what you wish you knew about learning a program

[sk8chis]

hihihiiii. just wondering for those of y’all who feel they have a good grasp on the art of starting/running programs and choreo… what advice would you give to a newbie or give to yourself when you were just starting or before it clicked for you?

i feel like they’re so much to work on and fix it can be a little overwhelming. I’m just wondering if there is any more insight besides “it just gets easier with time/the more you do it ” advice lol bc yeah, but also…what and/or how made it easier? (i.e. breathing, not rushing elements, practicing choreo off ice, running your program in sections, etc?). i’m not really sure how to practice programs to improve or like what to keep in mind.

for more pinpointed issues: awkwardness, how to get better at choreo/artistry, not rushing/thinking about the next thing i have to do which ends up me messing up the thing i’m currently doing :3 etc

i just started my first program woot woot i know all the steps and choreo pretty much i just feel like….i look like i’m doing calculus in my head lol and i am not good at calculus lol

 

[kolyadafan2002]

hihihiiii. just wondering for those of y’all who feel they have a good grasp on the art of starting/running programs and choreo… what advice would you give to a newbie or give to yourself when you were just starting or before it clicked for you?

i feel like they’re so much to work on and fix it can be a little overwhelming. I’m just wondering if there is any more insight besides “it just gets easier with time/the more you do it ” advice lol bc yeah, but also…what and/or how made it easier? (i.e. breathing, not rushing elements, practicing choreo off ice, running your program in sections, etc?). i’m not really sure how to practice programs to improve or like what to keep in mind.

for more pinpointed issues: awkwardness, how to get better at choreo/artistry, not rushing/thinking about the next thing i have to do which ends up me messing up the thing i’m currently doing :3 etc

i just started my first program woot woot i know all the steps and choreo pretty much i just feel like….i look like i’m doing calculus in my head lol and i am not good at calculus lol

I might add more advice later, but remember you can have a base of a program then build it with more transitions and arms etc.
The best way to get on top of a program is to run it. A lot. To start with don't even need to do the jumps/spins. Once you've got everything fine, then you can do sections etc to work on them. Before then, try run a whole program without elements once or twice per day.

Once it's in muscle memory, it'll be more automatic so then you can refine choreography better. After you've got on top of it, run a program every day with spins and jumps and steps when possible, and work on the more difficult sections. Run it with mistakes (don't just stop when you make errors) as this is good training for competition.

 

[WednesdayMarch]

Great advice there.

I'd just add that it helps enormously if you choose music that really, really, really makes you want to dance. It helps so much with the artistic interpretation side. Plus, if you know the music forwards, backwards and inside out, you'll find it easier to make it up if you forget what you're doing or "go wrong". (Nobody else, with the possible exception of your coach, will know any different...)

 

[sk8chis]

I might add more advice later, but remember you can have a base of a program then build it with more transitions and arms etc.
The best way to get on top of a program is to run it. A lot. To start with don't even need to do the jumps/spins. Once you've got everything fine, then you can do sections etc to work on them. Before then, try run a whole program without elements once or twice per day.

Once it's in muscle memory, it'll be more automatic so then you can refine choreography better. After you've got on top of it, run a program every day with spins and jumps and steps when possible, and work on the more difficult sections. Run it with mistakes (don't just stop when you make errors) as this is good training for competition.

that makes so much sense! when i first learn the choreo i felt so overwhelmed. now, it’s not at bad. the steps are all in the brain, i think muscle memory needs more training to make it like a solid run through attempts since i feel there are still sections i’m not 100% comfortable on so i am not really in the moment on them. i try to run through it at least once every skate but idk, i feel like i am trying on them but i also don’t feel like i am trying on them either. like the choreo doesn’t look quite there so I was just wondering if since it’s my first program, i was perhaps going at them wrong. i just want better flow which will help with being on time with my cues and to make it look less like i’m just getting through the patterns. i only ever worked on sections when there’s a part i’m not comfortable on so i break it down to get used to the steps, like a walk through. i have yet to run a full program without all the jumps and/or stopping from errors but thank you for these tips! i am going to try these out tomorrow when i practice

 

[sk8chis]

Great advice there.

I'd just add that it helps enormously if you choose music that really, really, really makes you want to dance. It helps so much with the artistic interpretation side. Plus, if you know the music forwards, backwards and inside out, you'll find it easier to make it up if you forget what you're doing or "go wrong". (Nobody else, with the possible exception of your coach, will know any different...)

that’s a good point! i like my music although i think it maybe a bit toooo heavy of a first program (im doing impossible by christina aguilera), so it’s very sexy haha. i love the song a lot but i don’t think i have had many opportunities where i’ve got a chance to dance/move like that even though deep down i can feel it there! hence why i feel like it looks and feels awkward but i do want to improve it! i’ve always had a liking to dance. i’m trying to get into some ballet and contemporary classes, once i get over my fear of trying new things lol. do you have any tips for when you feel like that? like when you want to connect with the music of your program but don’t quite feel comfortable/insecure. i’ve tried practicing improv in the mirror by myself to my music but i just felt silly

 

[WednesdayMarch]

that’s a good point! i like my music although i think it maybe a bit toooo heavy of a first program (im doing impossible by christina aguilera), so it’s very sexy haha. i love the song a lot but i don’t think i have had many opportunities where i’ve got a chance to dance/move like that even though deep down i can feel it there! hence why i feel like it looks and feels awkward but i do want to improve it! i’ve always had a liking to dance. i’m trying to get into some ballet and contemporary classes, once i get over my fear of trying new things lol. do you have any tips for when you feel like that? like when you want to connect with the music of your program but don’t quite feel comfortable/insecure. i’ve tried practicing improv in the mirror by myself to my music but i just felt silly

My biggest tip for that situation is to shelve that music for a while, until you feel you can do it justice. The last thing you want to feel when you're out there on the ice is "silly"! Seriously, pick something else that makes you feel more confident that you can do it justice. Christina Aguilera will wait.

 

[gliese]

i’ve tried practicing improv in the mirror by myself to my music but i just felt silly

go somewhere without a mirror
most of the time, nothing good comes out of looking in one