This is Part 3 of iCoachSkating founder Trevor Laak’s interview with International coach Lorie Charbonneau about the remote off-ice program she has set up for her skaters and coaches during the coronavirus lockdown. International coach Chris Conte who is part… Continue reading
Figure skating coach Kate Charbonneau provides an off-ice warmup intended to move different parts of the body through a range of motion. The idea is to get the skater ready for more intense off-ice exercises, or it can be used… Continue reading
This is Part 2 of iCoachSkating founder Trevor Laak’s interview with International coach Lorie Charbonneau about the remote off-ice program she has set up for her skaters and coaches during the coronavirus lockdown. International coach Chris Conte who is part… Continue reading
iCoachSkating founder Trevor Laak encourages all skaters to buy a spinboard from spin specialist Kim Ryan. Kim has pioneered the use of spinboards for off-ice spin training, and she has been using these tools regularly with skaters from all over… Continue reading
In this video, iCoachSkating founder Trevor Laak interviews International coach Lorie Charbonneau about the remote off-ice program she has set up for her skaters and coaches during the coronavirus lockdown. International coach Chris Conte who is part of Lorie’s team… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Nick Perna walks us through a remote off-ice video jump lesson. We can’t hear what Nick is saying to his skater, but he talks over the entire lesson with detailed information about what is going… Continue reading
Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen reminds us that Champion Cords are a great addition to an off-ice workout. A large number of coaches and skaters have Champion Cords (or you can order then here) so it makes sense to… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Nick Perna walks us through a remote off-ice video jump lesson. We can’t hear what Nick is saying to his skater, but he talks over the entire lesson with detailed information about what is going… Continue reading
Figure skating strength and conditioning expert Matthew Blair Davis shares an at-home off-ice balance and core workout that everyone can do in their homes during the coronavirus lockdown. He is joined in the video by his daughter who demonstrates… Continue reading
Figure skating strength and conditioning expert Matthew Blair Davis shares an at-home off-ice strength workout that everyone can do in their homes during the coronavirus lockdown. He is joined in the video by his daughter who demonstrates the exercises.… Continue reading
For more information about iCoachSkating’s plan to address the lack of ice and issues associated with social distancing and community-wide and nation-wide lockdowns resulting from the coronavirus, please click on the appropriate link below. COACHES: Coaches, Please Click Here… Continue reading
Figure skating coach and certified strength and conditioning expert Kristina Anderson explains the importance of massaging the feet. Skaters (and coaches!) spend a significant amount of time in their skates, which are very restrictive in terms of foot movement. Normal… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Jeremy Allen continues his discussion of head anchoring for jump take-offs (see Part 1 here). In particular, he offers more insights about the head with respect to the jump direction, or the momentum of the… Continue reading
Moves in the field and skating skills expert Karen Olson continues her presentation on choctaws and in particular, the Junior USFS Moves in the Field Choctaw Sequence. Some of the information in this video is independent of the moves pattern… Continue reading
Figure skating coach Kate Charbonneau continues a multi-part series where she shows a complete 20 minute warm-up edge class. Kate has her skaters start slow and then she picks up the pace, both with the skating and the music for… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Nick Perna continues his series of videos discussing and explaining the prints left on the ice for various jumps. In this video he discusses the double and triple loop jump print. Other videos in this… Continue reading
Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen continues her series on using a stationary off-ice harness for air position and rotation training for figure skating jumps. In Part 1, Sheila discussed basic setup and safety issues. In Part 2, Sheila explained… Continue reading
Coach Amy Brolsma shares a valuable tip for skaters working on advanced turns and twizzles. Many skaters struggle with core stability when learning advanced turns like rockers and counters as well as twizzles. Having objects or toys to hold with… Continue reading
Coaches Stephanie Bass and Tiffany McNeil of The Strategic Method continue their discussion of the IJS protocol sheet. In Part 1 of this series, they offered an overview of the IJS protocol sheet. In this video, they talk at length… Continue reading
