A Workshop for Dancers, Dance Educators & Parents

The Healthy Dancer

invites you to a

Summer Workshop 

on

Anatomy

Body Awareness

and

Injury Prevention & Care

Come learn how to…

Understand anatomy
Train efficient dancers
Train strong, technically sound dancers
Work with dancers' strengths & limitations
Train intelligent dancers
Prevent & care for injuries
Cross-train dancers effectively

Join us 

Saturday, July 25

1 PM - 4 PM

in Guilford, Connecticut

for

lectures & participatory workshops

Click on this link to register!!

(Space is limited, so reserve your spot soon)

Stretching Is Good for Dancers, Isn't It?

“Blessed are the flexible for they will not allow themselves to become bent out of shape.” – Robert Ludlum

        Dancers need to be able to raise their legs as high as possible, split their legs 180° apart in a leap, and turn them out as far as possible when necessary. When all of that is considered, there is no mystery in the fact that dancers spend an inordinate amount of time stretching, working on flexibility, and trying to increase range of motion in most of their joints.

                        How then, could stretching be bad?

        There is a right way and a wrong way to stretch. Knowing the difference between the two and listening to the body will mean the difference between improving dance performance and setting a body up for injury.

        The dancer’s goal is to stretch muscles. Flexible muscles improve posture, increase a dancer’s ability to move freely, help prevent injuries, and provide increased blood circulation throughout the body. Tight muscles tend to pull on the skeleton and force the body into unnatural positions. Tight muscles prevent movement, and are more apt to tear during quick movements. They also tend to constrict blood vessels and decrease blood flow.

         One important quality of musclesis that they are elastic. When a muscle is stretched, although it becomes more flexible, the muscle fibers do not lose their elasticity and become lax. Ligaments are the fibrous strands that connect bones to each other. In addition to holding the skeleton together in correct alignment, they also prevent the body from moving in ways that it is not designed to move. Unlike muscles, they are not elastic. When they become stretched out, they cannot do their jobs; the body is allowed to move in ways that can cause injuries like bone dislocations, and the body’s alignment becomes distorted. For these reasons, dancers need to be sure to concentrate on stretching muscles and not ligaments.

        Ligaments are found at the joints. Any stretches that pull on the joints or focus on those areas stretch ligaments and could be causing more harm than good. 

The "frog stretch", pictured above, pulls on the ligaments surrounding the hip and the knee and could be setting the dancer up for injury. 

This lunge position which is often suggested for stretching the quadriceps muscle group also pulls on the ligaments of the hip. 

        Dancers need to focus on stretching exercises that stretch the center of the muscles. When stretching correctly, the dancer should feel a gentle pull in the belly of the muscle. If any pulling is felt at the joint, the dancer could be performing the stretch incorrectly, or the stretch may not be a good one because it is stretching parts of the body that should not be stretched and will not increase flexibility.

        The lunge pictured above can be replaced with a lunge with a bent back knee that will focus on the actual quadricep muscles instead of straining the ligaments of the hip.

        Dancers need to be aware of these differences and take time to listen to their bodies. By doing so, they will be able to choose stretches that are safe and effective at increasing flexibility.

A Contest to Promote Healthy Eating Among Dancers

          February 22-28 is National Eating Disorders Awareness Week. It is a cause dear to my heart having danced with, taught, and been a mentor to people with eating disorders. Each year this blog does something to encourage ED awareness and to promote healthy eating.
                                          
          This year I would like to invite you to send me your recipes for your favorite healthy meals and/or snacks for dancers. I will compile all of the recipes into a booklet that I will email to my subscribers. Everyone who submits a recipe will be entered into a random drawing for a printed, laminated copy of the recipe booklet and a small gift basket of items to care for your dancing body.

          -  Recipes can be submitted up until 11:59 PM EST on Saturday, 
              February 28, for you to be eligible for the drawing.
           - Recipes should be emailed to thehealthydancer@gmail.com 
          -  Due to shipping restrictions, winners can only be selected from 
              those with a valid shipping address in the Continental    
              United States and Canada.
           - The winner will be chosen in a random drawing and notified via                      email
          -  The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the email to claim the               prize and submit a shipping address.  If the winner fails to respond               within the 48 hours, another winner will be randomly chosen.

Using Breath to Enhance Stretching

         "Conscious breathing is my anchor.” ― Thích Nhất Hạnh

          Breathing is a function of the autonomic nervous system and occurs naturally and efficiently without any conscious help from us. However, being aware of our breathing patterns and allowing them to work in tandem with our actions, can enhance our dancing as was discussed in the post, Reminding Dancers to Breathe. Breathing can also be used to help dancers stretch effectively.

