October 2023 Practice Schedule
Happy Spooky Season, everyone!!!
The fall recipes are ready, the cozy candles are burning, and the sweaters are out of storage (even though it’s still too hot here to wear those). I used to be a full-time summer girl. I had zero interest in Fall. Wow, was I missing out!!
That’s okay…
I’m making up for lost time. I love celebrating the different seasons. It’s a great time to check in with ourselves and reignite that spark for life.
I know the weather is about to get a little rough for some of us, so let’s soak up all the sun and good skating weather while we can. For those cozy days, skating inside is 10/10. I suggest following it up with some cozy time on the couch and a pumpkin spice something/anything. Treat yourself!
Below is my recommended practice schedule for October 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 7 (Strut Training)
C-Step
PRACTICE:
Backward Scissors
Backward Edges
Dribble/ Slingshot
Drills 7: Drills 7 is all about control. In order to comfortably and confidently transfer our weight from one foot to the other, we need to be in control of our legs. Seems simple, right? Well, we have a weight attached to the end of each leg, so that can make things a bit more difficult. Eventually our skates become an extension of our bodies, but this takes time and lot of focus. I recommend going through Drills 7 at least twice this week. Focus on keeping your body steady and core tight.
C-Step: Speaking of control and transferring weight from one foot to the other…
The c-step is a really fun dance/rhythm move that uses our inner back edges to draw a C on the ground. But the c-step isn’t just about the inner back edge, it is also about getting your weight quickly over the skating foot and learning to lessen the pressure to allow the skate to roll freely. So, for a fun dance move, there is a lot going on. Take it step by step (literally) and please let me know if you would like any extra help.
Backward Scissors: Scissors are one of the first skills we learn in skating. Without even realizing it, we are learning to do inner edges. Backward scissors are used to get comfortable with backward skating and we end up using them a lot in more advanced skills. For example, when you break down the C-Step, you’re really doing backward scissors one foot at a time. Remember to keep your chest up and proud when you are practicing backward scissors. The most common error is bending forward to look at your toes and breaking at the hip. There’s nothing interesting happening down there. No need to look. I do, however, suggest peeking over your shoulder every now and then to make sure you don’t run into anything. Bend those knees!
Backward Edges: The C-Step and backward scissors both use inner back edges. While we use our inner back edges a lot, we can’t forget about our outer back edges! We have an entire section on the website dedicated to backward skating and another dedicated to edges. Make sure to practice both the outer and inner on both legs. You’ll hear me say this a lot and it’s directed to everyone as well as myself…we must always come back to our edges. If there is one thing you practice every time you lace up your skates (no matter what skill level you are at), please have it be edges. The first thing I do when I put my skates on is press an outer forward edge on each foot, then an inner forward edge. I turn around and do it all over again backward. It’s the best way to get warmed up and ready for anything you want to do on skates that day.
Dribble/ Slingshot: The dribble is one of the most-requested skills in skating. It’s a great skill to learn for everyone because it uses two feet, doesn’t take up too much space, and can be done over and over and over again. Seriously, you could replace the elliptical with this move! It’s fantastic! While this skill is done on both feet, it sneakily drills the transfer of weight from one foot to the other. Get some extra practice on those inner edges and turn it into a slingshot. Tighten up your core to help you rotate and add some bounce to the knees. Have fun with it!
Where to find these videos:
Drills 7 - Drills & Workouts page [Link: Website, YouTube]
C-Step - Skills page (edges section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Backward Scissors - Skills page (backward skating section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Backward Edges - Skills page (backward skating section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Dribble/ Slingshot - Skills page (dance section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Week 2:
Beginner/Intermediate Choreography - Goo Goo Muck (from Wednesday) BY The Cramps
PRACTICE:
Two Foot Spin
Inner Forward Heel to Heel Transition
Downtown
Beginner/Intermediate Choreography: In honor of spooky season, we are doing choreography to Goo Goo Muck by The Cramps. This song was used in the dance scene of Netflix’s Wednesday that came out last year. The dance and song were allllll over the internet and sometimes put to Bloody Mary by Lady Gaga! Therefore, the choreography can be done to either song! Try it out and let me know which one you prefer.
We are using a bunch of skills within this choreography to give you some extra technical practice while you have fun. The skills used in the Beginner/Intermediate Choreography are the Heel/ Toe Step, the Two-Foot Spin, Heel to Heel Transitions, and the Downtown. All of these are available in the skills tab/playlist.
Two Foot Spin: Back to those edges! A two foot spin is done with one skate moving backward on an inner back edge and the other rolling forward on an inner forward edge. You don’t have to move super fast on a two-foot spin, so it’s great for all levels. Keep your feet in a wider stance to rotate slowly or pull them in tighter to spin faster. If you really want to speed up your spin, pop up the heel and toe for multiple quick rotations.
Inner Forward Heel to Heel Transition: If you’re not super comfortable with rotating a spin, try heel to heel rotations. Transitions are most commonly used while rolling to turn from forward to backward or backward to forward. However, they can also be used when stationary to turn ourselves around little by little. That’s how we use them for this choreography. The challenge here is to do the steps on beat! Once you get that down, use your hands to add some fun to the move! Keep the knees bent and add a bounce to the beat to spice things up.
