{"id":312,"date":"2023-04-01T06:41:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-01T06:41:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bigrecipes.net\/?p=312"},"modified":"2024-05-31T17:30:47","modified_gmt":"2024-05-31T17:30:47","slug":"are-dancers-getting-injured-more-part-ii-it-all-goes-back-to-technique","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bigrecipes.net\/index.php\/2023\/04\/01\/are-dancers-getting-injured-more-part-ii-it-all-goes-back-to-technique\/","title":{"rendered":"Are dancers getting injured more? Part II: It all goes back to technique\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

We all know that scene in Center Stage<\/em>: Juliette (Donna Murphy) finds Eva (Zoe Saldana) working alone in the studio late at night. She starts to coach her, and then comes that iconic line; she cups the barre with one hand and says, \u201cIt\u2019s here.\u201d She\u2019s reminding her student that it all comes back to the work<\/em>. <\/p>\n

In researching for this series on a rise in dance injuries (anecdotally, rather than empirically seen at this point), Dance Informa heard a similar sentiment from dance medicine and dance science professionals: it all goes back to consistent work on technique and artistry. That work requires patience (it can feel slow), intentionality and working in alignment with one\u2019s own body<\/em>. <\/p>\n

In this second installment of the series, we\u2019ll deep dive into aspects of training, anatomy\/kinesiology and dance medicine research with respect to injury prevention. As we look closely at if dancers are getting injured at a higher rate in this post-COVID lockdowns world, and why that might be, those are all important pieces of the puzzle. We\u2019ll hear from the same accomplished experts. Stay tuned for Part III, where we\u2019ll look at how we push back against this trend. Check out Part I here<\/a>, if you haven\u2019t yet!<\/p>\n

Balanced conditioning for optimum dancer wellness<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sue Mayes, principal physiotherapist of The Australian Ballet, believes that basic knowledge on anatomy and kinesiology<\/a> can go a long way toward dancers working in safer ways. She advocates for increased dance anatomy education and research. To get a keener idea of your dancing body and how it\u2019s working, \u201clook at the muscles that control the movement,\u201d she advises dancers.  <\/p>\n

\n
\"Dr<\/a>
Dr Sue Mayes working with dancer Sara Andrlon. Photo by Christopher Rodgers Wilson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

For many dancers, part of that learning is coming to understand the importance of strengthening \u2014 for technique, for artistry, for career longevity and much more. Mayes explains how consistent stretching without strengthening can detract from one\u2019s technique and artistry. \u201cIf the structures that give stretch and recoil [to your muscles] can\u2019t do that, then those muscles have to work harder \u2013 and they\u2019ll fatigue faster. You won\u2019t have that spring in your dance.\u201d <\/p>\n

She\u2019s also quite clear that she\u2019s \u201cnot saying \u2018don\u2019t go to end ranges [of flexibility]\u2019 \u2013 just do it safely by also strengthening and engaging musculature.\u201d That\u2019s \u201cmobilizing rather than stretching,\u201d Mayes says \u2013 with \u201cmuscles engaged at all times and control at end range. That optimizes technique.\u201d<\/p>\n

Following all of that, Mayes reinforces for young dancers that if they want to dance professionally for a sustained period, they have to develop a hip strengthening program. That guidance comes from her research on dancers\u2019 hips, which found that strengthening exercises help prevent hip injuries. Also as a result of from that research, Mayes and her team teach dancers \u201ca toolbox of exercises to dancers that they can choose from.\u201d <\/p>\n

The result? \u201cWe\u2019ve markedly reduced injuries, and also increased the longevity of [dancers\u2019] careers,\u201d she notes. Further, she adds, such strengthening work has also helped dancers finish their careers safer and heathier \u2013 versus hobbling out with a slate of injuries. Such dancers \u201chave listened to the education and found out what works for them,\u201d Mayes believes. <\/p>\n

What works for dancers often \u201cdoesn\u2019t need to be difficult.\u201d She recommends a few fairly simple exercises: sets of rising to relev\u00e9 and lowering with control, stair running (\u201cfantastic for strengthening feet and ankles,\u201d Mayes says), weight lifting with control at end ranges of motion. Arguably, with the potential to help dancers do what they love stronger and longer, the only real question is \u201cwhy not?\u201d<\/p>\n

Joshua Honrado, Doctor of Athletic Training with NYU Langone\u2019s Harkness Center for Dance Injuries, reminds us of key principles for safe, informed pedagogy \u2013 principles to inform that conditioning work. Some of this might feel like a refresher for many well-informed readers \u2013 but that never hurts! It\u2019s important for dancers to strive for \u201cneutral alignment,\u201d and for teaching artists to guide them in that direction, for one. For two, observe and respect the limitations of anatomical structure. \u201cWe know, from dance science literature, that safely increasing flexibility\/range of motion is a long-term goal,\u201d Honrado affirms.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He also underscores the importance of proper, consistent warm-up and cool-down. Time your deep stretching more toward the cool-down end of things, and even better toward the end of the day, he recommends \u2013 because static stretching actually fatigues muscles. Muscles need energy for executing technique exercises and choreography in a fully supported, safe way. \u201cFatigue closely correlates with injury; it can make it all too easy to lose [sound] alignment and support,\u201d Honrado notes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He also encourages dancers to get sufficient and periodic rest and recovery. At the same, \u201cactive downtime\u201d is most beneficial, he notes: with continuing to set and reframe goals, as well as (along with rest) working towards them. There\u2019s actually dance science<\/a> research demonstrating the benefits of not completely <\/em>resting during times off from dance (or at least with time in the studio significantly reduced), Honrado shares. <\/p>\n

