Tonight I was determined to lift my left leg. As we were skating warm up laps I lifted it a few times but I couldn't figure out what to do with it after (serious duh moment). One of the other fresh meat girls congratulated me and when I said "yeah but what do I do now?" she matter-of-factly stated to just push off on it like I do with my right.
I still feel like I pushed more with my right leg, but throughout the night I used my left leg a lot.
Practice tonight was faster paced, and more intense than usual, and we were grouped together with the veteran skaters for the whole night. One of the best things about tonight was that we got to learn to hit! It was awesome to actually try to hit someone, and to land the hits! (When I say I hit, I mean shoulder checks and hip checks). As fun as it was, it was difficult to concentrate on all the little pieces that go into hitting- skating, keeping yourself low and keeping balance, maintaining speed with your partner, and landing a solid legal hit. (NO ELBOWS).But I know with practice I will be able to get it all together without having to think about each little part.
One thing I noticed is that I really need to work on my endurance. My legs are sorer than they have been after any previous practice, and I made myself take a few breaks during practice to rest them (as well as to drink more than a gallon of water). I don't know how some of the other skaters can make it through an entire practice with just a small water bottle. Maybe I need to start drinking a ton of water during the day before getting to practice.
Now I must go shower and put some icy hot on my legs.
You did really well tonight! I had fun bumping with you, I can see how hard you're working.
ReplyDeleteGood for you for taking less breaks, that's a great way to increase your endurance. I try not to stop unless my body really can't go any farther then give myself a good standard break. Try to stay standing when you break too, it's easier to breathe. H20 is now you're best friend! Try to drink as much as possible during the day. There have been studies shown that people who exercise with water do about 20% better than people who exercise without.
Keep it up pretty lady! ;D
~DM~