Downtown: The downtown is one of my favorite fun skills to do! You can slow it down or make it quick, rotate it, and add spins or footwork to the end of each pass. We do the Downtown a bit slowed down in this choreography, really focusing in on the actual crosses. When the Downtown is sped up, we get a little sloppy (on purpose). Not here. We’re going to keep it nice and clean with a subtle shimmy in the upper body. Because why not?!
Where to find these videos:
Goo Goo Muck (Beginner/Intermediate) - Choreography page [Link: Website, YouTube]
Two Foot Spin - Skills page (spins section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Inner Forward Heel to Heel Transition - Skills page (transition section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Downtown - Skills page (dance section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Week 3:
Drills 12 (Rotation Strength Off Skates)
One Foot Spin (Inner Back Upright)
PRACTICE:
C-Step
More Rotations
Edge Rockover
Drills 12: This drills class is done off-skates, using our skates as weights in our hands. You can use whatever you want as your weights, but it’s pretty damn rewarding to hold your skates and realize how heavy those things are! Lol! Even if you don’t care to spin much on your skates, I highly recommend understanding your body and what it needs to do to be comfortable with rotation. For example, I rely heavily on my core for my rotations. Some people are more comfortable focusing on the knees, others on the arms. We are all different, so it’s up to each one of us to figure out what works best. This type of rotational strength isn’t just used for spins. It’s used in transitions, edges, and jumps as well!
One Foot Spin: A one-foot spin requires attention to the inner back edge, just like the C-Step that we went over earlier this month. In order to take that inner back edge used for the c-step further, we have to keep our shoulders coming around. So, if you’re rotating to your left, keep your left shoulder pulling back and your right shoulder traveling forward. Make sure to get your weight fully over that knee of the leg you’re standing on.
C-Step: All of these skills are so connected and intertwined, so keep practicing that c-step. Try to add a bounce to your knees. Bend more as you plant the foot and try coming up a tiny bit in the knee as you skate the inner back edge. Repeat on each foot!
Spin with More Rotations: Having a hard time getting your spins to go more than a few times around? This can typically be improved by working on your timing and getting different parts of your body to work together. It’s not all about that core. Your head, shoulders, knees, and toes have something to do with it too! Let’s find your center and get your spins as many times around as you want!
Edge Rockover: An edge rockover transitions us from one edge to another - an outer edge moves over to an inner edge and an inner edge transitions to an outer edge. There are a lot of different muscles in our feet and legs that make this possible. Finding which muscles to trigger takes some time, so be nice to yourself when practicing this one. I would file this skill under skating fundamentals, meaning it is important for all skill levels and a skill we should all come back to regularly. Repetition is very important for skills like this no matter how experienced of a skater you are. So, we should all keep practicing those edges, adding in rockovers and body movements to help strengthen our overall skating
Where to find these videos:
Drills 12 - Drills & Workouts page [Link: Website, YouTube]
One Foot Spin - Skills page (turns section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
C-Step - Skills page (edges section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Spin with More Rotations - Skills page (spins section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Edge Rockover - Skills page (edges section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Week 4:
Advanced Choreography - Goo Goo Muck (from Wednesday) BY The Cramps
PRACTICE:
Crab Walk
Downtown (Flow)
Toe Pivot
Advanced Choreography: Just like our Beginner/Intermediate Choreography to this song, our Advanced Choreography uses a myriad of skills: Crab Walk, Downtown, Inner Forward Heel to Heel Transition, One Foot Spin, C-Step, Down Pivot (Toe Pivot), and Body Roll. We have skills videos for each of these in the skills tab/playlist. The steps are fun (duh), but the most interesting part about this choreography to me is the attitude (or lack of attitude). Wednesday is known for being very dead-pan and I tried to embody that throughout the choreography. It was actually super difficult to avoid smiling!!!
Crab Walk: This skill has a lot of names, a lot of variations, and a whole lot of character! The crab walk is a step up from the Heel/Toe Step, so you may want to start there. Moving up from the standard heel/toe step, we will now be adding some movement to travel side to side. You can do this skill off-skates as well! You can even move your feet back and forth to create a more Charleston-esque move!
Downtown (Flow): We’re taking our downtown to a new level and working on adding some fluidity to our steps. I always talk about how the downtown can get a little sloppy when we get comfortable. Sloppy usually has a bad connotation, but I mean that in a good way. When we are able to find our flow within skills, we can allow the technique to get a little loose. Sometimes this is good and sometimes this is bad. For the downtown, this can be a very good thing. When we are able to find our flow, we can make our moves and our rhythm unique. That’s what makes our skating special and sets us apart.
Toe Pivot/ Back Pivot: Toe pivots can be done on the toe wheels or on the toe stop, whichever you prefer. I, personally, love pivoting on my toe stop. You can pivot high, mid, or drop it like it’s hot (this is what I do at the end of the choreography when it says, “you better duck”). Every version is fabulous! The cool thing about dropping a pivot is that you can put your hands on your knee or thigh to help yourself up. There’s often little cheat codes like that. If you’re ever struggling with a skill, don’t be afraid to ask if there’s a cheat code to make things easier. I’m here to help!
Where to find these videos:
Goo Goo Muck (Advanced) - Choreography page [Link: Website, YouTube]
Crab Walk - Skills page (heel-toe section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Downtown (Flow) - Skills page (turns section) [Link: Website, YouTube]
Toe Pivot/ Back Pivot - Skills page (toe stops section) [Link: Website, YouTube Toe Pivot, YouTube Back Pivot]
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!