Spin specialist Charyl Brusch continues a spin lesson with a young skater. In the previous part of the lesson, Charyl focused on the upright forward and back spins. In this part of the lesson, Charyl starts with the sit spin.… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Michelle Leigh offers insights and suggestions for how coaches can help skaters more quickly process bad skating experiences, from bad practices (or even parts of a practice) to poor competition performances. She notes right at the… Continue reading
Coaches Stephanie Bass and Tiffany McNeil of The Strategic Method offer an overview of the IJS protocol sheet that is generated for every performance in an International Judging System (IJS) event. NOTE: IJS information is always changing. This information… Continue reading
International figure skating coach Page Lipe offers insights about what to say and do with a skater in the final moments before they take the ice to compete. This is a follow up to the presentation Page made on choreographing… Continue reading
Figure skating coach and certified strength and conditioning expert Kristina Anderson continues her discussion of self-massage techniques and tools for addressing muscle tightness and soreness. In Part 1, she shared a short routine or flow pattern for using a foam… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Kori Ade shares some coaching tips that can really help skaters who continue to make the same mistakes or are unwilling for whatever reason to “take a chance” on creating new physical movement patterns. This information… Continue reading
Figure skating spin specialist Kim Ryan continues a flying sit spin lesson with a skater who is familiar with the element but not proficient. In Part 1, Kim covered the entrance and initial fly, including arms and the leg tuck.… Continue reading
International coach Chris Conte continues a double salchow lesson. In Part 1 of this lesson, Chris focused on control of the entry and then the timing and rhythm of the take-off movements. In this video, Chris discusses the arms in… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Jeremy Allen offers detailed insights about head position and movement during the final moments of a jump take-off. Like most elite coaches, Jeremy advocates head anchoring where the head remains still with respect to the… Continue reading
Moves in the field and skating skills expert Karen Olson continues her presentation on choctaws and in particular, the Junior USFS Moves in the Field Choctaw Sequence. The information in this video is independent of the moves pattern and is… Continue reading
Figure skating coach Kate Charbonneau shares a helpful exercise to develop stopping skills (on both feet), knee action and rhythm, and upper body control. As Kate notes, this exercise is fun and skaters will enjoy learning it and performing it… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Audrey Weisiger gives a beginning axel lesson to a young skater. This video is a continuation of a previous video where Audrey and this skater worked on air position issues and back spins (which are also… Continue reading
International coach Nick Perna continues his series of videos discussing and explaining the prints left on the ice for various jumps. In this video he discusses the double and triple toe loop from a forward inside three turn entrance. Nick… Continue reading
Coach Amy Brolsma shares a valuable tip for helping skaters at every level improve their skating skills and their turns. By using objects or toys that the skater can hold with both hands, the coach can reduce the uncontrolled arm… Continue reading
Two-time World Ice Dance Medalists Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue teach a backward crossover drill in high Kilian. The purpose of this drill is to develop the correct up and down timing of the knees and match partner movements, as… Continue reading
Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen continues her series on using a stationary off-ice harness for air position and rotation training for figure skating jumps. In Part 1, Sheila discussed basic setup and safety issues. In Part 2, Sheila explained… Continue reading
Spin specialist Charyl Brusch gives one of her skaters a lesson on improving a forward upright scratch spin as well as a backspin. This kind of lesson is important because once a skater develops some competence with these spins, the… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Michelle Leigh discusses 3 distinct issues that coaches face when working on jumps with their skaters. The first issue is when skaters simply don’t seem willing to set aside any time off the ice to watch… Continue reading
Figure skating coach and certified strength and conditioning expert Kristina Anderson talks about foam rolling as a way for skaters to speed recovery and avoid injuries or chronic tightness. This is the first video in a series on myofascial release… Continue reading
In this short video, World and Olympic coach Kori Ade reviews her skater’s program spins and offers insights and suggestions. This is a continuation of a previous video on program improvement. The first spin is a spin in one position.… Continue reading
