September Whine....?

[Serendipity]

I've had to make an extremely difficult decision tonight: I have to cut back on my ballet classes.

 

At present, I had been doing about 10 hours a week of ballet/pointe. I'd already cut one class because three in one night were too much for my old bones. I also do between 45 minutes to an hour at the gym to warm up (not a heavy workout - really is just a warm-up!) at least 4 of those lesson days.

 

Now my ankle that I injured in Richmond is really playing up. A teacher mentioned that she thinks I'm doing too much, and I am forced to agree. Unfortunately, I will have to cut out my Tuesday/Thursday classes, with a teacher I adore.

 

This would leave me Monday, Wednesday and Saturday classes - about 6 hours' worth, but would give my ankles and hips 2 days of rest between.

 

I'm really upset about having to do this, after having had an intensive ballet summer!!! :-(

[brandymichele1974]

Awww...Serendipity, I am sorry--especially with your summer dancing.

 

For what it's worth, I think it speaks to your character that you are able to assess your situation and do what you need to do for your health--your self-awareness is wonderful.

 

Be that as it may, it is no fun when life throws us injuries/health issues and it is certainly difficult to deal with disappointment.

 

For your Tues/Thurs class with the teacher you like so well...could you do barre/or part of barre with flat shoes (to still make you feel involved)? Or would that be too much?

 

Cheers,

 

brandymichele

[Serendipity]

Thanks for the commiseration, Brandy. I needed to hear it from someone that I was doing the right thing.

 

It was the barre yesterday that did me in, actually. Although the barre itself isn't too difficult, at least this one she uses isn't (she's about to change it, I think), it's the pressure of daily dancing itself that's the problem. :-(

 

I think it's all of it combined - full time work, plus the 10 hours dancing, plus just normal, everyday living challenges. I don't know. All I know is that it hurts to give it up, and it hurts to keep going. :0(

 

One thing the teacher did say to me, which is probably what's made me make this decision, is that if I keep on, I could end up not being able to do ANY classes ever again. Sorry...am still very upset, even while my head is saying it's a good choice.

[pss]

Serendipity,

 

Here's another "you're doing the right thing" post. I know it must be devastating to cut back on your classes. Please know that your resulting schedule still has more hours of classes in it than anything I've been able to do for several years. Enjoy every minute in the studio with your great teachers, and really take the time to rest and recover when you're not.

 

My whine: I'm back in regular classes and I desperately miss my teachers and fellow students from Richmond. I miss taking class every day. It's just not the same. I also feel like I forgot everything I learned. I'll need to be a lot more self-motivated and self-correcting, which is difficult. This, too, shall pass ...

 

pss

[paloma]

Serendipity, don't forget that students of any age could end up with injuries that encroach on their dancing. So it isn't just age catching up with you! Being able to do as much as you have been on top of adult life (work, job, etc.) is a testament to your devotion and enthusiasm for dance. Since most of the population spends their evenings slouched in front of the TV, you deserve credit for what you've been able to do! Your dancing may benefit from shorter days because you will have more energy for the classes you do attend.

[Tiffany]

Serendipity,

take a look at the article vagansmom posted on cross talk @ overtraining. Its an eye-opener. You really are doing the best thing for your body!

[Serendipity]

I had tears most of last night over it, but reading these now has given more comfort. I'm on tenterhooks right now as I must go in and tell this terrific teacher that physical limitations mean I can't continue with her class. Although I know she'll understand, I so loathe giving up her class. If it weren't for a specialty class on another day, I would be able to take hers, but the class I NEED is only offered on the one day. :-(

 

PSS, I hear you loud and clear! Richmond, to me, was an experience of a lifetime. I haven't forgotten much of what I was told, but then I wrote a daily journal while I was there, and all of my teachers picked up on the same things when I returned that the teachers in Richmond had discovered (I guess my regular teachers saw me starting to use those long-forgotten muscles - LOL!).

 

Gosh! PSS, just reading your post made me realize that, I think, that's why I tried for such a grueling schedule coming back. I took class nearly every day over the summer, in a summer intensive here, even only for an afternoon, and missed that. I wanted to prolong the experience - but the body has rebelled (if i wasn't working full time, it may have been different).

 

Now it makes sense. I still feel that sense of loss, but not so much for the class - more for the loss of "dance-hood" when I could do stuff like this and get away with it. I'm sure you know what I mean!!!

 

PSS, thanks for your post! And, you know you will achieve whatever you wish to, if you put your mind to it. That poster on the wall upstairs at my school says, "Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll still land among the stars."

 

Thanks again!

[williamsson]

Hey, Serendipity, first of all, know that everyone who reads this is in your corner whether they were in Richmond or not.

 

Now I am no physiologist or trainer, but it sure sounds to me that your body is fighting the abuse of long hours of exertion and impact at camp. And I suspect that age is not the primary culprit. I'm not young myself, and I know that it takes me longer to recover from unusual exertion than it used to. Injuries hang on longer, pain persists longer, and I use a lot more ice than I did a few years ago. Even much younger athletes than ourselves-- tennis players, triathletes, weekend bicycle racers-- sometimes find they simply have to STOP for a while and give their bodies time to catch up to the higher demands they're making on themselves. In other words I think you're experiencing something which all athletes have to deal with at times, and that because you're not 25, you're thinking that the real reason is age. Your body WILL adjust-- maybe not to the demands an eighteen year old corps dancer puts on himself or herself-- but to more than it can handle right now. It's not a matter of a full tank vs an empty tank, instead that if you're older instead of younger, it takes more time.

