Flexibility Pearls — Turnout

Certified Instructor Judy shows a dynamic stretching technique from the Easyflexibility system to improve your TURN OUT * It is performed in two steps which alternate and repeat ideally from 3 to 5 times. Watch the video and give it a try! Rest for a moment and do a few more sets. “TURN OUT!” may be the most commonly heard phrase wafting out of dance classes around the world. A 180-degree turnout is one of the most desired positions in the ballet world. For centuries dancers have worked to create the perfect line, molding their bodies to perfection. It is...

 So by now you have tried the Turned Out Incline Plane (TIP) from here. Chances are you got cramps trying to hold a full turnout that we dealt with in the previous article. If not - Congratulations. You are ready for the next step of moving your foot partially off the blocks. We will talk to those of you who are ready for this in the next newsletter. But for now, let's answer the question presented yesterday. What were those antagonists that cause those cramps? We know that the muscles that cramped up are the extensors and lateral rotator of the...

Have you tried the exercise? If not, look at last week's article here. How was it? Did you face any of these commonly occurring issues? The number one problem when doing a hip turnout properly through the hips is the same as in when doing the Turnout Incline Plane (TIP) on the Blocks: Cramping in the hips Most people assume that cramping is lack of strength. However, that is frequently not the case. Under normal conditions the given muscles are too strong to cramp, especially in dancers. More frequently, it's lack of flexibility. Here is why. Let’s take ourselves out of...