          Dancers spend a good deal of time trying to increase muscle flexibility and joint range of motion. There are different ways to stretch, and some are more effective than other as has been discussed in the posts: Stretching - When Not to Do It, Stretching - Working With Your Body Type, and Stretching - Ballistic, Dynamic & Static - Which is Most Effective.

          While dynamic stretching should be used during the warm-up, static stretching can be used at the end of classes, rehearsals, and performances as part of a cool-down and can increase flexibility while releasing any muscular tension that may have developed. Being aware of our breathing and how it affects our muscles, can help us create effective stretching strategies.

          As we inhale, our diaphragm contracts to make room for the intake of air. As the air floods in, our lungs expand, and blood pools there for a short time. Since the blood is pooling and not circulating as quickly, the heart receives a message to pump faster to increase circulation. When we exhale, the blood quickly moves back into the heart. A large amount of blood in the heart means that each heart beat can circulate a substantial amount of blood and the heart can slow down. As the heart rate slows, the entire body relaxes and releases tension. It is for these reasons that when we stretch we should use the inhale to prepare for the stretch and move into the stretch on the exhale.

          As we inhale, we should focus on lengthening and aligning our skeletons, and we should begin to release into the stretch as we exhale. As we inhale again, we should come out of the stretch slightly and re-lengthen before we move into the stretch a bit deeper on the next exhale. This process can be repeated several times to increase the depth of the stretch. By using our breath, we also keep the stretch reflex from occurring.

          The stretch reflex is a built-in safety mechanism that the body uses to help avoid muscles damage. When a muscle is elongated too far, the brain senses it might tear and sends a message to the muscle fibers to contract to prevent the tear from happening. A muscle contraction tightens the muscle and prevents it from stretching any further. By relaxing into the stretch and then coming out of it slightly before stretching deeper, we are able to prevent this reflex from occurring.

          It is also important to be sure we are never holding our breath as we stretch. Holding our breath causes all of our muscles to tighten and contract. If you find yourself holding your breath while stretching, it may mean that you are pushing too far into the stretch for your body.

          Although dancers tend to focus on increasing flexibility and joint range of motion when stretching, they need

to remember that stretching can also relieve tension and relax the body after a class, rehearsal, or performance.

          Being aware of our breathing and using it in tandem with stretching, can help us increase flexibility while relieving muscle tension rather than fighting against ourselves and locking more tension into the body.

Choosing Which Side to Start On…Does It Make a Difference?

        “Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try!”― Dr. Seuss 


          "Right foot front", "Let's start on the right", and "Stand with your left hand on the barre, starting with your right foot" are common phrases in almost all dance classes. Turns are normally done to the right first, and groans are

commonly heard when a teacher requests that the turns be repeated to the left. Is this because a large majority of the dance population has a preference for the right side, or is this because dance classes favor the right side?          
          Children demonstrate a preference for being right or left handed at a young age. By the time they learn to write, it is usually clear which hand is preferred. However, children are normally mixed footed, not showing a preference for either their right or left feet, until late childhood or early adolescence. Studies have suggested that the preference that develops is partially a result of environmental influences. (2)

          If the environment is influential in determining which side a dancer prefers, known as a lateral bias, it seems that dance educators should examine their manners of teaching. Data gathered from observing 20 different ballet classes showed that dancers practice combinations on the right side up to 26% more than they do on the left.(1)

          Most teachers demonstrate the combination on the right side which encourages modeling on the right side. When the class marks the combination, it is usually done to the right, and the combination is usually performed first on the right side. In many cases, there is no demonstration or rehearsal on the left side, and students are simply expected to perform the exercise on the left. When dancers were interviewed about common practices in class, only 12% expected that combinations would be demonstrated on the left side as well as the right.(3)

          Most dancers will claim that they prefer the right side, but if both sides were treated equally in class, perhaps that claim might be different. In a study conducted on 40 undergraduate dancers who were taught a combination on the left side and then asked to perform it on the right side, the dancers were able to transfer the steps to the right side significantly well.(5) The transfer seems to indicate that although students might prefer to learn a combination on the right first, it may only be as a result of habit. Continuously learning a combination on the right side first, reinforces neural pathways between the brain and the right side of the body. Therefore, when learning a combination on the left side first, it would seem that the dancer would have to be more engaged and focused because the pathways would not be as well developed. Further support of this theory comes from a study including both novice and experienced dancers that showed left side learning took more time. (4)

          In addition to developing habits, lateral bias in dance class could also be causing imbalances in muscle strength and joint range of motion since one side of the body is being used more than the other. It would be beneficial for dance educators to consider varying class and making a conscious effort to demonstrate, mark, and/or begin combinations on the left some of the time.

