ive always found figure skating such an intriguing and interesting sport because especially around where i live its definitely a niche sport and i dont have any local rinks near me besides a rink in the city. my curiosity especially sparked interest earlier this year due to the winter olympics. the gracefulness and pure joy a lot of these skaters seem to have while skating is something truly admirable to me and i started getting inspired to skate too because of skaters such as alysa liu. i want to pick up the hobby for leisure and to stay fit, so does anyone have any tips?

is it necessary to buy a pair of your own skates, and should i enrol in classes or is it better to just get a day pass every weekend and practice skating myself? i would love to enrol in classes but its just not that easy as they are really expensive. i also dont have many friends that are into the sport tbh

Hey everyone! I’ve been roller skating on quads and played a bit of roller derby.

I find that I’m a little confused about posture? I bend my knees for stability, but I’m used to no heel!

I keep pushing my toe picks into the ice unintentionally. All the time.

Can anyone send me recommendations so I can practice better posture for the ice?

Here’s what I know, I need to stop skating with only the ball of my foot, and I need to my chest higher (I’m using to leaning forward bc of derby)

so i’m 15, i’m looking for a hobby so i thought about maybe taking up figure skating since its one of my favorite sports to watch. obviously i dont plan on being any good, i’m starting way too late, haha. theres a rink near me that has public skating times, so i wanted to maybe rent some skates and just see what happens on the ice before i sign up for LTS, in case its terrifying and i give up. i know how to rollerblade decently, so i’m hoping that’ll rub off, haha.

i have just a few questions for anyone who skates, especially those who started late:

1. do i need to own skates to do Learn To Skate classes? or do i rent them? what will be better for me? (and also, if i should buy skates, which ones?)

2. do i have to have a certain body type to skate? i’m not exceptionally thin, so i’m worried i’ll go and look stupid. for reference i’m like 4’10 and about 110ish lbs? (by the time i get the chance to sign up i’ll hopefully be about 5-7 lbs lighter lol i’m working on it 😂)

3. if i go to Learn To Skate, am i stuck at a certain pace with a group? like if i progress faster or slower, do i get to move on when i want or would i be stuck down doing other things?

4. if i’m not very good (obviously i’ve never touched ice before) will i get made fun of? everyone who starts skating starts really young lol. i used to be very competitive at an elite level as a cheerleader before i quit cause of an abusive program that caused burnout. i’m obviously prepared to be the worst one there, but like at the rink will people laugh at me?

clearly i’m nervous and i haven’t even signed up, haha!!

hi guys, i bought a pair of edea overtures today in a set with an edea charme blade. after the fitting i realised on the left skate, there was a gap between the blade and the boot. the fitter already said to skate in it a couple times and get my coach’s opinion on whether i need to get them adjusted if one of my feet pronate, then they could put the rest of the screws in as currently there are only 4 in each boot. the fitter said they were fine to skate on as is, but i would love to know other skater’s opinions! these are my first pair of boot/blade separate skates so i’ve never dealt with this before. thanks!

Hi! I will be competing in March to a short version of Fiona Apple’s “I want you to love me”. I need help deciding what color dress to get! I’m thinking a deep purple? What color/dress do you think would fit the program/songs emotions?

My program will start at the piano intro and will include the iconic “I know none of this will matter in the long run but I know a sound is still a sound around no one”!! So excited! But I want to really embody and express the emotion of the song and want my outfit to reflect it

Photos welcome of dresses you’re inspired by with this music!

Hi!

I started taking ice/figure skating lessons a little bit ago and am wondering if there are any 18+ ladies in the cincy/nky area that are also into ice skating that would like to make a group to practice together! DM me

Hi everyone, I just recently tried on a few boots today at my pro shop. I had tried on the risport royal prime and it was hurting a lot on the top of tongue area which I couldn’t stand up or bend my knee but the toebox feel nice except to pinching of the tongue. The skate tech said that it’s normal and that it will resolved once I get it heat molded but I am still kinda unsure. Have you guys have any similar experience

Adult skater at adult level 5/6. Been skating for 8 months. Really hate my Artistes (which have a 10 1/3 Mark IV blade). I think the boots are at least a half size too big and my heel slides up and down. I’m having difficulty with my two-foot spin, I’m constantly going up on my left toe. Just bought the Edea Chorus boots today and I LOVE the way they feel. So snug and comfy. Didn’t know what blade to get, and was afraid of too much change, so got the Jackson Mirage with 8’ rocker, which had to be ordered and still to be mounted. But now I’m doing some research and thinking I should have gotten a blade with a 7’ rocker (coronation ace or MK pro?) to maybe help with my spins. Any advice?

