Loving it doesn’t mean it isn’t exhausting, however. His day typically begins at 6 a.m., when he heads to the Hertz Arena to practice until about noon. Sometimes he’ll stay longer to coach other skaters. Then, it’s off to classes, homework and studying, as he works toward a degree in
psychology. He’s also involved in FGCU’s
Dance Company.
“FGCU was a good choice for me to be able to continue to pursue my academics at a great school, while also being able to continue my figure skating career due to its prime location,” Appel said.
And, of course, there are competitions, for which he has traveled around the country the last few years. Solo ice dancing was just this year added to international competition, giving Appel more travel and more tournaments to add to his schedule.
“This past year was really my first year of doing international-level competition while also working as a part-time coach and then being a student,” he said. “Our competition season runs from March through September. By the time July hit, I was very burned out, and I was very much like, ‘Oh, I need to take a step back’ because my energy level was just drained. I was like, ‘There’s no way I’m going to be able to finish the year the way I want to if I don’t kind of rebalance everything.’”
That meant taking stock of what he could take a step back from and when. A little less private coaching ahead of events. Focusing more on school when the semester starts to ramp up and the ice dancing season slows down. And giving it all on the ice when the big competitions arrived.
