walking...

[tillie]

i already know that consistant running is bad for ballet dancers, but does regular walking for long periods of time have the same effects? I mean. i know everyone walks, but does excessive walking do any harm? just wondering out of curiosity. im sorry if this has already been asked.

[Mel Johnson]

Walking should be fine, as long as it's not "power walking" with small weights in the hands and a strong heel-beat, or "race walking" with its strong heel-toe accent and crazily swinging hips.

[tillie]

Oh, ok. Thank you! I meant just regular walking. No weights or racing involved.

[Mel Johnson]

That should be fine. It's the high-impact stuff that can be trouble for dancers.

[janninepointe]

good! I was wondering the same thing as I walk everywhere! Practically and hour a day!

[Alysse]

Sorry to elaborate on this already commonly discussed subject, but I need some more info on the walking deal. I'm not worried about strain on the joints or tendons because of cement, I'm worried specifically about quad buildup. I'm a serious ballet student (17, about to do some company auditions) and I have slightly more developed quads then normal. I do like to go on 30 minute walks, no weights, no racing, just a nice, quickly paced speed to burn some more calories in my few days with a slightly lighter ballet load. Is this okay, and will it build quad muscles to be more bulky? Thank you!

[ifnotwhynot]

And while we're on this subject, what about hiking? The sort of walking that involves longer distances and a few hills here and there?

[Mel Johnson]

It depends on the difficulty of the hike. An "easy" hike along roadways and prepared trails, with no great changes in elevation is fine for everybody. When you get to "very difficult", involving blazing new trails up the sides of mountains, mixing in a little rock-climbing, and carrying a heavy load all the while, leave it to the Army. Always stretch after a hike, in proportion to the difficulty level.

[Grishkorina]

Why is it so bad to walk turned out?

It's such a hard habit i've been trying to break while i'm walking around at school!

[Mel Johnson]

If that's your natural gait, fine, don't worry about it. Just don't try to run that way, or worse, march in close-order drill.

[Grishkorina]

Whef! I'm glad tomorrow I can just relax walking down the hall to my next class!

[Alysse]

Would someone mind addressing my question of exercise walking and quad buildup? It is located a couple posts up. Thanks!

[Mel Johnson]

The regimen there proposed is innocuous. Walk in good health.

[tendu]

I've done a lot of research on this because I am interested in it as well. You should read "Diet For Dancers" by Robin D. Chmelar, Sally S. Fitt, Drs. It's more about scientific approaches to weight loss etc. and a lot is about walking.

[Victoria Leigh]

tendu, in which category of YD do you belong? You have several posts in each forum.