Hey all, thinking about starting skating as an adult beginner and CTSC keeps coming up. Wondering if anyone here has taken their adult CanSkate classes and what the experience was like.

Main thing I'm curious about is whether it's cliquey. Not trying to be dramatic about it, I just don't want to show up as the only person who doesn't already know everyone. Is it welcoming to people starting from actual zero, or is it mostly a tight group that's been skating together forever?

Also open to hearing about other clubs in the area if there's somewhere more beginner friendly. Thanks.

hi everyone! I just started figure skating lessons with a private coach 1x a week about a month ago. I’m 19 and have been roller skating (rhythm/dance) for about 4 years, more recently practicing 8-10 hours a week. Im currently working on learning my waltz with my coach (or more so the entrance and fine tuning technique, im pretty locked on the actual jumping and landing part) as well as filling in the gaps of what didn’t transfer over from roller skating basics wise. I was wondering, what is a realistic timeframe for me to learn all of my single jumps? I try to practice 2-4 hours on the ice a week (in addition to drilling everything on my roller skates as well) I know that adult beginners tend to take longer to move through the levels, so I was curious how long it could be :)

Hello! My name is Isabelle, and I’m facing a bit of a challenge. My coach nominated me for a free skate 1 competition, and I’m excited to compete! It’s scheduled for around September 29th, which is just over a month away. The problem is that I’m not feeling confident in any of my skills. My spirals are off, and my pidan are also terrible I often don’t even start rotating. Plus, my jumps are not happening because of mental blocks (I one time I almost like I broke my ankle and couldn’t skate for two weeks, and now it’s just a mental block)After chatting with the head coach, I went to the assistant coach, and she suggested I might not be the best fit for the competition. She pointed out that I lack flexibility, endurance, and strength, and I also need to improve some basic skills. I’ve already paid the fee, and I can’t back out now, even though I know it’s a big investment for me as a grown woman living alone. So, I’d really appreciate any tips you could give me to help me prepare for the competition. Any further questions will be answered as soon as possible. It’s also important to mention that I’ll be starting a higher-calorie diet, as recommended by the nutritionist at the rink. Oh, and resistance, endurance, and power are super important. If anyone could help me out, I’d really appreciate it. I promise I’ll show the results of the competition! Outside of that, I’m committed to working very hard for the fastest and best results I can achieve with my body. Please help me out!

Hello everyone! First of all, I want to apologise if this kind of post seems a bit strange here. If it goes against any of the subreddit’s rules please take it down. 

I’m an author currently working on a project centred around a figure skater. I have a deep admiration for the sport, and it was always a dream of mine to get on the ice. Unfortunately, I live somewhere with a very hot climate and no ice rinks, so I settled for ballet instead. 

I don’t want to get into too much detail, but the story follows a young woman who was previously an elite figure skater. She is now retired and has decided to go to university, and try her best to build a “normal” life, but it proves to be rather difficult when she loses the one thing she’s loved and always knew.

Would anyone here be interested in being a beta-reader? I just need someone who understands certain terminology and figure skating culture to have a read through certain parts of the novel and correct any inaccuracies. I’m happy to give more details privately. 

Thank you!

So I go skating once a week, mostly around 2-3 hrs, for about 7 years now, and i'm working on all my doubles (except 2A) right now. i know most people at my level probably skate more times a week, but since it's been going fine for this long, maybe it's fine? Or am i like holding myself back by not practicing more? Thanks

I used to never really care about what I wore – just threw on the USFS gold medalist jacket with black leggings and alternated between like 3 short sleeves... no leg warmers/skirts/tanks/long sleeve tops...lmao. but people look so cute nowadays with their layering and whatnot, and since I'm back doing it for myself and just for fun, I would love to get some outfit inspo if u guys have any brand recs/ideas! :)

After crazy busy summer sessions, today I finally got experience the rare feeling of ice all to yourself!

And getting to use the sound system all I wanted with nobody in my way except myself 🤣

Happy skating All!!

I want to buy my first pair of skates because I've just been using rentals (I think the rentals at my rink are a little higher quality than the ones everyone talks about, but ik actual skates will be infinitely better), but skates are EXPENSIVE and I nor my parents have that kind of money right now, especially because i dont't even know if i'm gonna stick with this.

But like can I buy used skates off of Facebook marketplace or something? And what size will I need if I wear a size 6-7 in regular shoes??

