Master the rotational skater hop to build your endurance
Nope, not a Dancing On Ice move but an exercise to build stability, mobility and endurance. Hop to it
Okay, it’s not quite the same as zooming around the ice before a glass of glühwein. But this move is the next best thing, as it engages your legs, bum and core, helps you build stability and gets your heart pumping. ‘The rotational skater hop is great for improving your range of motion and muscular endurance,’ says Kate Rowe-ham, PT and founder of The Fit Hut in Sussex. Jumping from one leg to the other helps you build stability and strength on both sides equally, rather than relying on your stronger leg to do all the heavy lifting, which is important in preventing injury. Plus, working your body in two different planes of motion – frontal (side to side) and transverse (rotation) – mimics the kind of movements you use in real life, like when you’re playing sports or running around with kids. Rowe-ham recommends adding this move into a full-body circuit or pairing it with another exercise – such as a goblet squat or lunge with overhead press – to create a superset.
Here’s how to do it. Begin by balancing on your left foot with your right foot resting on the floor, holding a weighted plate in front of your chest with both hands. Focus on drawing your belly button back towards your spine to brace your core. Squeeze your glutes and lift your right foot off the floor to hop to the right, lifting your left leg behind as you rotate your upper body to guide the plate towards your right hip. ‘Keeping the weight close to your body will help you keep your balance,’ Rowe-ham says. Pause for a second, then hop back on to the left leg, rotating your upper body and the plate to your left hip. That’s one rep – shoot for eight to 12 to make a set.
Word to the wise: this is a fairly advanced move, so master it sans plate first. Find yourself wobbling? ‘Touch the toes of your raised foot back to the ground after each hop to help you regain your balance,’ Rowe-ham suggests.
If you want to challenge yourself with extra weight but don’t have any plates, a dumbbell clasped in both hands will do the trick. Not intense enough for you? Alright, beast. Increase the burn and your range of motion by holding a light to medium dumbbell in each hand and reaching towards the floor with each rep (using the opposite hand to whatever foot you just landed on). Ready? Just pretend that glühwein is waiting for you.
AVOID IF: You’re recovering from an ankle, knee or hip injury