          In doing so, educators could begin to address and possibly decrease developing muscular imbalances, reinforce more neural pathways, and create an atmosphere of deeper focus and engagement in class. This type of class variation will help to create healthier dancers who might even end up able to turn well on both sides.
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(1) Farrar-Baker, A. & Wilmerding, V. Prevalence of lateral bias in the teaching of            beginning and advanced ballet. Journal of Dance Medicine and Science, 2006; 10 (3&4) 81-4.
 (2)Gabbard C, Iteya M. Foot laterality in children, adolescents and adults. Laterality. 1996;1(3):199-205.
 (3)Kimmerle M. Lateral bias in the dance class. In: Chin MK, Hensley L, Coté P, Chen S (eds): Global Perspective in the Integration of Physical Activity, Sports, Dance, and Exercise Science in Physical Education: From Theory to Practice. Hong Kong: Contemporary Development, 2004, pp.167-174.
(4) Kimmerle M, Coté P, Patterson J. Bilateral transfer of right and left dance sequences in experienced and novice dancers. In: Solomon R, Solomon J (eds): Proceedings of the 17th Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine & Science 2007. Canberra, Australia: IADMS,2007, pp.18-22.
(5)Puretz, S. Bilateral transfer: The effects of practice on the transfer of complex dance movement patterns. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 1983; 54(1):48-54.

Understanding Muscle Cramps

Ultimately, we become aware of most of what is going on within us mainly through the muscles. - Moshe Feldenkrais

Muscle Cramp - that tightening feeling in the belly of a muscle in places like your calves or your thighs that is accompanied by pain!!

            Muscle cramps occur when a muscle or group of muscles involuntary contracts and will not release, or relax. There is no reason for the contraction to occur. The muscles do not have any work to do, yet they act as if they are being called to action.

            Muscle cramps can occur at any time - whether we are awake or asleep -  and for a variety of reasons. The type of muscle cramps that dancers suffer from are exercise associated muscle cramps. Science has yet to determine the exact cause of exercise associated muscle cramps, but there are two possible theories that are being studied.

            One possible cause is overuse and fatigue. Muscles, like the rest of our body parts, grow tired after use and stop working correctly. For a muscle to work correctly, the body depends upon clear communication between the brain and the muscle. Messages are sent back and forth along a string of nerves called a neural pathway. The brain sends a message to the muscle for a contraction to occur and waits for the muscle to supply the brain with feedback to know whether or not an action has been accomplished or if another message must be sent to continue or increase the muscle contraction. An example of this situation would be the varying degrees in which a dancer can rise up into a relevé position. A dancer may choose to rise onto demi-pointe or full-pointe.

                                               

      
Each of these  positions requires a different degree of contraction in the calf muscles. The brain depends upon muscular feedback to know if the position has been reached. When a muscle and a neural pathway are overused or tired, an imbalance occurs between the signals sent to the muscles and the feedback provided to the brain. This imbalance causes the brain to continue to signal the muscle to contract and causes a cramp and an involuntary contraction that will not release. When this cramp occurs, it is best to gently massage and stretch the muscle while keeping it warm until the contraction releases.

            Another possible cause of exercise associated muscle cramps is dehydration and a loss of electrolytes. Electrolytes are minerals found in fluids in your body that keep the body functioning. Some examples of minerals that are relied upon for proper muscle contraction are sodium, calcium, and potassium. When we exercise, we lose water and some of these minerals through sweat. A way to eliminate dehydration and electrolyte loss as a cause of muscle cramps is to stay properly hydrated when dancing and to snack on healthy, nutritious foodthat will keep minerals at optimal levels.

            Understanding what happens in your body when muscles cramp can help you to minimize their occurrences and, hopefully, recover from them before you find yourself in too much pain.

 __________________________________________

Miller, K. C., Stone, M. S., Huxel, K. C., & Edwards, J. E. (2010). Exercise-Associated Muscle Cramps: Causes, Treatment, and Prevention. Sports Health, 2(4), 279–283. doi:10.1177/1941738109357299

Schwellnus, M.P. (2009) Cause of exercise associated muscle cramps (EAMC)--altered neuromuscular control, dehydration or electrolyte depletion? British Journal of Sports Medicine, 43(6), 401-408.