Holding Turnout

[panda bear 16]

Hi,

I'm having trouble holding my turn out solidly all the time. I'm Flat in frog and butterfly streches with out pain. how ever in the center i find holding my turn out more difficult. I have problems with my back , hips , and knees , and see a chiropractor to correct those problems. What streching or strengthning can i do to improve this?

Thanks

[Mel Johnson]

What you're facing is the difference in the force of gravity from passive stretches to active standing. While you do the butterfly, etc., gravity is pulling your knees down to the floor. When you stand up, gravity is pulling fully 90° differently and is not helping you to achieve more rotation from your hips.

 

The first thing you have to do is to make sure that you feel your spine as long as possible. When you do that, the alignment and placement will come more easily, and it will make it easier to get the rotation that you need.

[Victoria Leigh]

Having rotation and USING rotation well can be two very different things. However, if you have the ability to rotate your legs from your hips, and you can do it at the barre, then doing it in the center is a matter of training....VERY good training, with constant reminders and corrections on using your rotation and HOW to use your rotation. It is one of the reasons why training a ballet dancer takes so long, because it is not something that can be accomplished quickly. Time, classes, patience, more classes, great teaching, more classes, etc., etc., etc.

[panda bear 16]

I went to the chiropractor this week and afterwards I was doing better with holding my turnout in the center. How ever i would still like to find some excercises i can do at home to work on it.

Edited September 21, 2008 by panda bear 16

[Victoria Leigh]

panda, ballet provides the best exercises there are. Just work on your tendus and your rond de jambes, fondus and développés. Work in such a way that you are well balanced and not dependent on the barre, keeping your alignment and your weight forward and balanced, using all of the turn out that you have from the hips. If you do this consistently, it will improve in the center.

[teeny dancer]

Panda bear,

Maybe you need to strengthen your turn out? I've used an exercise that I think is called the clam.. You lay on your side with your legs slightly bent one on top of the other. Then you repeatedly lift your knee to your side keeping your foot in the same place. I'm not sure if I explained this very well, but I hope if you understand this that it will help!

[Victoria Leigh]

Hello teeny dancer, welcome to Ballet Talk for Dancers.

 

I'm sorry to be negative following your first post on the Young Dancers Forum, but we prefer that students to not give advice on this forum. The professional teacher moderators do that! It is particularly difficult to give special exercises, because they are so hard to describe in this format. The exercise you talk about has been discussed on this board, but on another forum. We feel that it should only be done under the close supervision of a teacher who understands the mechanics of this exercise.

[teeny dancer]

Oh I'm so sorry!! I won't do that again.

[kwdancer13]

Have you tried pilates? There are many exercises in pilates that I have found quite helpful for my turnout. And obviously ballet provides some of the best exercises.

[swantobe]

I found that going to a physiotherapist who has experience working with dancers (and who was recommended to me by my ballet teacher) helped as she was able to assess me and give me exercises and stretches. She also recommended someone (a former ballet teacher) who does "ballet conditioning" classes and who can also work with one on an individual basis.

 

(I hope this is okay to post, as I'm just sharing something which helped me individually and not intending to give advice. Also, I'm 22 and normally post on the adult board, but I am a registered student who is doing RAD exams, so I hope it's okay that I wrote this here?)