November 2023 Practice Schedule
Roller skating is fun!!! I know this may not be news to you, but I have to remind myself sometimes. I grew up in competitive roller skating. I practiced for hours every week to make my skating as “perfect” as possible. This payed off because I have 5 World medals to show for it and I am forever grateful for that as well as the discipline I learned over the years. However, skating is different for me now and I know it is very different for each of us. Skating can be a wonderful form of exercise, “me time”, relaxation, an escape, a hobby, a common factor…it can be whatever we need it to be. Ultimately, when we are skating, we have wheels under our feet and we are in control of what those wheels can do. Let’s have fun with it!
As the weather changes and bundling up to go skate outside becomes less popular, rest assured, we got this!! Every skill, drill, and piece of choreography that I teach, practice, and create is done so in my studio. My studio is quite small (10x6 feet). The upside of a small space is that your edges will get a lot of great practice. Most of these skills can be done in a small space and then taken outside or to a rink and extended. Get the foundations down before adding speed.
Below is my recommended practice schedule for November 2023 and you can find links to each video at the bottom of each section. Everything that I suggest practicing is lined up with the skills we are working on. Weave those into your regular practice throughout the month to fully get into the fundamental skills needed to start the skill, maintain it, and advance it.
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Please don’t hesitate to reach out and let me know if you would like further guidance. You can book private lessons right here! Members, make sure to sign in for discounted pricing!
Week 1:
Drills 14
Outer Forward Upright Spin
PRACTICE:
Strong Outer Forward Edges
Outer Forward Loop
Corkscrew Spin
Drills 14: Let’s start with Drills 14. This drills class is great for gaining control of your freeleg. We will be using our skate as the weight that it truly is. Yes, let’s take a moment to acknowledge how heavy these skates are. One of the most common comments I get from new skaters is, “You didn’t tell me how heavy these things were!” Haha yes, they are heavy. This is why skaters have such strong legs! We will be lifting our freeleg and moving it to the front, the side, and front to back with a tapping motion. To control these drills, keep your standing knee bent slightly and keep your core engaged and tight. Keep your chin level and eyes straight forward while going through these drills to make this an automatic stance. We want good posture to become a habit!
Outer Forward Upright Spin: I will be the first to say that I don’t necessarily do this skill “technically correct”. If you are competing in artistic skating or going through a test program, you will need to do all skills as technically correct as you possibly can. If you’re skating for fun, learn the technical components, but feel free to add some of your own flare to your skills. If you’re not technically perfect, it’s okay!! Sometimes it’s even better! There is a lot to think about in the outer forward upright spin. I would argue that the edge is the number one thing. In order to spin, your outer edge has to be tight. Work your way up and press it tighter and tighter every time you practice. When you have the edge tight, work your way up your body. This is where I take my own path and stray away from the technical stuff. I go over both ways of doing this spin in this skills class: the technical way as well as what I consider to be the “more fun” way.
Strong Outer Forward Edges: Oh yes, those edges! No matter what level skater you are or what skill you’re working on, your edges are very important. When you’re in a rut and wondering what to work on…edges. We always come back to our edges…especially for the outer forward upright spin. After all, a proper edge spin is ultimately a very deep edge. Want to work on deepening your edge? Bend your knee more, try rotating your core toward the inside of your circle, and stretch your freeleg out at a diagonal.
Outer Forward Loop: An outer forward loop is basically another version of an outer forward upright, but not quite as tight of an edge. There are two main components to the outer forward loop: the skating leg and the freeleg. While the skating leg is always important (this is the foot on the ground, doing the outer forward edge), the freeleg is also very important on this skill. In order to make the loop happen, you need to time the passing of your freeleg. Once you have completed the loop (one small circle), bring your freeleg through and sit your hips back.
Corkscrew Spin: The corkscrew spin is one of my favorite skills to throw into choreography or when I’m just having fun skating around my kitchen. You can do it in a small space and don’t have to worry too much about kicking anything because both feet are on the ground. The corkscrew spin is basically an assisted outer forward upright spin. Just like the outer forward upright spin, our main focus will be on the skating foot that is pressing the outer forward edge. Make sure to continue rotating your core, shoulders, and head to keep the spin going.
