My name is Jennifer. I'm studying for a bachelor of science degree in Exercise Physiology and a minor in Dance. I've been "working out" since early high school days. I'm 25 now so that makes ::counting on fingers:: somewhere around 10 years. I didn't play any sports in high school, unless you count marching band and color guard (i.e. dancing with a flag). I focused mostly on singing in high school. It was what I loved to do - so much so that I studied vocal music in college...for a year. Really I'm not sure what happened to change my mind other than it just didn't feel like what I should do with my life.
I took some self-discovery time and a couple of years later, in 2009, I decided to go to school again to study exercise physiology. Somewhere along the line I found out that I could have a dance minor as with an exercise physiology major. That's what I wanted to do. Dance. I'm glad it isn't my major - I couldn't handle all the pressure to do well as a dancer - but my major helps me to me to understand my dance minor is some ways that dancers don't always get to understand.
I will also say this. I struggle with calling myself a dancer. When I was little I wanted to dance. My body loved to move even though it wasn't very good at it. My body still loves to move and when I dance I feel like the most graceful being on earth - that is until I watch my recordings. Ha ha ha! Then I notice all the glaring reminders that I'm not.
Some things about my body that make my movement uniquely mine will likely never change. For example, my external rotation in my hips(think ballet first position or "turn out") on my right side much less than on my left side. I've talked to my dance teachers and even my exercise physiology teachers and the general consensus is that it's probably structural and won't change drastically with stretching. Since I won't be a professional dancer any time soon that's perfectly fine. What interests me more than flexibility though is strength - even more specifically strength training for dancers - all kinds of dancers: ballet, jazz, hip-hop, clog, tap, and modern. I'd like to find exercises that can be done in the gym or pool supplemental to conditioning done in dance class.
My dance teachers expect me to condition my body on my own time and I want to. I've been going to the gym like a good little exercise physiology/dance student should but my workouts have been pretty much directionless the last few weeks. I think I've been experiencing a dance student/exercise physiology student identity crisis. As a dance student I want to make my workout specific to my sport (I feel like dance is a sport). A friend, as well as teacher from past semesters, and I were talking a little about this. I was expressing my frustration with the weight room and dance conditioning. He said "Why don't you think of dance as just movement and apply what you already know about the body and the way it works?" Genius! Pure genius! He was very right.
So now...future posts (at least for a while) will be on how to strengthen for dance. Please keep in mind: I'm not an expert, these exercises are not tested for long term effects (or short term for that matter), the exercises are food for thought - just ideas. I'd also like you to keep this in mind: I would love feedback - with or without references. If you exercises you do I'd be delighted to hear those as well. My posts in the short-term future will focus on strength, not flexibility.
Thanks for stopping by!
Below is a video to show first position for those who are curious. :-)
Basic Ballet Positions for the Feet -- powered by ehow
No comments:
Post a Comment