The most crucial aspect of conditioning for athletes, in my opinion, is ankle conditioning. This is because the ankles serve as a convenient, visible, and easily perceivable reference point for aligning the entire body. Surprisingly, when I tell top athletes competing globally that I prioritize starting conditioning from the ankles, they often react with expressions like "Seriously?" or "Isn't it too basic?" The reason for emphasizing ankle conditioning is the widespread neglect of this fundamental aspect among athletes, even those incorporating advanced training methods.
In recent trends, there's a preference for adopting the latest, more specific training techniques. However, I believe these advanced techniques should come after mastering the basics. Without assessing the current condition first, implementing sophisticated methods is unlikely to yield results and may increase the risk of injuries.
Over the past 30 years, none of the figure skaters, including world champions, whom I've encountered, had adequately addressed ankle conditioning. Hence, the first thing I say is, "Let's start from the ankles!" What follows is a focus on mutual conditioning, where athletes understand and actively participate. It's essential that athletes are convinced rather than me imposing my methods on them. The credibility of my method needs demonstration.
A simple yet effective way is to visibly improve a stiff joint using my method in a few minutes. Ankle conditions are favorable for this because they are easily observed and felt by the person. For instance, I conduct an experiment where the skater lies on their back, tilting their ankle downward to touch the floor gracefully, mimicking a ballet dancer's position. Fatigue from daily practice often reduces ankle mobility. I let the athlete confirm their restricted ankle movement, then spend about five minutes using my method to release the muscles hindering the ankle's motion, transforming it into a ballet-like ankle. The athlete verifies the change, and this live demonstration builds trust in my method, bringing us closer and facilitating smooth conditioning.
Establishing a clear starting point in conditioning is an absolute prerequisite for success. The starting point doesn't have to be the ankles specifically; it can cover the entire body as long as the concept is maintained.
My method's foundation lies in identifying improvement areas, explaining the reasons, methods, and the individual's sensations post-improvement in advance. This approach may involve risks for the therapist, but when dealing with athletes who dedicate their lives to their sport, such commitment is necessary. If a mistake occurs, acknowledging and apologizing promptly while guiding toward the next solution is my consistent style.
Feeling the skating condition the day after conditioning is crucial. Improving movements that have been discomforting for years helps skaters understand the change. Enhancing ankle mobility can lead to improved skating and jumping performance, allowing skaters to personally experience the positive effects.
In this process, understanding the skater's issues from an amateur's perspective is crucial. I'm not a skating coach, so I don't evaluate the quality of skating. Instead, I focus on the part of the body hindering movements or bearing stress. Many top skaters struggle not due to technical deficiencies but because they cannot execute coach instructions due to a lack of body movement. If this aspect isn't understood, coaches may endlessly shout the same instructions, creating a situation where neither the coach nor the skater reaches their goal.
Turning things around, preventing chronic fatigue before issues arise is exceptionally challenging, mainly because few people comprehend its significance. Despite this, self-care is the most reliable path to achieving good results. While it might seem challenging, therapists guiding self-conditioning by predicting and feeling the athlete's actions is relatively straightforward once you grasp the technique's essence.
Therefore, the goal of my method is to have athletes understand the necessary information and execute conditioning on their own. An essential point to explain is that ankle conditioning alone is insufficient. To maintain optimal ankle conditions, it's crucial to reduce the load on ankles, requiring conditioning in related areas that affect ankle movements.
These represent the foundational principles of my ankle conditioning approach—setting a clear starting point and building upon it. Despite sounding commonplace, these points are often overlooked