Most dancers I work with are aware that doing supplemental training outside of class is important to improve technique and prevent injuries. As such, I frequently get asked what exercises I would recommend. There is no one set of exercises that will be perfect for everyone. We are all unique, with different strengths and weaknesses, and different goals. However, at the request of one of my dancer clients, I have put together a set of exercises focused on injury prevention. They’re a selection of exercises that address common areas of weaknesses in dancers and can help prevent a host of common injuries. If you’re not regularly doing any extra training, or are new to strength training, and want to injury-proof your body, these exercises are a good place to start.
The first two exercises focus on building strength in the hip rotators, which is absolutely crucial for dancers of all genres. Your hip muscles need to have super control and strength for pretty much all choreography, from achieving great turn-out to powerful jumps to sky-high extensions. There is also ample evidence to show that strong hips are the best way to protect your knees, ankles, and back, as well as your hips, from pain.
1. Side lying fire hydrants
This exercise targets your deep external rotators of the hip (aka your turnout muscles). Important for holding and controlling turnout, but also stabilizing your hips when landing from jumps and, well pretty much all movement.
Lie on your side with your knees and hips bent to 90 degrees. Tie a theraband around your legs, just below your knees. Lift the top leg and slowly lower. Check out the video here.
2. Side lying straight leg raise, in parallel
This next exercise targets the muscles that sit at the side of your hips (aka your turn-in muscles). Many dancers spend so much time training their turnout muscles that the internal rotation muscles commonly become weak and lazy. Poor strength in this muscle group is a fast track to hip, knee, ankle and lower back pain.
Lie on your side with your bottom leg bent (for support) and top leg straight and in line with your body. Make sure your ribs, hips and knee stay in a straight line throughout the exercise – don’t let your leg drift forward! Also, make sure your top hip stays directly up towards the ceiling – don’t let your hip roll back. You need to complete this exercise with your hips, knees and toes facing forward, in parallel so to speak, NO TURNOUT!!! From here, lift your top leg up, hold for a few seconds then slowly lower. Think about leading the movement with your heel. The video for this exercise is here.
3. Single leg squats in parallel and turnout
The third exercise focuses on building neuro-muscular control, an often neglected part of training, but one that is every bit as important as strength and technique. Once you can master this exercise with perfect control, you can then start to bend your knee deeper into a full squat, which will then also help build strength in your quads.
Start in parallel, standing on one leg, hips level. Bend your knee as far as you can with good control, hips level and knee directly over your toes, and push back up. Make sure your hips stay completely level throughout and don’t let your knee drop inwards. If you feel any knee pain, don’t push into it! Only bend as far as you can without any knee pain.
Then, repeat the exercise in turnout, kinda like doing a single leg demi plié. Note – you don’t need to do this with all the turnout you can get, just aim for comfortable, well-controlled turnout. Make sure your foot stays flat with good arch control. Don’t let your ankle roll in our out. Video here.
4. Single leg deadlift – with my ‘dancer specific’ technique
The fourth exercise builds strength in your hamstrings. Dancers’ hamstrings are notoriously overstretched and weakened, and thus injury prone. It’s an absolute must to pair flexibility training with strength training. This exercise helps builds strength during the lengthening phase of the contraction (called eccentric training), which also helps build functional flexibility. (That’s your range of motion during active movement, rather than just sitting in a stretch.) Check out my full post discussing the benefits of eccentric training for dancers.
Start in parallel, hips, knees and toes facing forward. Lift one leg up to the front, then hinging from the waist, tilt forward and stretch your free leg behind you. Slightly bend your standing leg as you do so. You want to Return to the starting position without touching the floor. Keep your hips square and level throughout. TIP: try to keep your free leg in a straight line from your head to your toes, and aim to get your torso parallel with the ground. As you get stronger, you can tilt further forward, penché-style. Try to do 8-10 reps on one leg, without touching the floor, before switching to the other leg. Warning – if done properly, this is challenging! As with most eccentric exercises, if you do too much too soon, it can leave you with serious delayed onset muscle soreness. You may have to start with fewer reps and build up. Check out my video here for a demonstration.
Both the third and fourth exercises have the bonus of working on your functional core strength. As with functional flexibility, functional core strength is the strength and control during active movement. Exercises like crunches and the plank are great for building strength in the ab muscles. However, that strength doesn’t readily transfer to core control during active movement. It’s much better to train your core stability in a useful pattern.
5. Eccentric heel drops
The final exercise is a great way to strengthen your ankles and feet, which are very vulnerable for dancers. Sprains, strains, tendon pain, and stress fractures in the foot bones are all very common injuries that I treat regularly. Strengthening your ankles and feet before pain develops is the best way to keep injury at bay.
Stand on the edge of a step, the balls of your feet on the step and heels hanging off – make sure you have a railing or something else to hold on to! Rise up onto your toes. Transfer your weight onto one foot, then slowly lower. Push back up using both feet. Repeat 10-15 times lowering with one foot, and then repeat lowering with the other foot. See the video here. This is also an eccentric exercise, so as discussed above, avoid doing too much, too soon. Start on the lower end of the reps and build up gradually.
There is no one-size-fits all approach to strength training, but these exercises, if done properly, are safe and effective for most people. If you have any questions about the exercises or are unsure if they are appropriate for you, please send me a message and I will try to clarify! Doing an exercise with the wrong form / technique or performing an exercise that is not appropriate for you can cause injury, so best to get it right before you start. What are some of your favorite exercises? Leave your comments below!
Medical and Legal Disclaimer
The information provided in this article is for educational purposes only. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any medical condition, and it is not intended to replace formal medical care. For any concerns regarding the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition, please consult a licensed, qualified professional. The author of this article is in no way responsible or liable for any damages or negative consequences that may occur as a result of any treatment, application or action to any person reading or following the advice detailed within. The decision to follow the advice and any possible consequences that follow are solely to responsibility of the reader. Should pain or discomfort be felt at any time, the exercises should be stopped immediately and medical care be sought.
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