How to stretch for dance
5 Types of Stretches for Dancers | Spotlight Vermont Blog
It’s not secret that stretching correctly is beneficial to anyone. Dancers on the other hand, need a bit more attention to their daily stretch routine.
NOTE: Please listen to your body, over stretching or stretching and feeling pain may be the sign of a bigger issue.
1) Shoulder Stretches
- Bringing one arm up and over behind your head, bend at the elbow and gently push toward the opposite ear to feel a stretch in the back of your arm.
- On a table, chair, ballet barre, or other strong object that is about chest or shoulder high, put both hands on with straight arms and gently push your body down leaving your head level with a flat back. Your upper body and face should be facing the floor. Hold this position for a great shoulder stretch for about 30 seconds.
2) Leg and Hip Stretches
- Start with one leg in front of the other by about 2 feet (give or take) with your front foot in parallel and back foot turned out for stability. Lean over your front leg and hug it as best you can. you can always place one hand on the floor for extra stability if you need it. Hold for 15-20 seconds. Repeat 2-3 times on each leg.
- Sit on the floor with both legs straight out in front of you. Making sure your knees are pointing up to the ceiling, lean over and touch your toes (or try to!). You can do this stretch with pointed feet or flexed feet for added stretching. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat 2-3 times.
- Sit on the floor with your feet touching and heels together in the butterfly position. Keeping your hands resting on your heels, use your elbows to push down on your knees and bend over your feet. This is a great stretch for your hip adductors.
3) Seal Stretch
- The seal stretch is a great option for stretching out your lumbar spine and can be soothing when sitting for long hours at a time, like behind a desk or in a classroom. Lay with your stomach on the floor with your arms propped up about shoulder width underneath you.
Push up your upper body and breath through the stretch. To make the stretch deeper, let your head rest back with your face up to the ceiling. Every person’s body and level of flexibility is different so you may need to adjust the position of your hands to find the most comfortable and beneficial stretch.
4) Side Twist
- It is exactly how it sounds. Standing with the side of your body next to a counter, table, or ballet barre, turn your upper body only toward the stable object. Try looking over the shoulder you are turning toward. Hold this stretch for about 15 seconds for 3 rounds turning to each side.
5) Foot Stretches
- Lay on your back and bend on leg in holding it to your chest. Raise your other leg and point your foot as much as you can. Point for 15 seconds and then flex that foot for 15 seconds putting purpose into each movement.
Repeat pointing and flexing 3-5 times on each leg switching the straight and bent legs.
- Dancers know how important their feet are so this stretch is done often, and even in class. Stand next to something sturdy and cross one foot over the other with the top foot pointing down and the top of that foot resting on the standing foot/floor. The arch of your foot should be pointing up and away from the floor. Bend and straighten both knees in 5 second pulses to increase the arch in the non-standing foot. Repeat on for both feet.
Stretching is different for everyone and there are many types of stretches that a dancer can do. With positive attitude and a lot of patience, you too can increase your flexibility!
Spotlight Vermont, StretchesRebecca BryngaComment
0 Likes10 Top Stretches and Exercises to Improve Dance Flexibility
by Stelle World on 0 comments
Flexibility is an important part of dance.
Dance flexibility can take up to 6 months or a year of constant discipline depending on the age of the dancer. It can be frustrating for dancers who expect to see results right away.
Here are a few stretches and exercises to improve dance flexibility for young dancers.
1. Standing Hamstring Stretch
This stretch is great for the neck, back, glutes, hamstrings, and calf muscles. Start off standing tall with your feet hip-width apart. Bend your knees slightly and rest your arms by your side.
Exhale as you bend forward from the hips and lower your head to the floor. Try to keep your head, shoulders and neck relaxed as you do this stretch.
Wrap your arms around the back of your legs and hold. Experts suggest that you hold a stretch for 10 seconds to 3 minutes. If you go into a stretch and feel as if you immediately want to release it is a sign that you need to spend more time stretching this area as part of your dancer workout plan.
When you are done holding your stretch bend at the knees and roll your way back up to a standing position.
2. Piriformis Stretch
The piriformis muscle is located outside the butt. It is a deep internal hip rotator. Your deep internal rotators produce a lot of movement at your hips and stretching these muscles should be apart of your daily ballet workout.
Sit on the floor with both legs extended out in front of you. Cross your left leg over your right and place your left foot flat on the floor beside you. Then place your left hand on the floor behind your body.
Put your right hand on your quad or bring your elbow to your knee and press your left leg to the right. You should feel a twist in your body when you are performing the stretch correctly.
3. Lunge With Spinal Twist
This stretch helps open up your hips and improves mid-back mobility, which is a necessary part of ballet turns.
