Rusty turns

[pirouettegirl123]

Hello! I'm 15 and I dance six days a week. When I go on a break from dance, I do barre, theraband, floor barre, and Pilates. When I get back, of course everything is rusty, but my turns are terrible. After a three week break, I went from triple pirouettes to shaky doubles. My fouettes were really off too I went from 32 to 26 😬. Is there a way that I can practic my turns so they aren't so bad after a break? I have an audition right after winter break (2-3 weeks) and I would go into the studio to practice but I can't because I'll be overseas. Oh yeah and would being tall (5'8") contribute to the problem?

[Victoria Leigh]

pirouettegirl, a two or 3 week break will generally have some effect on your work when returning. Dancers who are tall, long legged, and growing will find this kind of problem more than some others. We have talked about this before in terms of your strength not having yet caught up to the growth. It will, but you have need to  have more patience. Corps strength is critical, and that is what you need to concentrate on while on break. That can be done even when there are no classes.

[pirouettegirl123]

Thanks!!