Exercise: Agility Hops Variations: Front/back, Side-side with feet together; side-side one foot at a time Do: Wear shoes! Use something soft as an obstacle, e.g a rolled towel or t-shirt. Move feet quickly Easier: Go slow Harder: Move quickly! Extend your time   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Sideways Stairs Do: Use “outside” and “inside” leg equally, & remember to swap sides every flight of stairs or two. Don’t: forget to get low and attack the stairs like a speed skater

Exercise: Duck Walks Do: Take long, low strides Don’t: Pop up between steps Easier: Shorter sustained periods of walking Harder: Keep going! quack!

Exercise: Skater Strides Do: Stay low throughout, keep head and chest lifted, use arms like a speed skater Don’t: bob up and down, or half-ass it and wind up looking like a tap dancer :)

Exercise: Lunge Jumps Do: Jump high! Keep your chest and head lifted Don’t: Allow your front knee to cave in towards centre, or push forward past your toes Easier: Go slower, step between positions instead of jumping Harder: n/a   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Burpees Variations:Half Burpees, Squat Thrusts Do: Hit all the ‘stops’ with good form: Squat, plank, push-up, squat-jump Don’t: Rush through it and sacrifice form   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Weighted Long Jumps Do: Swing the weight out in front of you, imagine it dragging you forward. Take it slow as you get used to the feeling. Don’t: look for height, or swing the weight above shoulder height. Easier: eliminate the weight Harder: heavier weight, more reps. See also: Long Jump + Tuck Jump Back to all How-To […]

Exercise: Frog Jumps Do: Jump for distance, not height, try to minimize the number of hops backward you need to get back to your starting point

Exercise: Weighted Lunge Do: Warm up with the bar only. Keep knees over toes. Drive through the heel of the front foot to rise up. Keep chest and head lifted. Don’t: allow front knee to cave inward, or take too large a step forward. Easier: Do split squats instead Harder: lift heavier weight See also: Split Squats, Lunges Back to all How-To […]

Exercise: Calf Raises Do: Rise and lower with control; distribute weight evenly across the balls of your feet. Don’t: let your heels splay out to the sides. Easier: hold on to a wall for stabiity Harder: one-leg calf raises; add weight

Exercise: Plank – Elbows to Hands Do: Follow all the good form advice for a standard plank; remember to alternate which arm leads   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Power Push-Ups Do: practice good plank and push-up form Don’t: allow your hips to rise or sag Easier: Do push-ups from your knees Harder: n/a   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Cross-Under Swipes Do: Bend your supporting leg; keep a flexed foot with instep facing the sky on your follow-through; adjust your pressure, surface, and footwear to make the exercise doable but challenging Don’t: forget to “reach” with your active leg Easier: Hold the wall for stability Harder: No hands!

Exercise: Bridges Variations: Basic, One leg, Marching, One leg with a Kick Do: Keep hips level and as still as possible. Engage your abs and glutes before lifting your hips Don’t: Allow hips to dip side to side Easier / Harder: The variations are listed in order from easiest to most difficult.   Click here to […]

Exercise: Prisoner Get-Ups Do: take your time, and hit all the “Stops”: 1) lie down 2) sit up 3) tuck your knee under 4) rise to kneeling 5) stand up Easier: Use your hands to support Harder: Add weight   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Engage your Transverse Abdominis (TVA) Do: Hold for a count of eight, and repeat three times. This is a good beginning to any on-skate time or an agility or plyo workout, to get your core working for you. Do: Start easy and increase the force of your contraction in set 2 & 3. Don’t:  Easier: n/a Harder: push […]

Exercise: Plank Do: Keep hips in line with heels and the crown of your head, keep arms “pulled out” of their shoulder sockets Don’t: drop or raise hips, sink into your shoulders Easier: plank from the elbows on all fours Harder: from the wrists; raising one arm or one foot; raising one arm and foot […]

Exercise: Chair Squats Do: Lower with control, keep your supporting knee pointed straight forward over your toe Don’t: Drop heavily into the chair; allow your supporting knee to cave inward Easier: use a higher platform (bed, arm of a couch), or do with both legs Harder: use a lower platform   Click here to see […]

Exercise: Swimming on a Ball Do: Maintain a straight line from head to heels, keep your neck neutral, engage your abdominal muscles Don’t: Overextend/arch your back, look up or look down   Click here to see all the How-To Videos… Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Lateral Roll on a Ball Variations: Iron Cross, Charlie’s Angels Do: Keep hips lifted Don’t: Easier: Iron cross variation Harder: Charlie’s Angels variation   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

An overused IT band can get tight and angry for lots of skaters. Use this stretch to calm it down, but don’t forget to do your glute strengthening work to help the underlying cause! Exercise: TFL + IT Band + Hamstring Stretch Do: Work with a friend or use a strap or band; Play around and […]

Exercise: Weighted Long Jumps Do: Swing the weight out in front of you, imagine it dragging you forward. Take it slow as you get used to the feeling. Don’t: look for height, or swing the weight above shoulder height. Easier: eliminate the weight Harder: heavier weight, more reps. See also: Long Jump + Tuck Jump Back to all How-To […]

Exercise: High Bridge with Marching on a Ball Do: Keep hips lifted, keep torso as still as possible Don’t: let hips sag Easier: no arms Harder: with arms   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Deadlift; Romanian Deadlift Do: Warm up with the bar only. Set up with weight in heels, bar touching shins, chest lifted, shoulders directly above the bar. Pull first, straighten knees second.  To lower, hinge at hips, then bend knees when bar is past them. Don’t: lean forward with weight over toes and shoulders forward of the bar; […]

Exercise: Push-Ups Do: Place hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart, point elbows about 45 degrees away from your torso, get to a 90 degree bend in your elbows at the bottom position Don’t: allow your hips to rise up or sag Easier: do push-ups from your knees Harder: place feet close together (works stability); elevate […]

Exercise: Tricep Rollout on a Ball Do: Maintain a plank position and neutral neck position Don’t: Pop back up to the starting position (go slowly instead)   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Upper Body Warm-Up and Mobility Sequence Do: Follow this sequence before doing heavy lifting or extensive upper body training. Don’t: Let your ribs poke forward during pass-throughs, pull-aparts, or cactus arms. Here’s the sequence: 10 Pass-throughs 10 Cactus Arms 10 Wall Push-ups 10 Pull-Aparts – overhand 10 Pull-Aparts – underhand 10 T-Spine roll-outs in each […]

Exercise: Duck Walks Do: Take long, low strides Don’t: Pop up between steps Easier: Shorter sustained periods of walking Harder: Keep going! quack!

Exercise: Side to Side Switches Do: Hold weight close to body, use core to control the movement, move quickly and sharply Don’t: swing the weight in large arcs or compensate with a wide stance. Easier: n/a Harder: go faster, use heavier weight. See also: Heismans Back to all How-To Videos, in alphabetical order…

Exercise: Tuck Jumps Do: Get your knees UP! Land with soft knees Don’t: try these before being well warmed up Easier: take small stutter jumps in between each tuck jump Harder: jump higher, go faster   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…

Exercise: Agility Hops Variations: Front/back, Side-side with feet together; side-side one foot at a time Do: Wear shoes! Use something soft as an obstacle, e.g a rolled towel or t-shirt. Move feet quickly Easier: Go slow Harder: Move quickly! Extend your time   Click here to see all the How-To Videos…