What you Missed at Jump On It Camp

Coaches discuss the relationship between off-ice training, fundamental movement patterns and jump technique.

At the 2018 Jump on It Camp, the esteemed panel of World and Olympic coach instructors took their philosophies well beyond “jump high, spin fast.”

In the opening session for coach attendees, the elite coaching panel was asked to share personal philosophy as it relates to developing jump technique:

• Tom Zakrajsek—“develop athleticism early; create edge awareness and develop skating skills; emphasis on the posterior chain”

• Christy Krall—“control of alignment and posture; core strength and control; correct knee excursion; developing the posterior chain”

• Peter Johannsen—“keep your butt under you”

• Tammy Gambill—“strong edges and strong core”

• Alexei Letov—“off-ice is very important; skaters need to be quick and strong; if you are not ready physically you will get an injury”

• Frank Carroll—“understanding alignment of upper and lower body; awareness of skating hip and axis throughout the jump; awareness of where you are on the blade; posture on the landing; control of the free leg in the air”

Many of these qualities are trained on the ice from an early age, and are trained every day by the coach and athlete working on the fundamentals of skating skills. Proper development of movement patterns demand rehearsal with attention to the detail and quality of movement, and should become ingrained by frequent repetition as part of the athlete’s warm up or other off-ice routine.

Consider areas of the body important to skating movements:

• Ankle mobility in all planes of motion

• Hip mobility

• Core stability

• Shoulder mobility

• Balance and proprioception

Think about how the skater’s ability to move and stabilize these parts of the body would be important to the skills referenced by the coaches above.

The challenge for a coach tracking the progress of a young athlete as she masters these abilities is to program on-ice training and skills development to coincide appropriately with the athlete’s body being able to perform these elements. In other words, how do you know when an athlete is ready to attempt various skills, particularly advanced jumps?

Are there more effective and efficient ways to develop the skater’s ability to move and stabilize her body prior to attempting more difficult jumps, vs. the “backwards” approach of training jumps and hoping these movement skills will develop?

The High Performance Movement Screen: Defined

The HPMS was designed to evaluate not athleticism, which is the focus of STARS, but instead to look at basic movement abilities of the athlete to see if there are any limitations, asymmetries, or compensatory patterns in kinetic chains relevant to skating. The HPMS is designed to identify weak links that will lead to inefficient movement reducing performance, such as the athlete’s ability to skate over his/her feet, push efficiently into the ice, and to avoid overuse injuries because of repetitive incorrect wear on the body. The movement screen was assembled by Team USA medical practitioners, researchers, and clinicians from established tests so that the focus could be on evaluating the athletes, not validating the test protocols. Screens included in the HPMS are typically used by physical therapists, athletic trainers, and sports physicians to identify issues of performance and potential injury risk down the road.

However, it’s important for athletes and parents to understand that the HPMS is not intended to provide a medical diagnosis but rather to flag an athlete for follow up and ideally referral to a qualified trainer or health care professional who can help with the proper intervention.

This season all ISP athletes will participate in the HPMS at one of the ISP summer camps (Pairs, Dance, Singles, and Champs Camp). The evaluation includes exercise videos based on the athlete’s individual results to help him/her improve areas of concern.

To find out more about the HPMS and to sign up, see www.STARScombine.org.