I’ll admit, being 48 years old comes with it’s challenges. I’m no longer a spring chicken that can rely on youthful fitness to gracefully execute moves without it hurting, a lot!
Hopefully you’ve gathered by now that I don’t do things the normal way, I like to challenge myself. Over the past 6 months I’ve competed in 2 adult figure skating competitions. I’m relieved it’s done because the build up was brutal! 😫
After a 5 year hiatus, it’s great to finally be back on the ice to compete⛸️ So fun to clinch first place 🥇 in the adult showcase emotional category. Big thanks to my awesome coach and support buddy for pushing me to get back up again, even when it was hard.
Having a goal, pursuing practice and ditching perfection made this performance one of the most relaxed in years! I’ve given up being a control freak and focus of the joy of skating that I first fell in love with. 💗
The reality is, I did my best at the time (which was better than before), but still got me in stone last place. 🥉
This is life! Sometimes you work yourself into exhaustion only to feel like you lost. But what I know for sure, it’s not really a loss, just a new challenge that I need to overcome.😮💨And the most important part is that it’s ME against ME! I’m better today than I was last year so I’m going to celebrate my progress 🎉
I’ll be honest: I pouted and ranted for days of why it was unfair I was placed in a group with 20 year olds half my age! But once I calmed down and reflected, I realized I simply was not up to the standard required. 🥹
I have 2 choices: I can either give up and pull back to justify that I’m “too old” to continue, or I can put in extra work to build my strength and stamina. I know what I’ll choose… 🤩
I’m too stubborn and determined to bow out gracefully because I know I have to give this skating thing a real try. I’ve learned that my strengths are not the high scoring jumps and spins, so I can work on it. I’m going to focus on building muscle strength and refine the flowy dance moves and edges.🩰
But I need to do off ice strength training so I’m going to have to switch my workouts with weights (not what this ex ballerina is used to). Time to stop the age related stiffness, aches and muscle loss before it’s too late.🏋️
It’s a whole new level and a whole new world so say a pray for me! lol 😂
But the good news is that it’s okay, because I learned a ton. I pushed myself past my comfort zones and ripped off the band-aid on my fears! Hope that brings a little inspiration to you as an encouragement to GO FOR IT because you CAN do it!
HERE are the antics I posted on Instagram. Enjoy!
