The step sequence links turns and steps into a pattern across the whole ice surface. Build it in five steps – with rules, level ideas and clear milestones.
A step sequence (StSq) is a scoring element in which you link turns and steps into a visible pattern across the whole ice surface. The honest answer: it is not a single trick but a combination of building blocks – and it only gets good when the blocks are solid.
The ISU Technical Panel Handbook summarizes the requirements like this: the step sequence must use the whole ice surface (for example straight line, serpentine, circle or oval), turns and steps must be evenly distributed, and there must be no long section without a turn or step [1]. Short stops in accordance with the music are permitted [1].
Realistically you need several months of regular training for a clean step sequence with three-turns, mohawks and crossovers (experience, not study data). For level 3 or 4 it takes years.
Three turns/steps as the base: the three-turn, a change-of-foot step (mohawk) and backward crossovers. The handbook names three-turns and mohawks as ordinary turns and steps [1]; according to Skate Canada a three-turn is a turn on one foot from outside to inside edge or vice versa, with the exit curve on the same side [2].
Milestone: 5 clean repetitions per side each.
Attach a three-turn to a mohawk and glide out the exit arc. The turns should run on clean edges, not be "jumped" – jumped turns do not count in competition [1].
The exit arc of the first turn is the entry arc of the second. If you rush on after the three-turn, the flow is lost. Give each element its own calm arc before linking them more tightly (practice, not study data).
Milestone: 5 clean pairs without touching down.
Lay a pattern across the ice: a straight line, a circle or a serpentine. The handbook no longer requires a fixed pattern, but the pattern must be visible and identifiable [1].
Milestone: whole ice surface used, elements distributed.
Use arms, head, torso and hips deliberately. According to the handbook "body movements" means they are visible and influence the balance of the body core – over at least one third of the pattern [1].
Milestone: movement in at least one third of the pattern.
Rotate in both directions (left and right), at least one third of the pattern each with full body rotation [1]. If you run through the sequence without stopping, you have done half; the music does the rest.
If you notice you are running out of breath, shorten the pattern, not the quality. A shorter, clean sequence is better than a long one with wobbles. Repeat it three times before adding new turns (practice, not study data).
Milestone: one complete sequence without stopping.
Step sequences run in tight space with many turns; falls are part of it, and the ankle is the most common weak point: a review names ankle sprains as the most common injury in figure skating and recommends well-fitting boots, foot and ankle strengthening and leg flexibility [3]. A systematic review found risk factors including more than twelve training sessions per week and longer time on the ice, but pointed to limited study quality [5].
Wear a helmet, do not train in the busiest ice times and raise speed and difficulty slowly. This guide explains and motivates but does not replace supervised training – a coach helps with pattern and turns.
Lay out your pattern on land first: draw it on a sheet or with chalk on the hall floor, with the turns as dots. That shows whether the elements are evenly distributed, and saves ice time (practice experience, not study data). And plan one turn at a time, not all at once.
A scoring element of turns and steps that must use the whole ice surface and be evenly distributed [1].
According to the handbook: twizzles, brackets, loops, counters, rockers and choctaws [1]. Three-turns and mohawks are turns/steps but not among the difficult ones.
Level 1: at least 5, level 2: 7, level 3: 9, level 4: 11, each type at most twice [1]. Level "Basic" requires at least 2 difficult turns/steps on clean edges [1].
Recommended. Pattern, distribution and edges are hard for beginners to judge alone. A coach sees mistakes early and gives you suitable turns.
Not as a requirement. In competition it is a fixed element (for seniors in the short program and the free skate, for juniors only in the short program) [1]. As a recreational skater it is a good exercise for edges, turns and musicality – you can work on it without any level ambition.
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