International coach Chris Conte gives a double salchow lesson. To start the lesson, he focuses on the forward outside three turn entry, and in particular, getting the free foot either on or even outside the tracing (but not inside) to… Continue reading
Figure skating spin specialist Kim Ryan gives a flying sit spin lesson to a skater who is familiar with the element but not proficient. After having the skater attempt one as a baseline for the lesson, Kim has the skater… Continue reading
Moves in the field and skating skills expert Karen Olson begins a presentation on choctaws and in particular, the Junior USFS Moves in the Field Choctaw Sequence. As we’ve come to expect from Karen, she begins by breaking down more… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Jeremy Allen continues his description and demonstration of what actually happens on a jump landing. In Part 1 he provided a detailed analysis of double, triple, and quad jump landings. In Part 2 he provided… Continue reading
Figure skating coach Kate Charbonneau begins a multi-part series where she shows a complete 20 minute warm-up edge class. Kate has her skaters start slow and then she picks up the pace, both with the skating and the music for… Continue reading
Coach Amy Brolsma continues her presentation on a sequence of warm-up drills that she uses as an on-ice warmup with her skaters. The primary goal is to get the skaters moving and fully warmed up, but coaches can also monitor… Continue reading
International coach Nick Perna continues a presentation on the print left on the ice by a good double or triple salchow. In Part 1 of this presentation, Nick talked at length about the print and the salchow technique needed to… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Audrey Weisiger is giving a lesson to a young skater who is struggling with straightening the legs. We spend so much time in figure skating telling skaters to bend the knees that we sometimes forget to… Continue reading
International figure skating coach Page Lipe explains how she typically choreographs the “skating” between when a skater’s name is called and when the skater takes the starting pose prior to a competition program. As Page notes, there is a maximum… Continue reading
Two-time World Ice Dance Medalists Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue teach the very common ice show partner spin which is sometimes referred to as the eagle spin or spread eagle spin. And although this is not a serious figure skating… Continue reading
Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen continues her series on using a stationary off-ice harness for air position and rotation training for figure skating jumps. In Part 1, Sheila discussed basic setup and safety issues. In Part 2, Sheila explained… Continue reading
Spin specialist Charyl Brusch continues her thorough discussion of the sit spin. In Part 1 she talked at length about important fundamentals of the sit spin. In this video she shares tons of tips and insights and problem solutions. Charyl… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Michelle Leigh talks about the challenges and decision process she uses when skaters need to make a major technique change for their jumps. As she notes, sometimes major changes are necessary when coaches get a new… Continue reading
Figure skating coach and certified strength and conditioning expert Kristina Anderson continues her discussion of hip mobility. In the previous videos (Part 1 and Part 2) she covered warm up, testing, and activation exercises for the hips. Many skaters, however,… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Kori Ade is working with one of her skaters. She begins the lesson by analyzing the skater’s daily skating diary to identify problems with the program that might need to be fixed. For this kind of… Continue reading
During a camel spin lesson with spin specialist Kim Ryan, the skater complained of a tight or painful low back. As Kim demonstrates, this is often a result of tight hamstring muscles. Kim shares several stretches that can improve back… Continue reading
International coach Chris Conte shares a system he uses when developing a new double jump. He begins with a Baby Bear which is a walk-through of the double jump. [Editor’s note: Chris demonstrates a Mama Bear at the beginning of… Continue reading
Moves in the field and skating skills expert Karen Olson offers insights and tips for the Backward Rocker Choctaw Sequence pattern from the USFS Novice Moves in the Field test. She begins acknowledging that many skaters struggle on this move… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Jeremy Allen continues his description and demonstration of what actually happens on a jump landing. In Part 1 he provided a detailed analysis of double, triple, and quad jump landings. In this video, he provides… Continue reading
