Early in the morning Jan. 26, skaters braved the winter cold to start their day with IceFlow, a yoga-inspired ice skating class at the Boston Common Frog Pond led by accomplished ice skater Elin Schran.
Though IceFlow is for adults only, the class was open to all skill levels and abilities. Schran encouraged attendees to listen to their bodies and go at their own pace. She offered plastic seals that skaters could push or sit on to help them balance.
Schran’s friendliness and compassion for her students were heartwarming enough to forget the freezing air. The class steered away from skating skills and difficult yoga poses, instead focusing on breathing, mindfulness and gently gliding across the ice.
For the first time in 15 years of IceFlow, the classes were held on the Frog Pond.
“It’s just so beautiful to be here in Boston Common and Beacon Hill,” Schran said. “When we arrive, it’s dark, and the lights and the trees all shine so brightly.”
Schran said the idea of IceFlow began after years of elite competition as an ice skater when she found herself wanting to return to skating without the pain and stress that often came with competition.
“I got married, I had children, I had injuries, but I was often finding myself coming back to the ice,” Schran said. “I wanted to find a way that I could enjoy being on the ice, returning to what I loved, but without hurting myself or feeling that my focus was suddenly on what I could no longer do.”
The practice began as an individual endeavor, but as Schran tells it, it caught on quickly after she tried it out in a public session.
“I started to just gently glide across the ice, experimenting with this breath concept,” Schran said. “I did that a couple times, and on the third or fourth passing, I noticed that people were following me and doing it with me, and I thought, ‘Well, maybe I’m not the only person who would like to find the ice as a place to be peaceful and to feel good about yourself instead of a place to compete and prove something.’”
Schran said her goal has always been to share her love of skating in a peaceful way that encourages mindfulness.
“It’s the flow of being on the ice, the flow of being in community and the flow of your breath,” Schran said. “I like to use those three things to give people a chance to focus on ways to be kind to themselves. And once we’re kind to ourselves, it’s easier to be kind to others.”
Most of the attendees had little to no experience with ice skating, such as Mia Nicholson, a second-year nursing major at Northeastern. Nicholson said that even though she hadn’t been skating for a while, it was a gentle way to return to the ice.
“I haven’t been skating in three years, hence the seals. … It was very calm, very ‘take it at your own pace,’” Nicholson said. “It’s a great start to the day.”
Nicholson attended IceFlow with Lucy Shoreman, a second-year biochemistry major at Northeastern. Shoreman said she appreciated Schran’s kindness and positive attitude.
“[Schran] was so nice, she was so sweet,” Shoreman said. “Like she said, it’s great to have this group in the winter.”
Schran also expressed the importance of accessibility. She is the founder and director of Joy Skate Productions, which performs professional-quality ice skating shows for free around Boston. She said her mission statement is to make the joy of skating accessible to everyone.
“I would really like to see skating become more inclusive and more accessible by offering free classes,” Schran said. “This is a free class and that’s really, really important to me.”
The next IceFlow class will be Feb. 9 at 7:30 a.m.
