Get to the Pointe!

From the moment a girl starts ballet, whether at two or seventy-two, she dreams of the day when she can go en pointe. I've gotten many questions from fellow Beginner Ballerinas asking when they will be ready to fulfill this dream, so girls, this post is for you!



WARNING: Before I begin, I have to warn you that only your teacher will be able to tell you that you are 100% ready to go en pointe. Honestly, some teachers can be super strict about this, and some can be very relaxed about it. But here are five basic factors that your teacher will consider when deciding whether you are ready to go en pointe:

#1 - Age

This one isn't so much of an issue for us late starters (yay! finally an advantage to starting late!). Typically, a dancer cannot go en pointe younger than the age of nine because the bones in their feet haven't hardened yet.


The most common age to go en pointe is between 11-14 years old, but younger students may be allowed to go en pointe if their feet are more mature.

#2 - Technique

You need solid ballet technique before you can transition to pointe shoes. Different studios have different policies, but I've known people to go en pointe with as little as six months of ballet training! But I'd say the most common amount of training required for late starters is between 2-3 years.



#3 - Strength

You should be able to balance for a good amount of time on releve, because you need to be able to balance en pointe. Try doing releves to gain strength (worry more about doing them properly than about how many you can do).



#4 - Foot Structure

The ideal foot type for pointe has strong and flexible ankles, a substantial arch and instep, and even toes. However, there are dancers (like me!) who do not have all these characteristics and still do fine en pointe.


Don't worry, your feet don't need to be as amazing as Svetlana's!

#5 - Commitment/Hard Work

If you work hard and are dedicated and passionate about ballet, your teacher will be more confident about allowing you to do pointe work. So work hard, have fun, and good luck!!!

10 Tips to Easy Splits!

So we all know the only real way to get down your splits is to stretch (OUCH!). But it doesn't have to be as bad as you may think. I've come up with a few tircks and tips to make the splits a lot easier to do, with less of the pain. *You won't get your splits JUST with these methods. You gotta stretch so it hurts too :)*

TIP #1: Take a Shower.

No, not because you're dirty! Taking a shower with hot water warms up your muscles, making them more flexible before you stretch. It loosens them up. If you stretch after taking a shower, you'll find it's a lot easier to get down farther into your splits.

TIP #2: Do some Jumping-Jacks.

Or any physical activity that will get your heart pumping. Dance wild around your room, run around the block, have a pillow fight with your younger brother... anything! This method also loosens up your muscles by warming them up. You NEVER want to stretch on cold muscles, it's not as effective, and not to mention it hurts a lot more!

TIP #3: Do This:

This is a quad stretch. It's not very painful, but will help your splits a lot. So many stretches focus on the leg thats forward in the splits (toe touches, heel in hand, etc.) but you can't forget about the leg facing back too! This will help you get farther down in your splits by getting that quad muscle looser.

TIP #4: Watch TV.

Okay, okay, so maybe I'm being a little vague. Just watching TV won't get you into your splits. But if you watch TV while stretching, you are distracted from the pain and don't get bored. Holding your splits is much easier to do while watching Spongebob re-runs!

TIP #5: Stretch at Night.

Do you ever notice how when you first wake up in the morning, you feel super tight and un-flexible? That's because when you sleep you stay in generally the same position and your muscles get stiff. But after a day's worth of activity, your muscles are loose and ready to do splits!

TIP #6: Wear Socks.

Wearing socks while pressing down into your splits will help your feet slide out farther. Plus they're cozy! Bare feet don't slide as well, and neither do ballet shoes. Socks help you reach your whole potential.

TIP #7: The more the merrier!

Doing a split everyday hurts less than doing one once a week. The more you do it, the easier it becomes. If you stretch every night you don't give your musclees a big chance to tighten up again, so even if it hurts because your sore you'll make much more progress and won't hurt as much from being tight.

TIP #8: Take Breaks Every so Often.

If you have a week off of school and are going on vacation, don't stretch for the week. If you're tired and need to take a week off, do it. You'll come back feeling better because you won't be sore anymore (or as sore!). It's important to take breaks every once in a while, but "once in a while" is a key word-- don't take breaks every other week!

TIP #9: Over-Splits.

If you're really struggling getting down those last few inches, try over-splits. Yes, these will hurt but they're a pretty clever trick for getting down your splits. Just go into your splits with elevate on leg on top of a book or two (a textbook works well). After you've done your oversplit, try going into your reular split again. SHAZAM! Suddenly you can do it! Over-splits are like magic for those last few inches.

