It never fails that I show up to a studio, earlier than any dancer wants to get up on a weekend, and walk into a room of young dancers already stripped down to their booty shorts and Lululemon tops plopping themselves down into splits and calling it a "warm-up". Or, I see dancers backstage pre-competition at the crack of dawn in a cold theater already in their performance leotards jumping right into their turn combo from their solo...
Trust me ya'll, I get it! Rehearsal/Choreo time is limited and stretching isn't exactly "fun". And, pre-competition, we want to get in the "zone". But if you want to dance your best, be your best, and dance as long as possible in your life and not get injured then there are some things you need to know about getting your body ready for dance...
It is possible to warm up your body head to toe in as little as 10 minutes. Start by wearing your "warm-ups". Think leg warmers, sweats, scarves, anything that covers your body and provides warmth to your muscles to make the warming up process a little faster.
Now you are ready to warm up...
Always start with a little cardio, not a full on aerobics class or anything, but getting your heart rate up will get the blood flowing which will make your muscles warmer and more elastic. Walking around the room, jumping jacks, running in place...anything that gets you just a little winded.
Next, warm up your spine. As dancers we use our backs A LOT. Taking the time to warm up your spine will save you aches and pains and help with your back flexibility throughout your dance day. Simply rolling down to the floor isolating one vertebrae at a time or doing some type of contracting where you are rounding your back, arching, or bending laterally (side to side) for a fuller range of motion.
Now, you can stretch. DYNAMIC stretching vs. STATIC stretching, here is the 411...
DYNAMIC stretching means you are moving while you stretch which gives you more of a full body warm up and has been proven to enhance muscular performance and power. Dynamic stretching can also help improve body awareness and improve your range of motion. This is where you are moving through each stretch and using your breathing to help move you through different positions. (this is my FAV way to stretch)
**Make sure you include your feet and ankles in your "stretching"!! SO IMPORTANT!
STATIC stretching is where you hold a position for an extended period of time (30 seconds +). Although it is effective in improving overall flexibility, for this particular shortened warmup, it may not be the best type of stretching for this short period of time.
Finally, Core strengthening and a little upper body conditioning will go a long way in helping your performance. Dancers, we use our cores for EVERYTHING so warming up our abs is so important. Our upper body is also HUGE in dance (lots more on this in some upcoming blogs...stay tuned). Crunches, oblique twists, tricep dips, pushups, just to name a few...
OK there it is folks! The quick 10 minute warm up! Check out the video below and on my Instagram/FaceBook (@lizbdance, Liz Borom) and SHARE it with your dancer friends!
Post your videos of you (and your friends) doing your fav quick warm-up move and you could win a free online adjudication session with me! Tag @lizbdance for your chance to win.
Email me for more info or questions, I would love to connect with you!
Take Care of YOU, dancers!!
Liz