Coach Amy Brolsma continues her presentation on a sequence of warm-up drills that she uses as an on-ice warmup with her skaters. The primary goal is to get the skaters moving and fully warmed up, but coaches can also monitor… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Audrey Weisiger gives a lesson where she focuses primarily on fixing one bad jump habit. The bad habit for this skater is dropping the body or wiggling with the upper body on landing. This is a… Continue reading
International coach Nick Perna discusses the print left on the ice by a good double or triple salchow. This video is related to Nick’s other presentations on jump prints such as axel prints and landing prints. In this video, he… Continue reading
Two-time World Ice Dance Medalists Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue share a fun and helpful partner exercise intended to build partner connection and control while also demonstrating how speed and power can be achieved with and without push with a… Continue reading
Figure skating coach Kate Charbonneau begins a multi-part series where she shows a complete 20 minute warm-up edge class. Kate has her skaters start slow and then she picks up the pace, both with the skating and the music for… Continue reading
Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen continues her series on using a stationary off-ice harness for air position and rotation training for figure skating jumps. In Part 1, Sheila discussed basic setup and safety issues. In Part 2, Sheila explains… Continue reading
Spin specialist Charyl Brusch shares important details and tips for the sit spin. This is a great summary of common teaching errors, and how Charyl thinks about this spin. The sit spin is still often taught to skaters with the… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Michelle Leigh discusses the challenges of helping skaters work through fear issues associated with certain aspects of skating. She mentions the common fears of skating fast, jumping high, falling, and the fear of not succeeding. As… Continue reading
Figure skating coach and certified strength and conditioning expert Kristina Anderson continues her discussion of hip mobility. In the previous video, she explained the importance of hip mobility and offered a series of exercises to warm up and engage the… Continue reading
International figure skating coach Page Lipe continues her discussion of the salchow. In the previous video, she discussed free leg and skating leg movements, as well as where the skater’s center of mass needs to be relative to the skating… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Kori Ade continues a double axel lesson. The first part of this lesson is here. In this video, Kori uses a wide variety of coaching techniques and teaching methods to help this skater. She begins… Continue reading
Spin specialist Kim Ryan continues a camel spin lesson with a young male skater. In the previous videos of this lesson, Kim worked on a forward upright scratch spin and the basics of the camel spin. There is not a… Continue reading
In this video, International coach Chris Conte gives a power lesson to a skater at a seminar. Chris begins this lesson having the skater press away from the barrier with just the hands and arms, first with lots of bending… Continue reading
Moves in the field and skating skills expert Karen Olson talks at length about blade usage in turns, and she demonstrates drills to help skaters master the necessary rocking on the blade. Few skaters have complete mastery of their blades,… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Jeremy Allen describes in detail what happens during a jump landing and shares drills to help skaters land correctly. He starts by explaining that skaters need to have forward body lean when landing their jumps… Continue reading
Coach Amy Brolsma shares a sequence of warm-up drills that she uses as an on-ice warmup with her skaters. The primary goal is to get the skaters moving and fully warmed up, but coaches can also monitor the warm-up to… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Audrey Weisiger gives a fast-paced double flip lesson to a skater who can land the jump but is having problems with consistency and air position. Audrey covers a lot of ground and touches on jump direction,… Continue reading
International coach Nick Perna talks about jump landing prints and what they mean. This video is related to Nick’s other presentations on jump prints such as axel prints. Nick begins this discussion with typical landing prints for under-rotated and down-graded… Continue reading
Two-time World Ice Dance Medalists Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue share a valuable exercise for improving power and stability. This exercise is simple and well-known, but Zach and Madison offer insights on how to do it well. The idea is… Continue reading
Figure skating coach Kate Charbonneau continues her discussion of an on-ice warm-up routine and additional warm-up exercises that she covered in Part 1. In this video, she discusses the importance of pressing the shoulders against the hips (twisting). Skaters that… Continue reading
Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen continues her series on using a stationary off-ice harness for air position and rotation training for figure skating jumps. In Part 1, Sheila discussed basic setup and safety issues. [NOTE: Sheila is the President… Continue reading
In this short video, spin specialist Charyl Brusch talks about a variety of toe concepts for spins. She begins the video by addressing where to step into a backspin from a forward spin and noting that she does not typically… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Michelle Leigh talks about the very common problem of skaters who avoid working on certain skills that they really need to work on for overall success in their skating. Michelle notes that coaches can really help… Continue reading
Figure skating coach and certified strength and conditioning expert Kristina Anderson offers exercises and insights regarding hip mobility for figure skaters. She begins by explaining why hip mobility (strength and range of motion) is so important. It helps prevent injury… Continue reading
International figure skating coach Page Lipe offers some tips and insights for salchow jump development. One very common problem with the salchow is when skaters balance on the backward entry/take-off edge with their head outside the circle or tracing the… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Kori Ade gives a skater a double axel lesson and begins by having the skater draw the entry and take-off pattern on the ice. Here Kori is using a forward edge where the skater steps directly… Continue reading
Figure skating spin specialist Kim Ryan gives a camel spin lesson to a young male skater. In a previous video, Kim worked with this same skater on upright forward scratch spin. We begin this video with a camel spin attempt… Continue reading
Moves in the field and skating skills expert Karen Olson discusses the backward outside three turn. This is a continuation of Karen’s series of videos focused on issues faced by adult skaters, but the information in this video is applicable… Continue reading
International coach and choreographer Chris Conte continues his series of videos where he shares a process of off-ice training techniques for developing the double axel. In the first video of this series, he shared drills and concepts to develop the… Continue reading
Coach Amy Brolsma continues her discussion of the butterfly. In the first part of this discussion, Amy shared a detailed step by step approach to learning/teaching the butterfly. In this video, she offers more insights, covering a wide range of… Continue reading
International coach and jump specialist Jeremy Allen offers more insights about jump air position as used by elite skaters. In two previous videos Jeremy talked about jumping with arms above the head and core positioning and head anchoring. In… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Audrey Weisiger continues her series of videos on the topic of competition preparation. In the first video of the series, Audrey addressed the competition planning process. In the second video, she focused on determining “the purpose… Continue reading
Figure skating coach Kate Charbonneau shares an on-ice warm-up routine and additional warm-up exercises. Skaters can use this to warm-up the body and joints and build edge control, deeper knee bend, and range of motion prior to jumping and spinning.… Continue reading
International coach Nick Perna continues his discussion of the axel jump. In a related video, Nick described in detail an axel setup he uses and the print left on the ice from a good axel take-off. In this video,… Continue reading
Two-time World Ice Dance Medalists Madison Hubbell and Zach Donohue teach a class on the foundational details of partner skating, and in particular, basic stroking with a partner. For those interested in partner skating (pairs or ice dance), there is… Continue reading
Figure skating specialist coach Sheila Thelen begins a series of videos on using a stationary off-ice harness for air position and rotation training for figure skating jumps. Sheila is the President of Champion Skating Harness which offers some of the… Continue reading
Spin specialist Charyl Brusch offers a short discussion on dizziness and spinning. As Charyl notes, basically EVERYONE gets dizzy while spinning. So the goal isn’t to try not to get dizzy, but figure out ways to deal with it after… Continue reading
This follow-up video on the walley jump is presented by International figure skating coach Page Lipe. In Part 1 she explained how she introduces and teaches the walley, with important insights and demonstrations. In this video, she continues with additional… Continue reading
World and Olympic coach Michelle Leigh offers valuable insights for coaches on how to handle the last moments before a skater takes their starting pose at a competition. She explains that this is one of her favorite coaching moments in… Continue reading
Figure skating strength and conditioning expert Kristina Anderson shares a short off-ice warm-up intended to be used prior to on-ice training. The purpose of this kind of warm-up is to have the skater’s muscles go through a range-of-motion and get… Continue reading