Start with your feet together and take a big step forward with your left foot. Now your feet should be in a staggered stance. Bend your left knee as if you are lunging.
Keep your right leg straight behind you.
Your toes should point downward to the ground. You will feel a stretch in your right thigh. Now place your right hand on the floor beside you and twist your upper body to the left. Reach your left arm up toward the ceiling and stretch as if you are trying to touch the ceiling.
Hold the stretch and then repeat on the other side.
4. Tricep Stretch
An area of deep stretching often overlooked by dancers is the arms. Most dancers focus on the legs but you will also need arm flexibility to complete many ballet positions.
For a tricep stretch stand tall with your feet hip-width apart. Extend your arms up over your head. Bend your right elbow and reach your hand behind your head to touch the top middle of your back.
You can gently pull your elbow toward your head yo get a deeper stretch. You should feel the stretch in your neck, shoulders, back, and triceps. When you are done holding the stretch repeat on the other side.
5. 90/90 Stretch
This is another great stretch for dancers because it hits both hips at the same time. Sit with your right knee bent at a 90-degree angle out in front of your body. Keep your foot flexed and your sole should be facing the left.
Let your leg rest flat on the floor as you place your left knee to the left of your body. Bend the knee so that the foot faces behind you. Be sure to keep this foot flexed too.
Try your best to keep your right glute on the floor and move the left glute as close to the floor as possible. This may not be possible if you have been dancing a lot and are super tight in your glutes or hips.
Hold the stretch and repeat on the other side.
6. Frog Stretch
Another one of our dance tips for flexibility is to not sit crossed legged. Crossing your legs can lead to tight hips. Here is a stretch you can do if you do happen to sit cross-legged a lot.
Get down on all fours and slide your knees wider than shoulder-width apart behind you.
Turn your toes out and rest the edge of your inner thigh on the floor. Shift your hips back toward your heels and keep your feet flat on the floor.
If you can move from your hands to your forearms for a deeper stretch.
7. Butterfly Stretch
This simple stretch helps the hips, glutes, back, and thighs. Sit on the floor with your back tall and your soles together. Bend your knees out to the side.
Hold your ankles or your feet, engage your abs, and slowly lower your upper body toward your feet as low as you can go while at the same time pressing your knees down into the floor.
8. Shoulder Squeeze
This stretch relieves poor posture and releases tension in the back. Sit on the floor with your knees bent and feet flat. Clasp your hands together behind your lower back and straighten and extend your arms.
Squeeze your shoulder blades together for a few seconds and then release. Repeat this stretch for 5 to 10 times.
9. Side Bend
This easy stretch keeps the groin, and hips inner thighs flexible.
Kneel on the floor with your legs together. Keep your back straight and your core engaged. Extend your left leg out beside you.
The reach your right arm up and rest your left arm on your left leg. Gently bend at the torso and right arm to the left side of your body. Try to keep your hips facing forward as you hold the stretch. Then repeat on the other side.
10. Neck Stretch
Most dancers forget to stretch their necks. A good neck stretch can positively impact the rest of your body.
Drop your right ear down to your right shoulder. Press down on your head to deepen the stretch and hold. When you are done, complete the stretch on the other side.
Keep Working on Your Dance Flexibility
No one has ever become flexible overnight. To improve your dancer flexibility, stretching should be apart of your daily routine. Just keep at it and you’ll start to see a noticeable difference.
Stelle is a dance label created by a mother of three girls who love to dance.
Our blog is full of great content like this article on how to help your budding ballerina do a proper plie squat.
- dance, flexible dancing, stretching
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is it possible to sit on the twine in a month?
Let's immediately dispel the fashionable Internet myth that anyone can sit on the longitudinal and transverse splits in a matter of days. The mobility of the joints, the softness of the ligaments and the suppleness of the muscles are not the same for everyone. There are "soft" and "hard" people. Some stretch easily and maintain this stretch throughout their lives, while others make a lot of effort to properly sit in the lotus position. Not everyone can even lift something off the floor without bending their knees. And that's okay.
But perfect stretching is needed in ballet, acrobatics, strip plastic and a couple of other styles. In other areas, it is quite possible to achieve results without torturing yourself. For example, the Dragons dance school accepts everyone, regardless of their ability to do twine.
Listen to your body!
This is one of the most important principles of the Dragons. The body, of course, does not know about all its capabilities, but they need to be opened gradually, without undue pressure and, of course, without injury. Therefore, stretching before dancing in hip-hop, illusion or breakdance classes is carried out in the most gentle form.
- First, the body is thoroughly warmed up by exercises from the warm-up complex.
- Then the joints are worked out. Their mobility is the most important!
- And then the key areas are stretched, both involved and not involved in the dance.
