Who's down to do a 30 day skate challenge? 30 days of putting your skates on for at least 15-20min and practicing something/anything, even if it's just straight up balancing drills. It's Monday, and there's no day like Today to start something new. I'm working a 10 hr shift but brought my skates into work to put on during my lunch hr. If anyone would like to do their own 30 Day Challenge, let me know. I would love to share some accountability and encouragement 🙏😊

One of the OGs at a local rink saw me lacing up my skates and said that I should try paracord, that I could pick some up at the local craft store. He showed me his skate laced up with them and said to just make sure to burn the ends so they don't unravel. I thought it was an inexpensive way to get a bunch of cool colors. And I'm crafty, so I know I can just purchase loose aglets to crimp onto the ends to make lacing them easier. Does anyone use paracord laces and have an opinion on them, love em or hate em?

So I've got a few glitches that have happened at the rink for almost a year and I feel like I've finally conquered them. I could execute certain moves like transitions in the middle of the rink BUT if I moved over the black line that marked that center area my body got total amnesia. Didn't matter how empty the rink was I froze up. This past week I truly feel that I overcame my FOP (fear of pivots) and most of all I think I conquered that dingdang dreaded black line. Finally! Got any moves that seem to elude you?

I was at the rink yesterday during one of the early sessions when there are always birthday parties and bystander parents who don't see much skating on a regular basis. One of the parents took time to stop me as I was leaving to say I was a really great skater and asked if I did figure skating. While I thanked him, all that was going through my head was " I'm a solid beginner/intermediate skater, you have no idea what you're talking about, there was nothing spectacular about what I did out there". But it got me thinking about one of the IG reels of a skater that I found so inspiring when I first started skating, how cool and smooth he looked rolling down the street and such joy in his face and movements. After I had been on my skating journey for a bit, I came across that video again and now that I knew better, I saw that he wasn't doing anything particularly difficult... He was basically just doing bubbles/braids the whole time as he jammed out! 😅 It made me realize how much adding your own special sauce, your own joy in the movement and flow can make ANY move spectacular and can be an inspiration to others. I had to remind myself of that after the conversation I had when I realized I had that negative self talk running through my head. So I'm reminding you all too, fam. In case you need it 💜

How do I deal with the shin pain? Every time I start skating my shins start hurting. Does it go away as I get used to skating? My skates fit fine, so not sure what this means.