Many Questions

Dancing Smart Newsletter
March 3, 2006

Announcements

Good news! Anneliese Burns & I have committed to a 4-city workshop this summer on the exploring the pelvis and hip joint! It will be the first of a three part series on the body with the other two body parts being lower extremity covering knee, foot and ankle, and the upper extremity. Listening to your comments from the questionnaire we are going to do a one day workshop jammed pack full of useful information to take back to your studios. Understanding the anatomy of this area will be the focus of the first morning session before diving into how to assess and evaluate the unique challenges of your students' bodies and what stretches, strengtheners, and exercises in class can you work with in class to get on the fast track of improvement. Using the word fast track is not to imply that improving turnout or getting a better arabesque happens over night - but with the right tools, and understanding the relationships between what you test and what you see in your student's movement - will make your corrections more specific - decrease the potential for injuries - and increase your students' chances for success! We will get more details to you next week, but in the meantime mark your calendars...

• June 4 th - Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
• June 17 th - Long Beach, CA
• July 16 th - NYC area (looking at CT/NY/MA corner)
• July 22 nd - (Either Richmond, VA or Atlanta, GA)

If you have feedback on the cities - please let us know immediately as we will be setting the cities by the next newsletter. Hope you'll join us!

Question #1

Great question, Eve! There are 2 things you need to have a beautiful arabesque. The first is you need the flexibility at the hip joint, especially with the iliopsoas muscle, in order to lift your leg easily into extension. The second thing you need is strength in the extensors of the back to keep the back straighter. You say that you have the extension of the leg, so I have to think it is coming from your back.

With the help of another dancer, try rounding down as if you were going to touch your toes. Only go about halfway, and bend your knees to take the strain off the hamstrings. Have the other dancer look at the shape of your spine as you are folded over. Is it in a C shape? Or perhaps is the area between your shoulder blades flatter, which would indicate muscular tightness in that area. Sometimes you can see the spinous processes of the vertebrae, which are the bumps along the spine. If you can see them easily, and then all of a sudden they seem to disappear, you can again suspect some muscular tightness.

Use the pinkie ball against the wall in these areas as has been described in previous newsletters. (You could also check out my Ballwork: Releasing Muscular Tension DVD) After working to release the tension, watch your alignment outside of class. Do you have a tendency to slump at the desk or computer? If so, you may want to work to strengthen that area of the back. Even hanging out over a large physioball in a back arch will feel great and counter the tendency towards slumping.

Question #2

Certainly having back pain on a daily basis is a sign from your body that something is not right! Sleeping on too soft of a mattress is often a culprit, but you have changed your mattress - so that isn't likely. I wonder if you are a stomach sleeper, which is more challenging on your lower back. If you are a stomach sleeping, and don't think you can easily shift to your side, you might try putting a medium size pillow under your belly when you sleep to take some of the arch out of it.

The other question I have is whether you are straining your back rehearsing with the dance team. I have seen hyperextension injuries happen from choreography with lots of back bends in it without enough abdominal support as well as sometimes occurring from lifts or having other people jump onto your back.

If you can notice if your back hurts doing certain moves in class or rehearsal, that will help you know what to pull back from temporarily. Sometimes injuries need time to rest. If you continue to have back pain I would suggest getting it checked out.

Question #3

The muscles from the calf attach onto the tips of the toes, while the foot muscles attach to the base of the toes. When the intrinsic foot muscles cramp, you'll feel that in the arch of the foot. Since you are feeling the cramping at the toes, it makes me suspect that your calf muscles are overly tight. Try working with the pinkie ball on both the front and back of the calf. Take extra time to stretch the calf muscles in a lunge position, or with your heel hanging off the bottom step, or a thick book. As you do a tendu, or go to pointe your foot, check to make sure you aren't curling your toes under too tightly. Instead reach your toes long, keeping them slightly separated from each other and fairly straight. It will take a few weeks before noticing a change. Good luck!

Question #4

Being on school holidays is a great time to cross train. Swimming is an excellent cardiovascular activity and works the upper body nicely. Getting some consistent cardiovascular work followed by a relaxing yoga or stretching on your own would be ideal! I had a male student in class last semester who over winter break was able to go from not touching his toes to putting his hands on the ground as he slowly and consistently put stretching into his routine. He wasn't taking any dance classes during his break, either. Just working out on his own. Breaks are the time to bring balance into your life, and makes returning to dance classes so much more enjoyable!

 

Deborah

"Education is the key to injury prevention"

Copyright ©2003-2006 The Body Series. All Rights Reserved.

Deborah Vogel is a dancer, author, and master teacher who conducts workshops across the U.S. for both student and professional dancers. Her numerous articles on dance technique and injury prevention have appeared in Dance Spirit and Dance Teacher magazines. She is the Director of the Institute for Performance Studies and a faculty member at Oberlin College and the OC Conservatory of Music. During her years in NYC she co- founded the Center for Dance Medicine. Deborah makes her home in Oberlin, Ohio.