As the school year comes to a close, many skaters are enrolling in intense summer skating camps. But not all training is done on the rink. To supplement on-ice workouts, athletes and coaches have found out-of-the-box exercises to add an element of fun and creativity into their regime. These fitness classes divert from common go-tos like ballet, yoga, pilates and jump roping. At surface level, trampoline and puppetry may appear unrelated to figure skating, but you'll be surprised to learn just how applicable they are to the sport. Be sure to check back here on the Fan Zone to learn about more off-ice training options throughout the summer!Â
Trampoline
Trampoline is an Olympic sport and is also used as a training apparatus for athletes from other sports such as figure skating, diving and freestyle skiing. As the vice president of Peak Edge Performance, former Team USA pairs skater and 1994 Olympian Karen Courtland Kelly M.A., completely revamped the off-ice offerings to include trampoline training for the Olympic Regional Development Authority in Lake Placid, New York, the site of the 1932 and 1980 Olympic Winter Games and a popular summer training camp destination.
Â
Added in 1996, trampoline training primarily focuses on jump rotations. Skaters develop a heightened body awareness to increase rotations and gain muscle control during jumps. Similar mistakes are made on the ice and trampoline, so it gives athletes another platform to identify and correct these errors.
Â
The bounce and extra air time on a trampoline enables skaters to increase flexibility for split and stag jumps. Additionally, these routines help develop core strength and work their foot and ankle muscles.
Â
Peak Edge Performance Platform
In addition to trampoline, Courtland Kelly also implemented the Peak Edge Performance Platform into the training regime available to skaters in Lake Placid. Designed and patented by Long Island-based physical therapist Dr. David Lipetz, the Peak Edge Performance Platform fires up a skater's neuromuscular alignment from the foot muscles all the way up the spine to the top of the head. Lipetz serves as a consultant to U.S. Figure Skating's Sports Medicine Division and has worked with Olympian Emily Hughes and Team USA member Samantha Cesario.
Â
Most off-ice fitness classes are done barefoot or in sneakers, but skates are worn on the platform to very accurately mimic on-ice body positioning. Skaters can practice spirals, hitting the correct edge for jump takeoffs and landings, extended and standing legs, and bent knees and ankles. A mirror is in the studio, so participants can see their progress and fine-tune positioning without incurring the cost of expensive ice time.
Â
The wooden platform is carved in such a way to help skaters hit proper edges while maintaining upper and lower body alignment. "The platform builds your body symmetrically, your right and left sides, over your boot [and] blade with that precise alignment," explained Courtland Kelly, who is also president of the World Figure Sport Society.
Â
While standing on the platform, skaters hold a light grip on poles for balance and arm positioning. By improving technique and reducing force and torque, athletes will train more efficiently, recover faster and reduce likelihood of injuries. The platform also helps coaches identify nuances, such as if their student is "overbooted" in too stiff a boot, by seeing how the arch muscles are being used and if the ankle is rolling inward.
Â
