100 Day Lunge Challenge is Dead--new 100 Day Challenge Begins

Today I did lunges, both sides, feet nicely placed during the lunge and raised the foot from the ice without snagging. The 100 Days of Lunges is now over.

They're as good as I can get them for now.  I have knee injuries that keep me from going deep in the knee and coming back up, so .....meh....what can you do.

The new 100 Day Challenge is.....

100 Days of Spread Eagles!

I know what you're thinking, "That's the same hip opener stuff you're already doing!"

Well, yeah. 

US Figure Skating Changes Its LTS program....again (EDITED)

This is a review of the coming USFS/USA HOCKEY new Learn to Skate Program. You won't hear about it at your rink until June. 

 
Welcome To the New Logo

The New Logo

To summarize, USFS is partnering with USA Hockey and some speedskating group to create a new skating program that supports all of the ice skating sports. The new LTS program will be completely revamped.

I like many of the proposed changes. In fact, I look forward  to our new Learn to Skate Overlords.

The  program materials will be made more diverse (which I hope means more boys and more races other than Caucasian to be pictured in materials) and the program will be made more clear to parents. Both of these are fantastic and long needed changes.  My rink's LTS program has kids from many races and areas of the world. We also have an amazing lot of boys. Materials need to reflect the American population of today. And boys on materials makes them feel like they belong in the program. About the clarity of the program to parents and adult skaters, LONG TIME COMING! How many of you felt that figure skating has the tenor of a private club or secret society to it? You have to root around in USFS website to find anything out. How many parents (or even adult skaters) take the trouble to sort it out? Not many.

The actual skating program seems to have only had some superficial reorg to Basic Skills. However, they're adding more programs for Hockey, such as Power Skating and for Figure Skating they've added something called Shadowing.

I'm hoping "Welcoming and Orientation" teaches parents and skaters how to tie their skates.

Here's the new program as a chart

(Sorry it's hard to read)

Note that the totally unnecessary ADULT LTS still lives.
But they've added Adult Fitness which I look forward to!

Here's Some Other Changes

I like the additional Snow Plow Sam Levels--great idea
However, is combining 7-8 really going to make a skater ready for freeskate?
Half the rinks around here have Freeskate bridge programs because the transition is so big.

Also, there will be a website to record your passed levels and stuff. Therefore, when you switch rinks, the new rink can look you up. This is just like ISI runs it I'm told.

  But here's the big problem:

This is a skater

 These are Skaters!

Maybe the Logo should be:

100 Days of Lunges Challenge: Report Day 13

I've been working on my 100 Day Challenge and now is the time for an update.

Okay, prepare to be bored by details.

My left hip is closed. So, I'm a little pigeon toed on the left. When I try to do a left lunge, my toe pick goes right into the ice.

After 13 days, I have enough external rotation on the left leg, to not dig that toepick into the ice! It's still not a great lunge on the left, but it's improving. In another couple of weeks I may be able hold that position as I rise from the ice.

The right leg, I could always do a lunge, and I'm working on getting deeper. No progress on that. But I  have hopes.

So what am I using? Jill Miller's Hip Helpers....possibly the best exercise video ever made.  Contents:
Yoga breathing section, 68 minutes of detailed instruction on how to do the yoga positions correctly and make modifications if needed, 58 minute yoga session, and a copy of the entire thing on MP3 for putting on your computer or phone. Plus, closed captioning!

I don't do the entire yoga practice, I do the first 8, then I do a few more select exercises from the rest as I improve and gain strength  I add new ones. Each exercise is videoed as a stand alone exercise so it's easy to just skip to the ones you want. I usually set the video to mute, turn on the closed captioning and listen to music.

To test my improvement off-ice, I prop my 'skating foot' on the yoga block (to give me the height of the blade) and do the lunge. This is much, much easier than on ice, but it still shows my improvement. Also, I'm now doing it on ice (though it's not great).

If you use this technique, make sure to lay the free foot
on its inner side to get a true skating lunge
Also, use figure skating arm position

 In addition to the Hip Helpers, I'm also doing XBX daily, and lift weights a couple of times a week. I've had some weary evenings. But hot damn, do my hips feel good!