Monday, October 6, 2014

Monday Moves Lesson - Struggling with Backward Eights

I had a long MIF lesson today and we kept working on the Backward Circle Eight.  I seem to be ok on the 1st outside circle, but the 2nd outside circle (on my LBO edge) I have a lot of trouble making it all the way around AND trouble keeping my free foot close to my skating foot and just passing it by at the top of the circle.  I am occasionally falling onto a flat or worse, even wobbling inside/flat/outside/flat/inside.

Here is USFSA video library example:  Adult Gold Moves In The Field: Backward Circle Eights
Not a perfect example, but a good example.  However, I notice too that his free leg on his LBO circle wanders a little after the top of the 2nd circle.  I think this is common for most of us when we skate on the non-landing leg.  We all have superior control on every turn and every edge in both directions on that leg.

I also had my first lesson on Brackets In The Field.    I have been trying these from time to time on my own without a lesson and have already developed a BAD HABIT of placing my free leg in front after the turn.  Now I will struggle to undo my problem.

When the lesson was over I felt defeated did a little freestyle.

Video #1 Freestyle



Video #2 Moves Lesson


5 comments:

  1. Hi Diane - for the backwards circle eights, it looks like your hips keep opening up, which is causing your foot to get too far away from the body (I know, easier said than done). You should feel like you are really leaning into the circle (like you are leaning on a large beach ball) and almost setting up for a lutz jump. For the brackets, it's ok to have your free foot in front after the turn - I did it like that and was able to control it, so do what is most comfortable for you. Hope this helps!

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  2. Thanks Eva ... yes much easier said than done! I have a choreographer lesson today but I am going to start with my moves and try that.

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  3. There are a lot of different ways to do the brackets and each coach has their own preferred way. I was told to put the free foot forward after the FO/ BI brackets but not the FI/BO ones. I see what Eva is saying, that you are opening your free hip on the BO eight. Learning to fix that will I think benefit you overall, because when you do that you are torquing your skating knee and with repetition probably making it hurt.

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  4. You guys are both right. The videos are so helpful to me because as you know, you can often feel like you are doing something one way and when you see it on video - you know what it's really looking like. I only wish making the corrections were that easy !!! Choreographer just added a bracket to my program LBI-RFO ... she loves brackets.

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  5. I realized I was wrong! Because I remember one lesson I had with a guest coach (a skater you would have heard of) and he showed me the figure eight with the hip going to a very open position in the latter part of the circle. I suppose either way is fine as long as you keep your skating leg (and skating edge) where it's supposed to be. And I am sure the coach who showed it to me can skate with his free leg in any position he wants and still keep a beautiful edge. A bracket in your program! I have never had that in my program even though it would be kind of nice after putting so much effort into learning them.

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Good 1 Hour Lesson

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