Learning technique and learning to question<\/strong><\/p>\n

Some could laugh off that aforementioned Center Stage <\/em>moment as a little cheesy, yet for Zac Jones of Heal Yourself and Move, everything really does<\/em> go back to technique. As he\u2019s working with clients, he immediately has them apply their kinetic learning to their technique. He asks them to \u201ctest everything they\u2019re doing [for conditioning] against their dancing\u2026is it improving <\/em>it?\u201d Evidently enough, if the answer there is \u201cno,\u201d then there\u2019s not much point to doing whatever exercises they\u2019re doing. <\/p>\n

That question could be meaningful for dancers following less-than-sound conditioning guidance from social media<\/a>; if they recognize that something they\u2019re doing isn\u2019t helping them, they may very well stop doing it before they get hurt. In a larger sense, this is also building a \u201cvalue system\u201d \u2013 as Jones defines it — of critical thinking, investigation and balanced rigor. Those are values that can truly serve dancers on their artistic path. <\/p>\n

He also encourages dancers to feel what\u2019s going on in their body on a deeper level as they go through exercises and technique \u2013 to key into their interoception (inner feeling) and their own body\u2019s wisdom. All of that can help them see the advantages of the quieter independent work, without the \u201cfanfare of class,\u201d Jones says — focused, quiet time and space that can bring a good deal of that meaningful learning of one\u2019s own body.<\/p>\n

From there, dancers can start to connect what\u2019s happening in class with all of the work they do outside of class; it all gives dancers that patterning that makes technique feel as natural as breathing, as Jones puts it. As such, establishing that patterning gives you a sincere advantage toward accelerating your technique and artistry, he adds.<\/p>\n

At minimum, those skills and mindsets can guide dancers to know enough about their own body to recognize how attempting an oversplit might not be the best idea for them \u2013 even if it wowed them when they saw a favorite Instagram influencer do it. Jones reinforces a key truth that we discussed in the first part of this series: when we see things on social media, we don\u2019t know the context. <\/p>\n

With dance-based images and shapes, that context includes that person\u2019s innate skeletal system, how that person prepared for it and how they got into it. Without taking that context into consideration, dancers often \u201cwant to push through an obstacle,\u201d Jones describes. That doesn\u2019t work, he notes \u2013 rather, it \u201cjust magnifies the obstacle\u2026because the body says, \u2018What are you doing?! Stop!\u2019 It\u2019s our evolution as humans.\u201d <\/p>\n

A more useful process \u2013 Jones details, echoing Honrado \u2013 is learning to \u201cto respect the obstacle,\u201d and then investigate it. \u201cFind the resistance point, and over time work around it and dissolve it.\u201d From there, it goes back to the technique and the vocabulary, Jones reiterates. It all becomes connected, the technique and somatics inextricably linked in supporting dancers toward being the strongest artists that they can be. <\/p>\n

All in all, pursuing something that might not be right for your body could be \u201cshape-chasing,\u201d as Jones calls it. In contrast, integrating the shapes of dance technique and choreography into your own physicality is true learning, he notes. Then, it becomes \u201cas easy as breathing.\u201d Our body is beautifully complex, more than any one step or phrase of movement vocabulary could be. \u201cStart to tap into that!\u201d he advises. <\/p>\n

Getting \u201cbuy in\u201d: Engaging students in their own wellness <\/strong><\/p>\n

You can lead a horse to water\u2026you know the saying. We can educate dancers and encourage a certain way of working, but they\u2019re the ones who have to keep doing the work: consistently, patiently and mindfully. How can we get \u201cbuy in\u201d from them, as Mayes puts it, that this kind of approach will truly get them to where they want to be as dancers? <\/p>\n

Both Mayes and Jones point to \u201cthe proof in the pudding\u201d — the great results that a more informed, safer approach can bring. Dancers notice that strengthening can actually increase range of motion, for one, Mayes says. Dancers Jones has worked with \u201chave come back [from injuries] stronger technically,\u201d he notes. \u201cWith the right information, they can go into their bodies more \u2013 really focus and find more possibilities.\u201d <\/p>\n

Tracking progress also helps dancers concretely see how they\u2019re improving, week to week \u2013 which only helps that \u201cbuy in,\u201d Jones affirms. Essentially, if dancers can see that it\u2019s helping them become stronger technically, they\u2019ll most likely do it. <\/p>\n

Jones also believes that how he works with dancers helps engage them. He says that the simple question of \u201chow do you feel?\u201d, while they execute a certain exercise, helps a dancer feel \u201cseen and heard.\u201d Feeling like that helps them \u201creally respond\u2026and it becomes more of a dialogue \u2013 a circular dialogue between teacher and student.\u201d Reflective questions for students, to be pondered and answered after class, can enhance such a dialogue, Jones adds.  <\/p>\n

The idea of \u201cit\u2019s the journey, not the destination\u201d can feel like the most cliche Instagram inspiration \u2013 yet cliches become cliches because they contain truth. As another time-tested aphorism, there are many paths up the mountain. “There are so many ways to get to the technique [aims that dancers want],\u201d Jones reminds us. Those ways are as numerous and diverse as we are. Perhaps the investigation of all of those paths, to find what will help us reach our<\/em> dance goals<\/a>, is its own kind of reward. Enjoy the exploration, dancers. \u201cPut the feel before the ideal,\u201d Jones quips.  <\/p>\n

By Kathryn Boland of Dance Informa.<\/a><\/p>\n

The post Are dancers getting injured more? Part II: It all goes back to technique\u00a0<\/a> appeared first on Dance Informa Magazine<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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