Dubai trainer as sharp as her skates

Cari Kristine, 29, has been an ice-skating trainer at the ice rink in Dubai Mall for just over six months. Here the expatriate from Manila talks about a day in her life.

7.45am

If I am working the morning shift, which starts at 10am, I wake up at 7.45am. For the evening shift, which starts at 3pm, I will sleep longer and get up at 10am. I enjoy a glass of fresh orange juice and start exercising and stretching. My routine changes but it generally involves a mix of push-ups, sit-ups and jumps and I include some yoga and Pilates exercises too. I then take a shower, have a light breakfast and head out to work.

9am

For a morning shift, I arrive at 9am.

Most of the time I come in around 2pm for the 3pm shift. However, I come around 11am when I have off-duty lessons with some clients or to do paperwork, print certificates and other coach-related tasks.

11am

When I arrive, I do a series of stretching exercises to warm up my body before going on the ice. I am careful to move my ankles around, stretch my calves and thighs and move my hips around as I will need them during the day. For me, this is a very important daily routine because it keeps me energised and warmed up for work. Then, I look at our work chart and the lessons scheduled for the day.

Noon

Most of the time I bring my own lunch of rice and chicken and eat it in our staff room while talking to my colleagues or reading the newspaper. If I haven't brought a lunch, I go out sometimes to the food courts at the Dubai Mall. During lunch, I relax and enjoy a bit of quiet time to myself.

3pm

I am usually teaching. For training beginners, it takes a lot of patience because often the first contact with the ice is challenging. Beginners have to learn to keep their balance and get used to their skates.

As a trainer, I have to adjust to my students. I have to be sensitive to their reactions. I have had students who were scared or nervous, so I had to reassure them. I have had students who were too excited, so I had to contain their energy, I even had some that did not want to skate. Those need a bit of encouragement.

The greatest satisfaction is seeing my students improve. Like for most sports, when you start being good at one, you really start enjoying it. I love to see that evolution in people. I love to see determination, effort and persistence even if it is not easy, and then seeing improvement, satisfaction, pride and the appreciation for the sport developing. One time, one of my students surprised me with a homemade heart-shaped card that said: "I love Skating!" I still have it.

6pm

After the morning shift, I would leave around 6pm, and after the evening shift, I would leave at midnight.Sometimes I stay a little bit after my shift and practise my skating.

I also play ice hockey once a week after work. I joined a women's hockey tournament at Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy and our team won the championship. Last summer, I was invited to be a judge on the Desert Open Figure Skating Championship. It was a gratifying experience for me. I have also been a guest coach at a summer camp at Zayed Sports City in Abu Dhabi.

After a morning shift, sometimes I treat myself to a night out, I catch a movie and grab a bite to eat.

7pm

Weekends from 7pm onwards are quite popular. Some weekends can get busy with lots of visitors, lessons scheduled and birthday parties, and it can be challenging. I have to make sure I am as sharp as my skates, regularly scan the ice rink and stay energetic. I keep myself hydrated throughout the day.

Midnight

I love watching movies. So I lie down, sometimes with a hot compress to relax and I enjoy the show. And go to bed at midnight.

ssahoo@thenational.ae