September 28, 2015

FSA's Last Post

It was a good run. Six years worth of writings, you know? That counts for something. I hope my posts will continue to help folks like you out. I really do.

But times have changed. Things will have changed in your life too over the past few years. Heck, probably even since the beginning of this year. Time waits for no man, and change rolls in as sure as the tide under the moon’s pull. Excuse the water analogies – I’m sat watching the sea lap at rock’s edge right now. What you gonna do?

A full time job became a major part of my life in May. I started ten days after my last graduate school exam, and spent until the end of August trying to balance moving home, starting over, the new job in advertising, and writing my thesis. It was a fun summer, a hard summer. Like something from a novel where the heroine grows from it all, but not without acquiring a few scratches along the way. Then it hit me.

University College London in the golden summer evening light 
I’ve had FSA in the back of my mind since the start of 2015. I’ve wanted to get back to posting more. I’ve written a few short bits, and I’ve promised a lot more. But it never happened. Time is man’s most precious resource, and you’d best spend it wisely. I’ve found myself wandering around the British Museum, drinking coffee in train stations with beloved friends, and working on my start-up in the free time I’ve had away from school and work. I did not find myself thinking about, or sitting down to write about, skating. It’s as simple as that.

To my earlier point of time being the most important of the things which we feel possession over in our everyday lives, I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to draw a line under writing for FSA. Because I’m not skating anymore, I feel like I don’t have anything fresh to bring to the blog, and I don’t feel inspired to write about the sport from the practical standpoint which I have taken since FSA opened in 2009. And that’s okay.

A little of London - the Renaissance Hotel at King's Cross 
I won’t lie, it hurt at first. It still does. It feels like maybe quitting writing here means skating really is over for me. In every single way. But it’s time for me to take the time I would have spent writing here, and go on a new adventure. As you may or may not have picked up over the past months if you follow the blog or indeed the Facebook page, I’m founding a skincare brand. As a biologist, I’m hugely excited about using science to build awesome products. And right now, that needs all of my focus. I’d like to finally learn how to bake great cookies too, and I’d like to learn how to take better photos. I’m taking Pilates, and hopefully I’ll run another 10km circuit before the end of the year. Aspirations change and grow with you. I’m excited for the future.

With my business partner earlier this year winning some nice bits and bobs for the skincare company 
I’m not closing FSA – frankly it gets a good amount of traffic, so I take this as an indication that the content found here is somewhat useful to some folks out there. I hope it is to you.

The low-down is as follows:
  •          There will be no new posts going forwards
  •          The blog will remain at www.figureskatingadvice.com
  •          The Facebook page will remain open for the time being, but I may close it in the future
  •           I will not reply to messages received either through the blog or Facebook page going forwards
  •          The blog will continue to serve Google ads, and the revenue from any clicks made on those ads helps me to pay the domain name and keep the blog at its current URL

Thanks for reading.

Happy skating,
Gigi

XOXO

August 2, 2015

3 Things Your Competitors Can Teach You About Skating (and Life!)

It's that time of year again when you're coming in to the home stretch of the "off" season (yeah, right...) and in September you'll be staring down the barrel of a new season and new competitions, probably at a new level. In all likelihood, there'll be some testing thrown in for good measure. Whether this is your first or tenth season in skating, it's always a good time to start getting more from your sport than just a calendar full of events, deadlines, and new pressures on your mind and body. In the 2015-2016 season, make skating work for you as hard as you work for it. Let's now discuss how.

photo cred benson kua under cc by-sa 2.0

February 2, 2015

*GIVE-AWAY* One Wish by Robyn Carr

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Katie over at Little Bird Publicity, who are handling the release of Robyn's latest novel: One Wish. I was thrilled to read that Katie wanted to send me a book over for review, but knew with a heavy heart that I wouldn't be able to read through and review it in the time frame she
needed before its launch. And that's when the idea for a give-away struck us!


January 31, 2015

10 Things Skaters Should Do Before Testing & Competition

Recently a skater posted a comment on my popular post "5 things skating parents should do before competition", asking if it would be possible to write something similar from a skater's perspective. I thought this was a really great request, because a lot of my readers are skating parents, and sometimes I lose track of writing for the skaters themselves. Hopefully if you're a skating parent reading this today, you'll share this post with the skater in your life, and coupled with the above-mentioned post, the content will provide you with new ways to get organised and tackle that test or competition that's coming up! Let's get started!

January 25, 2015

What To Wear On Your Feet When Figure Skating

We all know the blindingly obvious: that figure skaters wear figure skates on the ice. But have you been wondering what you can wear inside your skates, to maximise comfort and minimise damage to your skin and feet? Whether you're a beginner on the ice, or a seasoned skater looking for some fresh insights into gaining that little bit of extra comfort this season read on for my take on what to wear on your feet during your skating session!

January 16, 2015

Ice Skating at Somerset House Ice Rink

The festive season this year was beautiful, but quite hectic due to the fact that I worked through the entire holiday (on my start-up which I'm launching at the same time as completing my post-graduate degree). I had many items on my "festive to-do list" including listening to some Michael Buble whilst decorating the tree, enjoying the odd cocktail or three, making some home made mince pies (those are British pastries filled with dried, brandy-soaked fruit for my readers across the Pond who might be thinking "a pie with mince? Ewww..."). One other thing I just had my heart set on? Skating at the Somerset House outdoor ice rink!
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