Where to find these videos:
Drills 14: Drills & Workouts page [Link: Website, YouTube]
Outer Forward Upright Spin: Skills page (edges section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
strong Outer Forward Edges: Skills page (edges section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Outer Forward Loop: Skills page (Skills page (edges section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Corkscrew Spin: Skills page (spins section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Week 2:
Beginner/Intermediate Choreography - Ain’t No Mountain BY Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell
PRACTICE:
Half Flip
Cross In Front
Back Crosses
Beginner/Intermediate Choreography: This is one of my favorite pieces of choreography I’ve ever made! It’s a song I think we all know and mostly love (I know that’s a very big assumption on my part lol). When I use skills within choreography, you don’t need to already know how to do them. You can learn a lot by starting them in choreography, but please remember to keep your core tight and knees slightly bent at all times. A few of the skills used in this choreography are the two-foot spin (½ rotation), lots of arm movements, the half flip jump (this can also be done as a hop or rotation), a cross in front, and a cross in back. Most importantly, have fun! That’s what choreography is all about!
Half Flip: The half flip is one of those magical skills that can be done as a jump, a hop, or a step around. When stretching your leg in back before the jump, make sure your upper body is lifted up. One of the most common errors when entering this jump is breaking at the waist and lowering your chest toward your knee. Roll those shoulders back and use your toe stop to give you height.
Cross In Front: Crosses are an essential skill. We use crosses in cross pulls, cross rolls, the downtown, our Beginner/Intermediate Choreography, etc! When crossing one foot over the other, make sure that your feet are parallel with each other as you place the feet next to one another. A soft bend in the knee before, during, and after the cross will allow you to hold onto whatever edge you are on. Cross in fronts are most commonly done on an outer forward edge. If you can, practice these crosses going around a circle or the corner of a skating rink.
Back Crosses: Same goes for the cross behinds or back crosses…keep your knees slightly bent. This cross is also most commonly done on an outer edge. Most crosses start on the outer edge and finish on an inner edge. When crossing behind, remember to sit. Keep your hips back and your chest up. It doesn’t matter how high you get your freeleg in front at the end of the cross. Keep it low and pointed.
Where to find these videos:
Ain’t No Mountain (Beginner/Intermediate) - Choreography page [Link: Website, YouTube]
Half Flip: Skills page (Jumps section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Cross In Front: Skills page (forward skating section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Back Crosses: Skills page (forward skating section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Week 3:
Drills 11
Outer Back Rocker Turn
PRACTICE:
Backward Pushes
Outer Edge Swings
Inner Forward 3-Turn
Drills 11: This drills video is one of my favorites and the best practice for all one-foot turns off skates. Off-skate training is super important. We need to build the strength and muscle-memory of where we are putting pressure to improve our movement when we have skates on. This is often over-looked. Not on my watch! We will be doing 3-turns off skates in this video. Even though these drills will focus on 3-turn alignment in the legs as well as the upper body, the technique and balance can be used for all other one-foot turns. Even if you’re not working on one-foot turns on skates, it’s a great idea to start gaining this balance and understanding the technique. The stationary drills we will do in this video can also be done stationary with your skates on. Make sure to keep your standing knee slightly bent so that you can soften your knee bend in and out of the turn.
Outer Back Rocker Turn: All one-foot turns require attention to all parts of the body, coming together at a strong core. Your edges in and out determine the turn. The freeleg and arm placement helps to secure those edges. The core holds it all together. The outer back rocker turn starts on an outer edge, rolling backward. It will end on an outer forward edge. Rocker turns press (or cusp) into the edge you start on, similar to 3-turns. However, rockers end on the same edge (outer to outer or inner to inner) while 3-turns switch edge (outer to inner or inner to outer). You can leave your freeleg where it started during the turn like in figure skating. Or you can bring it in while you turn the foot and snap it back behind you to finish. That method is most commonly used in footwork sequences. Hint hint: I encourage you to work on your edges and one-foot turns to get ready for next month 😉
Backward Pushes: Pushing can be tough. It takes time to really get it under control. Backward pushes can be especially challenging, but there are a few very important things that will make them easier. First, keep your hips back or sitting. This is especially important when learning and getting comfortable with backward skating in general. Next is knee over toes. I say this a lot and I mean it every time! Even when pressing an edge, keep your knee over the toes. And lastly, don’t be ashamed to keep your arms out. Keeping your arms out to each side will help you balance!