An Example of an Over-Split:


TIP #10: Make a Friend Before Class.

If you have some free time before class starts, ask someone to stretch with you. You'll be loose for class and will dance better. You'll also impress the teacher with your flexibility. Not to mention, it's a great way to make a friend!

Ballet Stretching

Ballet Stretching is something every dancer needs to do before and after class.
Why? It's important to stretch out the muscles to release any tight limbs. By stretching often, it will lengthen out the muscles and let you gradually become more flexible.

There are many different factors that can affect a dancer to improve their flexibility:

Type of joint - Some joints are not designed to be flexible. It's important to understand what your own body is capable of.

Body Temperature - You're more flexible when the body is warm. That's why, whenever stretching, it's necessary that you're well warmed up.

Age - Younger people are generally more flexible than adults.
This might not make sense because all professional dancers who are adults are flexible. However, they have worked to be flexible all their life so it's now a natural part of how their body functions.

Gender - It isn't always the case, but females are often more flexible than males.

Time of day - Most dancers are more flexible in the afternoon than the morning.

Temperature - A warmer place to work in is more beneficial to increased flexibility.

Injuries - Injured muscles offer less flexibility than healthy ones.

Ballet stretching should relax the muscles. Whenever stretching, it needs to be a gentle process which you ease in to.
No stretch should make you feel like your in agony; the whole point to stretching is to relax and loosen the muscles.
The main stretches dancers use to relax the muscles are the hamstring stretch, calf stretch and quad stretch.
Dancers stretch for several important reasons. It lengthens out the limbs which loosens any tight muscles. It also increases flexibility which is vital to any dancer.
Every dancer needs to have flexibilty. This would mean to have loose limbs and to have the strength to maintain high legs whilst dancing.
The more dance training you do, the more flexible you will become. For example. by doing Grand Battement and Adage regularly will improve your flexibility.
I know very few dancers who are naturally incredibly flexible. The majority of dancers have to work for it.
Flexibility comes along with a lot of strength. It's something that will come in time with the combination of hard work, stretching and training.

Dancers - Can you be thin and healthy?

Dancers - Can you be thin and healthy?

A dancer can be thin and strong, and be eating enough to be healthy. A dancer can be thin and have the muscle mass needed to perform.

Processed carbohydrates make you fat, and offer no nutrition. Unprocessed fats, protein, complex carbohydrates (like vegetables and salads) DO NOT MAKE YOU FAT.

If you refrain from eating white breads (crackers, low-fat diet toast, sugar and fat-free cookies), pasta and potatoes, you train your body to burn fat.

If you eat empty, non-nutritional carbs, you train your body to burn all its available sugar, and to store fat.

It is a fact that artificial sweeteners make you crave sugar/carbs. So avoid them.

Believe it or not, the fattiest nuts, Macadamia, are the best snack. They are nutritious, and are low enough in carbs that eating them will will keep you burning fat!

Starving yourself, counting calories, fasting (omg) while doing dance training, or any other living activity, is obsessive and will not get you where you want to go.

If young dancers persist with these strange ideas of health, they will not dance.

Dancer's Snack Bag

Raw Fruits

Walnuts

Raw Almonds

Pumpkin Seeds

Yogurt

Granola

Hard Boiled Eggs

Vegetables

Tofu - Vegetarian

Seitan (Wheat Gluten)Vegetarian

Chicken or Turkey with out skin

Hummus with celery or carrots

Tahini

Bean Salads (Trader Joe’s has a great canned bean salad)

Bean and Rice Mixtures

Tabouleh

Buckwheat Noodles

Peanut Butter w/ Ezekiel Bread (by Food for Life) Apples/Bananas

Avocado

Salsa

Brown Rice Cakes

Cheese Cubes ( raw cheddar or jack cheese available at Whole Foods, Trader Joe's or Henry's. Also excellent are the Kosher Cheeses made with vegetable enzymes).

Water (of course) 8oz of fluid every 15 min or when breaks in class

Guidelines for protein

1.4-1.6g per kg body weight and 1/2 gram for every pound body weight

Experiencing Cramping? You might need Calcium, Potassium or Fluids.

Make sure to get your Calcium, Iron and B12!!

Eat Complex Carbs: 80%

vegetables

whole grain breads

wheat/rice pastas

bran and grain cereals

legumes

Simple Sugars: no more than 20%

fruits

milk (other than cow)

desserts and sweets

soft drinks

Probably best to lay off the last two foods; soda is poison!