Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 2: Executing an Axel
• Method 2 of 2: Speak the jump
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

Axel is one of the hardest jumps to perform in figure skating, and if you prefer cog jumps, it is even more difficult to learn it. This article will help you learn how to perform the axel or suggest some of the nuances that you missed when learning to jump.

Steps

Method 1 of 2: Executing an Axel

1. 1 Glide back and forth on your right foot, making sure you get enough speed and balance. Your hands should be raised.
2. 2 Move to your left leg and bend your left knee. Cross your arms over your chest, elbows slightly bent. This should be done very quickly as you will be in the air.
3. 3 Bend your right leg behind you and twist your knee.
4. 4 Throw your right leg into the air, keeping it bent to gain height, as if you were standing on a table.
5. 5 Now your body will begin to rotate, making sure that the right leg rotates along with the body, which comes in from behind around the left leg, so you are in reverse rotation in the air.
6. 6 Press your arms as hard as you can, place them just below your right shoulder and rotate until you reach the opposite direction from where you started the rotation (this is a single axel).
7. 7 Exit the twist by dropping onto your right leg and extending your left leg back.
8. 8 Stretch your arms out to the sides and slide back for 5 seconds. You have just completed the jump!
9. 9 The jump is completed.

Method 2 of 2: Speak the jump

To do the axel, you can make a jump guide for yourself and mentally repeat it as you jump to guide yourself.

1. 1 Say "Lunge" to yourself. Take a step with the knee bent, open the thigh, and pull the toe.
2. 2 Tell yourself "Look." Look outward and forward, not in the direction of the slide.
3. 3 Say to yourself "Rise." Push out your gliding leg using a toe, lift your knee and close your arms.
4. 4 Tell yourself "Loop". Imagine doing the loop.

Tips

• Practice doing the jump from start to finish constantly. Do it at home in the living room, on the street on the grass, in the school foyer! Train on ice as well. Muscle memory plays a critical role here.
• If this is your first time practicing a jump, don't think about landing, concentrate only on spinning. Once you are able to complete a full loop, start thinking about the loop after the axel, this will help you land on your right foot.
• Never forget your hand position! Usually, if you fold your arms, your legs will automatically cross as well. Also, if you place your hands on your right shoulder, you spin faster in the air.
• Yes, it will sound incredibly silly, but it really works! Imagine the perfect axel. Start sliding back. Imagine lifting yourself off the ground. Do what you imagine. Imagine folding your arms and crossing your legs. Do everything as it happens in your head. Imagine a perfect landing. Do the same. Trust me, it actually works! My coach asked me to do this and I completed the jump! However, remember that even if you land successfully the first time, you may not be able to do it the second time — and that's okay, because then you’ll analyze what you need to do in order to jump cleanly and safely. Achieving consistency in this jump is the hardest part, but don't give up!
• You will need a lot more effort and work. On average, it takes a year to learn how to do the axel. Sometimes more, but don't let that confuse you! It's doable, and if you've done it once, the next jump will be much easier for you.
• Practice axel every time you go skating! Perfection comes with time. This is a jump that requires 150 falls - but the 151st attempt will be successful!
• Every time you make a jump - mentally, on the ground or on the ice - keep the phrase "I can do it" in your head. Then, jump. It is important that you repeat these words before you start training on the ice: the phrase will become associated with successful jumps, and when you perform the axel on the ice, you will think that you are doing it on a different surface - as a result, you will make a flawless jump.
• Have someone other than the coach watch your performance of the axel. You may feel like your legs are crossed, but in reality they may not.
• Imagine that you are slowly progressing in the execution of the axel, but you want a sharp breakthrough. You are tired of endless attempts because it seems like you are going nowhere, but one day suddenly you succeed! Walk patiently towards this day and never stop.

Warnings

• If you do the step training incorrectly, naturally your axel will be incorrect. Learn the technique with a coach or other skater.
• If you cannot perform other solo jumps, the axel is virtually unattainable. Make sure you are ready for this level before proceeding.
• Some people take longer to make their first jump. If it took you more than a year, don't worry. Usually, the longer you work on your first jump, the better you will get it.

What do you need

• Figure skating
• Ice rink