Outer Edge Swings: Learning how to press an edge is essential to roller skating and maintaining that edge is the next step. Doing so while bringing your freeleg through to the front or to the back is a very important skill. Skates are heavy and the word “swing” has a strange connotation. When I say swing, I don’t mean to carelessly bring that foot through. A swing in skating is a highly controlled movement. If you feel your skate tapping the ground as you pass it through, flex your foot just a bit when it reaches the side of your skating leg, but point it as much as possible at the beginning of the swing and at the end.
Inner Forward 3-Turn: The Inner Forward 3 turn is a great skill to practice alongside the outer back rocker or before it. If you haven’t checked out all of the turn videos, I highly recommend it. We have a different turn for every edge. The four edges are outer forward, inner forward, outer back, and inner back. The four main types of turns are the 3 turn, bracket, rocker, and counter. the Inner Forward 3 turn ends on an outer back edge and can lead you directly into your outer back rocker turn.
Where to find these videos:
Drills 11: Drills & Workouts page [Link: Website, YouTube]
Outer Back Rocker Turn: Skills page (turns section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Backward Pushes: Skills page (backward skating section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Outer Edge Swings: Skills page (edges section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Inner Forward 3-Turn: Skills page (turns section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Week 4:
Advanced Choreography - Ain’t No Mountain BY Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell
PRACTICE:
Inner Forward 3-Turn (again, it’s a good one!)
Backward Cross Pull
Back Pivot
Advanced Choreography: Fast, fun, and full of skills! I would honestly say that’s my specialty in choreography. I love breaking things down into beginner/intermediate choreography, but I really love throwing it all in there for the advanced. Now would be a good time to let you know or remind you that the advanced choreography is made with performance in mind. If I got a call to perform on stage at a show right now, I would go through the advanced choreography options and perform one of those! With that being said, I do highly encourage everyone to try it out no matter what level you are, just keep the level in mind. Some of the skills used in this choreography: Backward Cross Pull, Outer Back 3 turn, Inner Forward 3 Turn, Down Pivot, Inner Back Edges, and the Corkscrew Spin.
Inner Forward 3-Turn: In our Advanced Choreography, I finish this turn on my toe stop. When practicing this, I highly recommend finishing on the outer back edge. The edge doesn’t need to be super deep, just steady. Three turns switch edge in the actual turn, meaning your weight goes from one side of your skate to the other. In this turn, we will be pressing to the inside of our skate when rolling forward and to the outside of our skate when rolling backward.
Backward Cross PUll: The backward cross pull is one of my favorite ways to gain speed and momentum. You can use one simple backward cross pull to create enough momentum to enter a spin, a jump, or simply change direction. When practicing this skill, I recommend skating in a circle. Do one cross pull after another and try to gain and maintain your speed throughout. Keep your chest up and your body to the inside of your circle to keep going. In our choreography, we move our body at the end of the cross pull. If you want to play with that, check out the choreography and practice that method too.
Back Pivot: One of my favorite showy moves!! Back pivots are fun, but dropping it into a down/low pivot is even more fun and that’s what I do in our Advanced Choreography. Before anyone says they can’t go down and get back up, let me tell you a secret…you can use your hands to help you back up. Do not fret, there’s always a way. And if that’s not working for you, check out the drills section of the membership. I promise that if you continue to do drills (a few a week at least), your strength in skating will improve exponentially. You can do toe pivots without a toe stop, but they are a whole lot easier with a toe stop in. When lowering your knee, take it slow and easy. Be careful with those knees. We need them!
Where to find these videos:
Ain’t No Mountain (Advanced): Choreography page [Link: Website, YouTube]
Inner Forward 3-Turn: Skills page (turns section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Backward Cross PUll: Skills page (backward skating section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Back Pivot: Skills page (toe stops section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
At the end of each month, I want you to take a moment to look back and see how far you’ve come. Did you learn something new? Did you progress? Did you surprise yourself? Do you have new goals for next month? Take a moment, breathe, roll your shoulders back, lift your head high, and tell yourself you’re doing a great job. Because you are.
If you would like to submit your progress for our Community Progress Video, submit your vertical video here. Submissions are due on the last day of each month.
Keep in touch about how you’re feeling. Know that I am right here, practicing all of these things alongside you. It doesn’t matter how new or experienced you are in skating, it is very important for all of us to stay consistent with our drills and practice. I am here to help with technique, movement, and most importantly with motivation.
What was your favorite part of this month? What was the hardest for you? What kept you going? Leave a comment! If you are practicing on instagram, please tag me and #quadsociety! I love to see and share your progress! Lastly, don’t forget about the wonderful community on the Discord. Everything is better with friends!
