to posting regularly! It's been both crazy, fun and filled with plenty of interesting bits! I was going to write this in paragraph form but I think I'll roll with bullet-points to make it a little more manageable and readable. (And so you can skip any boring or repetitive bits. :D):

Skating Forwards - Forwards techniques are always included in my lessons. We've worked on all of them and I find myself getting more and more comfortable simply moving forward and around the ice. Its interesting to be able to look back to when I first climbed back on the ice, to now. I hold myself a little bit differently than I did five lessons ago and I'm certainly more confident with my foot movements! Forwards goes well!

Switchbacks - This is kind of becoming second nature when I need to turn around now or reset. Quick and easy and I haven't really messed one up much in a while. So I'm happy with that. Not really much to say about these other than we've been segwaying into more advanced techniques using this technique which Ill elaborate more on shortly.

Skating on Inner/Outer Edges - Forwards, I'm confident. I can do inside and outside edges decently now, but when it comes to the reverse I am still very shaky. Although the positive side is that I'm learning to keep my momentum and where to place my feet which helps a lot. An odd thing I'm noticing is that I'm less confident doing my right outside edge when skating backwards than my left. I tend to not be able to lean/turn it nearly as well as the other. Do skaters have dominant feet? To google!

Balance - Balance is DEFINITELY improving. I noticed this especially when I potentially wipe out and catch myself a lot differently than I used to. I don't go into panic mode as much now and try to catch myself with my hands on the ice (PS. Hand+Ice does not equal a good way to stop a fall!) I tend to re-find my balance and stop it before it happens. It's awesome! I'm no pro, but I definitely find I have a lot better balance now. I also tend to not lean nearly as much now.

Mohawks - I can do about two sets of these now confidently. I have a hard time keeping my momentum, but I am getting more confident in placing my foot down and still gliding along whatever edge I'm making use of. My coach makes it look WAY too easy for its own good! These are a lot of fun. I say that a lot don't I? It's all fun. Seriously.

Three Turns - Still kind of riding the basics on these. I have yet to really get too far past a single turn. I CAN stay upright after one turn now, but keeping my momentum and setting up for the next one I still struggle with. I think as we develop my other skills I'll get better at these as I figure out that 'sweet spot' as well as improving my balance.

Crossovers - Before I say anything, I still have yet to get a backwards crossover down. But my forward ones I am fully confident in! I even use these during regular public skating sessions and stuff now when I'm circling the arena. Instead of just relying on one outside foot to get me around the end of the arena, I go into crossover mode and skate around the end, it also keeps/gains me some momentum as well which I believe is the point of crossovers.

Skating Backwards - Like last time, I won't list all the individual techniques on what we have done skating backwards. It basically all the same as forwards except in reverse. I still struggle with a lot of them but I have improved my backwards skating in general. I can get a fair amount of speed and skate around backwards easily enough now. It's nowhere near perfect, but I'm not ending up flat on my backside every few minutes now! It'll be nice when I can skate backwards confidently and do things in a steadier way.

Brackets - So we busted open this skill the other day and much like switchbacks, I CAN do them, but I fail to keep my momentum going through more than one or two. I have to figure out how to give a bit of a push-off during these turns that'll keep me going. It was actually this skill that made us give the next skill a try in my lessons!

Twizzles - I swear that's the real name. I googled it. This is basically tucking everything in, spinning and then letting everything back out to stop the spin. Then doing it the other direction. It's kind of hard to put into words but after a few tries I found I did pretty decent at these!

I can't say too much though about twizzles however because I actually broke my skate during my last lesson attempting these. I imagine it's because we've been fairly hard on my skates since I go tthem, and the fact that they're used, but during my last lessons end the 'heel/blade' part essentially separated from my skate completely. Luckily I felt it before I tried something else. It's a shame because the skates were actually starting to fit really well and I was really getting comfortable in them. My new ones are just a solid, cheap pair I got from a local store that will hopefully last me until I save up for a good quality pair.

My only gripe with the new ones is that they feel more 'recreational skate' rather than 'figure skate'. They do have figure skate blades, they just don't feel as secure on my feet as I hoped they would be. Hopefully they will last for now and then I'll be good to go!

All in all, my lessons have been going extremely well. With a friends help and advice I've been doing a lot less procrastinating with things and forcing myself to 'get out there' more lately, and it's been doing me good. I've enjoyed every aspect of my lessons and I can't sing my coaches praises enough, anyone who can teach me to be balanced and even slightly graceful has talent in my books!

So there isn't much more to tell. I've got a lesson coming up tomorrow which I'm excited for. The only bad thing is with each lesson the end of the season/session grows closer very quickly. And that kind of sucks, hopefully I can find some form of skating/lessons during the summer! If not I guess I'll be focusing on horseback riding for the summer. Time will tell!

Anyways, thanks for reading!

Ciao for now!

Sam