Ballet Exercises - How do I improve my Body Condition

by Michael Philip
(Denmark)

Ballet Exercises - How do I improve my Body Condition

Hello.

I'm M. Philip from Denmark, I'm 20 years old, and I have only danced for about 2 years. I really enjoy it. I dance 5 times a week,so i try to make it serious. In relation to this i need a better condition. So I was wondering if you could give some advice about exercises for condition.
I'm told that running isn't good, because the muscles you're using for running are working against your flexibility and the muscles you are using in ballet. - Running would harm more than doing good.

Hope to hear from you.


Michael Philip


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Reply by Odette
To: - Ballet Exercises - How do I improve my Body Condition

Hi Michael,
Thanks for your message it's great to hear from you, I'm pleased you found my site and I'm always happy to help you out. You dance a lot during the week, so this is already a great start to shaping your body for ballet and getting into good condition. Yet I know you must feel the need to do more and many dancers do cross training to get their bodies into even better condition.

This means ranging your exercises and doing different forms of cardio work to keep your body in condition. It is good to keep your body working in a mixture of ways for your muscles. I find that running, cying and especially swimming are all good forms of exercises to improve your body and increase stamina.

Personally, I wouldn't say running is necessarily bad for your body in ballet as I enjoy jogging or going on the treadmill. Yet it is better to give your body the balance by not running too much and ranging your exercise styles. I also think the cross-trainer is excellent for ballet dancers as there's not as much impact on your muscles but it's still incredibly effective.

You can also try Pilates or yoga which which will keep your body in good shape and strengthen your core muscles for ballet.

If you could do this aerobic exercise around 3 times a week for 30 minutes, I would say this is an effective way to get your body into even better condition. I find swimming especially good at keeping my body in shape.

See what you think and keep in touch. Remember, this is all just my own thoughts and what has worked for me!

Best wishes,
Odette