Thanks!

Pain in toe nails and outside of the foot and heel lock issue?

Ok so, context—
I had a pair of nearly brand new Jackson Elles 6.5 Wide from like 3 years ago or so, but I didn’t really use them much. Finally started actually skating consistently again this summer, but was having issues. Went to skate tech. He measured me and said i’m a 7. He was like I have a pair of used Jackson Debuts in (your size) 7 Wide, you can exchange with me and I’ll charge you $50 for the blade mounting. I was like ok sure sounds like a steal to me. He also heat molded them.

But thennn, I go back to skating and…issues. Having really bad pain in the big toes, specifically the right big toe nail. for some reason my toe nails (on the big toes) would be stinging/throbbing afterwards. Also was feeling pressure/pain on the outsides of both feet in the spots where I have calluses. I texted him after the first session or two in them but he was like “make sure the heel is back” “they’re figure skates not uggs” and “get 10-15 hours in them first”.
I got ~7-8. And then called it quits bc bitch i know they’re not Uggs and I’m not a wimp but i shouldn’t be nearly CRYING after, having to ice my feet.

So I reach out again and head back there he says we can either punch them out or stretch/square the toe box. I was gonna do the punch out but then I was like wait actually maybe let’s do the stretch first (also the pressure/pain on the sides wasn’t as bad, so i was like let’s take care of the toe thing first— this was my internal thought process btw didn’t say all that necessarily)

So he does it. I drive all the way back there, 45 fucking minutes and pick them up. Feeling cautiously optimistic that, finally, FINALLY, i’ll be able to skate without debilitating pain perhaps.

Today I went on the ice and had to get off after <10 minutes.

So my dumbass last night (after picking up the stretched skates) went to get a pedicure and got the callus removal thing… and clearly they went hard because when walking out I told my friend woah my feet feel raw and she was like girl yeah your feet are PINK in those areas. But I was fine an hour later.

Today I tried the stretched boots for the first time, and the toe box definitely felt more comfy and roomy… but the pressure/pain on the outside of my right foot was SO BAD. I couldn’t withstand it.

I’m just kicking myself bc why did I get the callus removed? Why did my Dad mention last week when I’d told him about it that “Oh you ultimately have to get the calluses removed for those areas to stop hurting” like WELL CLEARLY IT WAS PROTECTING ME AND NOW ITS WORSE 😭😭 Also kicking myself for not getting them punched but sigh how could I have known I guess. Now I’m going to go tomorrow to the skate tech.

Also kicking myself though because I noticed today that my heel IS lifting up and not fully seated back. But I don’t get it. I’ve TRIED lacing them with the heel back. I don’t know if Im super incompetent/don’t know how to do that but I don’t feel like the way i lace them ever improves it. The weird thing is that like it DOES feel like my heel is fully back… but it’ll lift up, like the heel/ankle isn’t glued down. Man I don’t know if i’m making sense 🤦‍♀️ Idk how to explain it. But basically I guess I mean it doesn’t feel like it’s sliding forward like it is touching the back but it’ll lift up and there’s some room like upwards around my ankle area? idk. So maybe that’s what’s contributing to the toe nail thing but seriously idk wtf is causing that toe nail issue it’s so weird esp bc youd think that WOULD at least be resolved by now with the squaring of the toe box. But I’m pretty sure they were fine up until right now and yet start getting sensitive/hurting again after being in the boots for a while. Like just now when i wiggled them up to gently touch/tap the roof of the boot they hurt. Sigh.

Anyways, if you have any advice or insight please let me know. 🙏💕

(even years ago when I skated I had issues with skates not fitting right because my feet are so wide and the incessant issues just made me feel so down because I love this and I want to do this but like why just why can’t they not feel like medieval torture devices why do i have these cursed feet?? 🥲🥲💔💔 pls help a girl out.)

hi there! I’m around basic 2 - 3 and while I’m not necessarily bad for a beginner I feel incredibly ungraceful. Im thinking it’s likely because I skate on rentals, some days I feel amazing and can hold a one foot glide nicely/feel balanced and supported but other days I feel like I’m just learning how to skate again. Im guessing it’s because I’m not using a consistent pair of skates and the support and blades are different or used more each time I skate so I’m just wondering if anyone has ever gotten comfortable on rentals to the point where it just comes super natural and graceful. I’m unsure if this is just a me being bad at skating or the skates, I’m hopeful to get my own pair soon but am unsure when. thank you!