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ATHLETE INTERVIEW: The Gilles Girls!
GL: What’s your favorite workout on or off the ice?
Piper Gilles: My favorite workout on the ice would have to be doing sections of my program and getting into the character.
Alexe Gilles: I personally like both working on the ice and doing off-ice training. I'm always working on the ice and I train at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. It’s lots of fun to train there!
GL: What’s your healthy snack of choice?
Piper: My healthy snack of choice would probably be apples and peanut butter. You get the great taste of the apple and the peanut butter for protein.
Alexe: My healthy snack of choice has to be fruit...like strawberries, bananas or oranges.
GL: We heard that you girls both volunteer in your free time. What do you enjoy about it?
Piper: I love being able to help someone and putting a smile on people’s faces while doing it.
Alexe: What I love about volunteering is helping people out, trying to make their lives easier, and making kids have fun.
GL: How do you stay motivated to push through hard practices?
Piper: The thing that helps me stay motivated is thinking about the end result, like saying, “If I push through this, I am one step closer to my goal.”
Alexe: When I have a hard practice I like to talk and think positive because I know how to do everything and I try to think about how much I want to do well.
GL: What’s one thing you have to bring with you when you travel?
Piper: I always bring my iPod with me when I travel because you can have your music and videos with you. They keep me entertained.
Alexe: I have to bring my squish pillow!!
GL: What’s your favorite part about training with each other?
Piper: Alexe and I don't train on the same ice because I am an ice dancer and she is a freestyler and does singles. However, the best part of us both skating is that we share our feelings and know that the other one understands what we are going through. We also share our drive and determination.
Alexe: My favorite part about training with each other is that we are there to help and cheer each other on the ice.
GL: What’s the hardest thing about training/competing with your twin?
Piper: It is not hard training or competing with my sister because we are in different disciplines, however but sometimes we both need our mom at the same time so that can be hard. For instance, one of us may be competing and the other one has a practice at the same time. That can be difficult.
Alexe: I think the hardest thing about training/competing with my twin is that I get soooo nervous for her!!!
GL: What else do you do to stay in shape other than figure skate?
Piper: I go to workout at the gym twice a week and have modern dance and ballet all through the week. I also like to snow and water ski, swim, and play volleyball and touch football. I like to do all sports.
Alexe: Other than skating I like to swim and ski on water and snow to stay in shape.
Wanna see these girls compete?
Check out Alexe on Jan. 22nd at 7:30 p.m. on Universal Sports (or live on icenetwork.com) and on Jan. 24th at 9 p.m. on NBC.
You can catch Piper on Jan. 19th at, 4:30pm, Jan. 20 at, 8:15pm and Jan. 22 at 10:50am live on icenetwork.com.
All times are Eastern Standard—check local listings!
Piper: Alexe and I don't train on the same ice because I am an ice dancer and she is a freestyler and does singles. However, the best part of us both skating is that we share our feelings and know that the other one understands what we are going through. We also share our drive and determination.
Alexe: My favorite part about training with each other is that we are there to help and cheer each other on the ice.
GL: What’s the hardest thing about training/competing with your twin?
Piper: It is not hard training or competing with my sister because we are in different disciplines, however but sometimes we both need our mom at the same time so that can be hard. For instance, one of us may be competing and the other one has a practice at the same time. That can be difficult.
Alexe: I think the hardest thing about training/competing with my twin is that I get soooo nervous for her!!!
GL: What else do you do to stay in shape other than figure skate?
Piper: I go to workout at the gym twice a week and have modern dance and ballet all through the week. I also like to snow and water ski, swim, and play volleyball and touch football. I like to do all sports.
Alexe: Other than skating I like to swim and ski on water and snow to stay in shape.
Wanna see these girls compete?
Check out Alexe on Jan. 22nd at 7:30 p.m. on Universal Sports (or live on icenetwork.com) and on Jan. 24th at 9 p.m. on NBC.
You can catch Piper on Jan. 19th at, 4:30pm, Jan. 20 at, 8:15pm and Jan. 22 at 10:50am live on icenetwork.com.
All times are Eastern Standard—check local listings!
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