Makarova did not care for skating when she first stepped onto the ice at age 6 but a couple years later, after her family had moved to the U.S., she tried skating again and began to like it. She began competing in the United States in the 2003–04 season at the intermediate level, where she placed 7th at her regional championship. The following season, again competing as an intermediate, she won the pewter medal at her regional championship and went on to place 15th at the U.S. Junior Championships. In the 2005–2006 season, competing for the final time as an Intermediate, she won her regional championship, but had to withdraw from the U.S. Junior Championships. She moved up to the novice level in the 2006–07 season. She won her regional championship and placed 2nd at her sectional event to qualify for the 2007 U.S. Championships, where she placed 7th. While competing for the United States, she represented the Hudson Valley Figure Skating Club, and she continued to represent that club in the United States while advancing in the U.S. Figure Skating testing structure. Makarova switched to competing for Russia in 2007. At the 2008 Russian Junior Championships, she placed fourth in both segments of the competition to place 4th overall. In the 2008–09 season, she debuted on the ISU Junior Grand Prix. At her first event, the 2008–09 ISU Junior Grand Prix in Madrid, she won the short program and placed 8th in the free skate to place 4th overall. In her second event, in Sheffield, she placed 3rd in the short program and 4th in the free skate to place 4th overall. At the 2009 Russian Junior Championships, she placed 5th.
2009–2010 season
In the 2009–10 season, Makarova began being coached by Galina Zmievskaya and Viktor Petrenko in Hackensack, New Jersey, and Nina Petrenko was her choreographer. Makarova competed on the 2009–10 ISU Junior Grand Prix series. At her first event, in Lake Placid, New York, she placed 4th in the short program and second in the free skate to win the silver medal. At her second event, in Belarus, she placed 2nd in the short program and 3rd in the free skating to win the bronze medal. This qualified her for the Junior Grand Prix Final. She then competed at the 2009 Coupe Internationale de Nice senior-level competition, which she won after winning both segments of the competition. She placed 4th at the Junior Grand Prix Final after placing third in the short program and fourth in the free skating. Second in the short program and third in the free skate at the 2010 Russian Championships, Makarova finished first overall and qualified for the 2010 European Championships and 2010 Winter Olympics. At Europeans, she placed ninth in the short and long program to finish ninth overall. At the Olympics, Makarova placed twelfth in the short program, ninth in the free skate, and finished tenth overall behind teammate Alena Leonova. At Worlds, Makarova earned a personal best in the short program with 62.06 points. She was eighth in the free skate and finished eighth overall.
