Figure skating strength and conditioning expert Elizabeth Mullins continues an off-ice class for figure skaters, focusing on athlete strength and mobility and coordination/balance. In this kind of class, the order of exercises is important so make sure to watch Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. In this video, Elizabeth shares just one new exercise, but this is clearly challenging for the skaters so it’s worth seeing the demonstrations and explanations.
The exercise is a version of a side shuffle (as used in Part 3) but has very specific details in terms of steps and pushes. The athlete starts on one foot and pushes aggressively into a side shuffle and lands, then hops twice on the trailing foot, pushes aggressively into another side shuffle and lands, then hops twice on the lead foot, switches feet again and hops three times on the trailing foot before pushing into another side shuffle. The process can continue building the number of hops as the athlete moves sideways across the floor. Elizabeth explains there is no negative movement so all movement is in one sideways direction. She also says, “Your last ground contact is an attack to evade and get away.” This is her way of explaining this aggressive sideways movement. The goal is to build speed and power across the floor but maintain the increasing floor contact count.
This is a challenging exercise because it requires cognitive focus, and the athlete cannot rely on simply repeating previous movements. Notice how many of these athletes want to have negative movement, as the simple step down in place is unnatural after the previous sideways explosive movement. The demonstration at 2:44 in the video is probably the cleanest example for reference.
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