 

Once again, I have no professional expertise, but if I were you I'd consider setting aside everything but stretching for a week or two, and making an appointment with a good PT who has some expertise in diet and recovery. And I sure wouldn't give up the class I love the most, but would instead aim everything at being able to resume it when I was ready, whether I ended up dropping some of the others or not.

 

You sound to me like a real fighter, one for whom it's too easy to ignore the "R" part of "RICE." I wish the campers could all form up in front of you and say "REST! you're too good a dance buddy to burn up or give up because of a scary but temporary condition."

[olddude]

Hey, Serendipity, first of all, know that everyone who reads this is in your corner whether they were in Richmond or not.

 

...but if I were you I'd consider ... making an appointment with a good PT who has some expertise

 

...You sound to me like a real fighter, one for whom it's too easy to ignore the "R" part of "RICE." ...

Actually I was at Richmond with Serendipity and that seems to me an accurate assessment

 

Just wanted to support the notion of a support team. I actually started classes when looking for an exercise I could do without exacerbating a chronic back problem. (It's much better now, thanks!) I tried many things; for me the myofacial massage, chiropractic, and acupuncture are as much a part of my regimen as dance class. I'm not advocating my own priorities; try Pilates, PT, Feldenkreis - find what works for you. I think it's important to take an active role in looking for helpers and finding which ones work for you personally. Nobody is going to tell you what that is, you have to figure it out yourself. I used to resent that fact; now I just accept it.

 

Actually, I know that Serendipity has been doing this all along, but (in my experience of course) it's such a good idea I though it ought to be reinforced on the forum.

[Serendipity]

Thanks to everyone. I feel a bit more "settled" now that the decision's been made and I've told the teacher about it. She understood completely, being of a similar age to me.

 

My ankle's just about recovering just from cutting out the four extra hours (and I also didn't do one gym workout this week!).

 

I do have a PT/Chiropractic weekly appointment. I haven't tried acupuncture yet but have the name of someone reliable from a colleague at work. That's the only therapy left not tried for both hip and ankle.

 

My other fave ballet teacher told me yesterday that she felt pretty much the same way as the above-mentioned one, that I was doing too much.

 

I'm beginning to feel less stressed, as well. Thanks again for the supportive words and advice. Yes, I AM going to be taking the advice and resting more. :-)

[ineluctability]

I have a whine I need advice on!!

I'm really lucky to have the opportunity to dance at a regular studio with "kids". Except they have switched my class time on me this semester.

I get up every day around 6:45AM and go to work and work til 5PM. I am in bed by 10PM each night...so being in class from 8 to 9:30PM is going to be a big drain in many respects. It is also twice a week - the third class a few people take starts at 4:30 and like I said, I work til 5 and would have to leave by 3:45 and that is NOT going to work ever....

 

So here is the advice I need -

Do I stay at my studio that I love and everything - and risk sleep, etc and never REALLY know if I am ever going to improve? I don't really get much feedback...and we have a new teacher now who is great and all...but...uh.....yeah...

 

I can go back to where I started and be taught by a highly recommended teacher - who is currently a professional dancer. My former teacher (and reason I left the studio because she was cut to 1 day a week) would be our sub - she who always took her time to treat me like the potential pre-pros and is the one who recommended the current teacher.

And this class would be THREE times a week 6:30-8.

 

Anyone?? PLEASE help me.

[Redbookish]

My former teacher would be our sub - she who always took her time to treat me like the potential pre-pros and is the one who recommended the current teacher. And this class would be THREE times a week 6:30-8.

 

Sounds like a no-brainer to me, simply for these 2 reasons.

[ripresa]

I'm with Williamson on this one... your body can adjust to the schedule. But you need to make some smart choices, having physical therapy, massage therapy, etc.

 

Also, I think right now, it may be a good idea to just take a break for a few weeks. It sounds like you barely took a break from after Richmond. And while I had no injuries at Richmond, the last few days, I've had hip aches for the first time in my life, despite only dancing a little. So I'm glad I took it easy the last few weeks (1 or 2 classes a week).

 

Just take a complete break, and then go back in.

 

That said: I am Not a Professional Trainer ;-)

[williamsson]

Glad to have Ripresa's support in this, and olddude's-- while none of us are PTs I think we're on to something.

 

a) the body responses to strain by getting stronger, unless you fail to respect pain and injury.

 

it does this whether you're older or younger-- if you're older it just takes longer.

 

c) in resting, you do not "lose ground," in fact you gain ground by giving the body a chance to rebuild tissues you have overworked. When it does so, those tissues will be stronger than before.

 

So rest, eat right, and get some massage and PT. You'll come back better than before.

[lampwick]

And don't be an idiot, like me.

 

I threw out my SI joint three weeks ago over-stretching, which I knew was vulnerable to begin with ( a three year chronic ligament injury)

 

I danced full out tonight in rehearsal for a show this weekend while cold. And yanked out the other side.

 

I always give advice about working "smart", but always manage to not listen to my own advice when it comes to myself:(

 

Luckily, the damage tonight seems like a "tweak" and a warning to not over-do.