A Dancer’s Guide: At-Home Exercises for Injury Prevention

A Dancer's Guide: At-Home Exercises for Injury Prevention

Dancing as an adult is always fun, but getting to dance longer, stronger, and better without recurring injuries makes it even more special.

Whether you are a longtime client or new at DWI, it is always important to take care of your body to ensure your movement is consistently supported. That is why we’ve curated a dancer’s guide with easy, effective at-home exercises you can do for injury prevention. With a few intentional habits outside of the studio, we promise you will arrive at DWI feeling much more confident and protected.

Let’s dive in!

Ankle/Foot Strengthening

Your ankles and feet are essential for building a good dance foundation, and strengthening them can reduce pain, prevent strains/sprains, and overuse of tendons.

Try some of these every day:

Theraband flexion/point: Put a theraband around your toes and alternate pointing/flexing. Do this in parallel for 30 seconds on each side.
Calf raises: In both parallel and a turned-out first position, slowly raise and lower your calves, keeping the legs straight for about 30 seconds. You can do this by holding onto a wall, chair, or other makeshift “barre” in your house.
Towel scrunches: With your toes, place a towel on the floor and practice scrunching and releasing it. Try this for 30 seconds on each foot.
Single leg balances: With your leg in passé (parallel and turned out), hold this position to strengthen your supporting leg. About 30 seconds on each side. For an additional challenge, do these single leg balances on relevé or while closing your eyes.

*Pro tip: To make it even more fun, do these while you are watching TV, brewing coffee, or even brushing your teeth!

Muscular Release Exercises

Muscular release involves eliminating the tension in the tight parts of your body. When you take a moment to relieve your muscles, it expands your range of motion and minimizes soreness.

Grab a ball (we recommend a tennis ball or lacrosse ball) and try:

Foot arch rolls: Place the ball underneath the arch of your foot on the floor and roll out for about one minute on each side.
Shoulder/neck rolls: Place a ball around your shoulders/neck while you lie on the floor, rolling out for about one minute or until you feel the tension loosen. If you sit at a desk all day, this one is especially important.

You can also grab a foam roller and try:

Quad/hamstring release: While on the floor, place the roller on your quads/hamstrings and roll around for a minute on each side.
IT band/inner thigh release: Take the same foam roller and loosen your IT band/inner thighs. For these, you will need to lay on the sides of your body.

Body Alignment

Good body alignment helps stabilize your joints and recover from existing pains faster. To ensure strength in this area, exercises include:

Cat-cow pose: In yoga, this is a common pose that involves coming onto your hands/knees. Move your spine by dropping the abdomen to the floor with your head looking up, and then switch positions by moving the abdomen toward the ceiling with your chin tucked. Continue this movement for about one minute.
Child’s pose: Also a yoga position, a child’s pose involves sitting on your knees with your arms extended as you fold forward on the floor while pressing your glutes towards your heels. If you hold this for about 30 seconds a day, this can help relieve back tension and promote relaxation in the body.

To further enhance body alignment, try also sitting up straight when you sit or walk throughout your day. This means pressing your shoulders down, raising your chin, and keeping your legs firmly on the ground. Being aware of your posture forces the spine to sit in a healthy position.

Stretching

Low-impact stretching helps maintain flexibility and balances out your muscles. All kinds of stretches are crucial, but here are common ones to start with:

Hamstring stretch: This could be a standing or a sitting forward fold, with the goal of reaching for your toes. By stretching the hamstrings, you strengthen the backs of the legs, which will reduce the likelihood of straining them or pulling them over time.
Calf stretch: Hold onto a wall, step one foot back with the heel on the ground while the other leg is in front with the knee bent. Hold for 30 seconds to a minute to increase flexibility in this area of the leg.
Hip flexor stretch: Kneel on one knee with the other knee in front at a 90-degree angle. Slowly move the front of the knee back and forth to push the hips forward/back. Continue this on both sides for 30 seconds to one minute each.

Cross-training

Cross-training is also critical for injury prevention. All good dancers look to other forms of exercise to increase their stamina and range of motion.

Here are some effective cross-training methods you can do at home or at the studio:

Yoga: This improves body alignment, flexibility, core strength, breath awareness, and balance. Start by taking one of our yoga classes on Monday nights, and use what you learn to practice at home!
Pilates: Also essential for building core strength and stability. With a yoga mat, focus on exercises that develop control and postural improvement. Doing this at least once a week can ensure full-body confidence, making you feel energized and grounded.

We also offer classes like Circuit Conditioning, Stretch and Strength, and PBT that serve as other ways to support your dance training. Learn more about these classes!

Consistency is Key

Whatever type of preventive measures you choose to take, remember consistency is the key to making your body last. Always listen to your body, rest when needed, and ask questions along the way.

As you continue to dance, we hope you take care of yourself in all the ways you need. We can’t wait to see you at the studio with your newly improved injury prevention skills soon!

Join us today by signing up for our two-week unlimited trial!