5 Easy Ways To Increase A Dancer’s Core Strength
Daily exercise and mobility training are part of the daily lives of many dancers. Although these are important for peak performance, many dancers tend to ignore vital aspects of athleticism, such as core strength. After all, there’s barely any time left for such gruesome exercises after spending the whole day in the dance studio. And, there are several other activities, all vying for your time and attention.
If you want to become a world-class dancer, it’s necessary to work at increasing your core strength and flexibility. This is particularly useful for maneuvers that involve jumping, lifting, twisting, and position holding. Overall, strength is crucial for improving your performance both in the studio and on stage. So if you’ve ever wanted to achieve dancing feats beyond the limitations of your muscle size and current physical capacity, you need to start working on your core strength. And you can begin with these five simple tips which will also reduce stress.
- Start With The “Big Four”
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To increase strength, you’ll need to build a solid foundation with four simple exercises. The significant aspect of these exercises is that you can perform them with regular weights such as dumbbells or barbells. This means you can choose to complete a workout in the comfort of your home. However, it’s equally okay to hit the gym. These exercises include the squat, bench press, deadlift, and shoulder press.
This combo of four is by far the most impactful strength exercises, and you should notice results not long after you start completing sets. However, it’s needful to mention that you’ll have to allow your muscles to recover. You can take natural CBD supplements or marijuana gummies to help relieve post-workout pain, inflammation and boostngth, even during dancing.
- Work on Your Flexibility
As a dancer, nothing will hinder your strength and movement like stiffness. It’s one of those things you don’t want to overlook. This point might seem too obvious. However, many dancers focus on strength to the detriment of their flexibility and vice versa. But it’s not binary; you can be flexible and robust at the same time. The question is, how can you achieve both? The answer is simple.
As you work on the “big four,” remember to spend quality time stretching. According to the Harvard Medical School, you’ll need to stretch regularly to see any significant benefits. Due to rapid growth at younger ages, the bones can grow faster than the muscle. When this happens, it tightens muscles and challenges fluid movements. Hence, you want to focus on stretching, yoga, and warm up to increase the range of motion.
- Increase Your Cardio
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Usually, a lot of strength and powerlifters lack the endurance of top-level athletes. This is partly due to the large muscles. On the other hand, dancers combine strength, flexibility, and endurance. As such, it’s equally necessary to spend some time on cardio exercises.
That’s if you want to maintain the lean physique of a dancer. For cardio, some of the best exercises you can consider are cycling and long-distance running. Not only will the type you spend running increase your endurance, but it will also toughen your leg muscles. Ideally, you want to do cardio in intense but short bursts. Using these tactics will ensure that you remain lean while getting more robust with each workout.
- Even Out Your Strength Training
Every dancer can admit that balance is vital, especially on the stage when you need to perform explosive and vibrant motions. Therefore, the strength exercises need to be evenly distributed throughout the body. You shouldn’t focus on the left side more than the right. Keeping this in mind during your workout will ensure that you don’t sustain any injuries or get muscle imbalances.
Assuming you’re squatting to strengthen your quads, you also want to add some Romanian deadlifts to ensure you workout your hamstrings too. Likewise, any exercises you do for your pectoral muscles should be balanced with lifts that target the back muscles. Remember, the balance work doesn’t have to be during the same workout session. You only need to ensure it’s done the same week.
- Avoid Injuries
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Finally, nothing will set you back like an injury sustained during dance practice or workout session. As a dancer, part of your work will be to make your body move in awkward ways. And this also another reason why strength and flexibility play a critical role in avoiding injuries. However, there are various things around that you can do to ensure you are always improving strength and practicing instead of getting sidelined by an injury. Some of these include:
- Avoid overtraining.
- Go easy on weights and add gradually.
- Wear the best fitting shoes and attire.
- Eat a healthy diet and avoid dehydration.
Conclusion:
Every dancer should desire to improve their craft and previous performances. Therefore, if you aim to become a better dancer, increasing your core strength may be the best place. Of course, there are other factors you’ll need to consider, such as proper recovery. In this aspect, the CBD supplement can prove very useful in several ways. Should you have doubts, do not hesitate to learn all there is to know about these natural healers.
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