This approach allows you to avoid excruciating pain, dislocations and other unpleasant consequences.
Effect in progress
An interesting fact: a person absorbed in dance does not notice progress in the range of motion. And he is! A hot, warm body, a fair amount of serotonin and adrenaline in the blood as a natural consequence of the pleasure of dancing, excitement, the support of roommates and teachers allow each time to lean a little lower, jump a little higher, move limbs at new angles. With each occupation, the movements acquire the necessary completeness, confidence. Stretching the legs in the dance, as well as the arms, muscles of the back, neck, sides, and abdomen happens by itself, you just need not to stop dancing for a day.
What else can be done to improve stretching:
- dance at home as much as possible,
- walk up the stairs after two, and then three steps,
- after strength exercises, be sure to pull the muscle group that was just intensively contracted,
- bath is a great place for stretching, muscles are especially supple in warm water
- twine is not the most important thing, but a properly made “bridge” is already an important achievement!
Sometimes you don't have the strength and the mood to warm up.
In such cases, you can intensively rub the stretched area. But it is better to resort to this trick as little as possible.
At the pace of hip-hop
Stretching, dancing, exercises - all this needs competent control. Teachers of the "Dragon" school know how to teach dance to someone who was embarrassed to go to the dance floor yesterday. In addition to excellent physical shape, mobility, self-confidence in the dance hall, a sense of rhythm, a sense of style and the ability to dissolve in dance without losing oneself, one's individuality are laid. Want to try? The first lesson is free for everyone!
By the way, if it is planned to send a child to dance, he will achieve better results if the parents also begin to master hip-hop or illusion. And stretching together at home and repeating the past is a real pleasure.
Stretching exercises | Dance school Cosmo Dance
If you want to practice dancing, gymnastics or ballet, you will definitely need the ability to sit on twine .
And many people have a question, where to turn to easily learn how to sit on the twine and get high-quality training for stretching, which will become noticeably more effective in the shortest possible time. Our dance school has extensive experience in this area and will definitely help you.
Why stretch?
A good stretch shows a physical disposition to dance, ballet and gymnastics, and also gives a high elasticity of the body, muscles and their mobility. Even the simplest type of twine impresses with its action, which is why many strive to learn how to do it.
Stretching can be learned by ordinary people who have never been involved in sports. Our dance school will show you that it is possible and in a very short time you will be able to see for yourself and sit on the twine.
In order to sit on the splits , it is necessary to carry out a set of physical exercises, which are not at all complicated in principle. The main factor is the regularity of such actions.
Twine is one of the elements that is trained in sports dances and ballet schools. Good stretching will result in minimal injury, your movements will be smooth and graceful, and you will feel light.
With the help of stretching, you can improve your metabolism and, consequently, reduce your weight. Also, twine and stretching contribute to better blood circulation and improve the functioning of the entire genitourinary system. It will be easier for women to give birth on their own, because their joints will be more mobile, and the ligaments will be elastic.
Varieties of twine
An important point that should always be remembered, even by experienced people, to perform stretching should be well warmed up, only in this way you can not damage your ligaments and will feel in great shape.
Among all varieties of twine, there are:
— longitudinal;
- transverse.
Longitudinal is a stretch for legs when the legs are extended in one line, that is, one leg tends forward, and the other back.
With the transverse, the pelvis is located on the surface of the floor, and the legs are spread apart in different directions. These types are the simplest and almost everyone can master them with the help of our specialists.
In addition to them, there are also vertical splits and splits on the hands. These species are already professional species. These types can also be both longitudinal and transverse
The time in which you can sit on the splits with the help of our professionals
Each organism has its own characteristics, which he received from nature. Therefore, the time during which you can sit on the twine can vary significantly for each individual person. Also important is the physical fitness of a person, his state of health, age and other individual characteristics.
Young athletes and young athletes learn this type of stretching faster, but this is achieved not only due to age, but more because of the pressure of the coach. In old age, you can also learn to sit on the twine.
People at this age are more sensitive and treat their body better, they listen to it, so this period may take them longer.
Therefore, the total time that may be needed is from a few weeks to several years.
What you need to remember
It is important to remember that no matter what kind of twine you comprehend, you need to warm up and warm up the muscles, so you do not damage them. As a warm-up, there can be jogging, cycling, various sets of exercises.
When the muscle fibers are warmed up, they are more stretchable and more elastic. You can say that you are preparing them and warning that there will soon be a certain load. With warm muscles, work is easier, they relax better. When doing stretching take your time and try to complete this exercise for beginners as quickly as possible. Do not compare yourself with your acquaintances or friends.
It is necessary to listen only to your body, especially if you are a beginner and do everything individually.
