Freestyle

For today's lesson we looked at mostly freestyle stuff:

• spirals -- we spent some time on spirals, but I was having a really off day for them. Anna told me I needed to keep the free leg straight from the beginning of the spiral and for some reason that just really threw me for a loop, I didn't do a single one I was happy with at all. Anna said the position on the RF spiral is actually looking fairly okay, but it sure doesn't feel that way. I'll have to work on this some more on my own.
• bunnyhops -- emphasis on these was a) no hesitation, b) getting the rhythm of the move, and c) moving arms and free leg together as a piece. Anna also reminded me that the left (jumping) leg should be straight in the air before it comes down onto a bent knee. I got some good ones and Anna says they are more aggressive and somewhat improved.
• waltz jump walkthrough -- we spent the bulk of our time on this and it got to the point I felt very comfortable with it. A couple points to remember -- keep the body straight, don't lean back (flinching!) or to the side; start off on a decent edge; be sure to bring the free leg up with the foot out, not tucked back. Anna says that being more aggressive on this move will help me get through it -- in part, I think, because I won't have time to scare myself too much. She was pleased with the progress on this and so was I.
• back crossovers -- just a brief review of these. The CW ones are looking much better, the CCW not so much. I do much better when I don't rush them, just take my time. Anna says when I get going fast I tend to get up on my toes -- probably a subconscious fear reaction. Something to think about.
• Mohawk combo -- just a brief review on this too. The cross step is looking better (my work on it the other day showed) but I need to bend my knees more and, Anna says, don't drop the inside hip while doing the cross. If I keep improving on this, I know she'll make me work on the cross-behind next. Oh well!

All in all a great lesson, and I was very happy with my progress.