Wellbeing of a Dancer How to look after yourself as a dancer AS Dance 2010

Discuss what can affect our performance and progress in dance Not Warming up sufficiently Worrying about things outside of the classroom Poor diet and dehydration Tension Stress Lack of sleep

How does this affect us? Tension in the body can cause the following: Injury Loss of flexibility Loss of smooth, co-ordinated movement Increase in heart rate and blood pressure

This is because…. Our nervous system is in control of our body…. There are two parts to the nervous system Autonomic nervous system regulates involuntary functions- digestion, hormones and cardiovascular activity Somatic nervous system regulates both movement and our perception of movement

Just Relax A relaxed dancer will have better Co-ordination Circulation Good respiration Flexibility

Also we need to control our diet… “Diet,” should imply eating a sensible range of foods adequately. Enough calories, vitamins and minerals must be consumed to keep you healthy now and in later years. Therefore assume a dancer would need in the region of 2500 calories a day.

What to Eat to Stay Healthy Proteins Carbohydrates Fats Vitamins Minerals Water For building up the body To provide energy For energy and flavour Small and essential For bones and blood For basic physiological functions

When to eat… An important thing to consider here is when the body is digesting food, blood flows away from muscles to the digestive system. Therefore it’s not a good idea to start exercising after eating Your muscles will need that blood supply to keep you going through activity So if possible about 2 hours before

Summary The food you eat should be organised to give you: Maximum energy Minimum body fat Enough variety to ensure efficient body functions and so avoid injuries.

Poor diet, lack of concentration = Injury The stronger the dancer, the less the risk of injury, e.g. stronger hamstrings may reduce the risk of lower back injury. Muscles are attached to the bones by much stronger tendons. Both muscles and tendons are liable to injury

Injuries If a tendon is irritated by over use, tendonitis may occur. Rest is then essential. The Achilles tendon is particularly prone to tendonitis. The symptoms are tenderness and crunching. Careful stretching of the soleus and gastrocnemius when cooling down reduces the likelihood of tendonitis

Injuries Muscles and tendons are usually injured by too sudden movement, or by recurring strain on weak muscles from poor technique or over use. Vulnerable muscles include the groin, the hamstring group and the calf.

P.R.I.C.E.D If you do injure yourself the following is a good guideline to follow: P – prevent further injury R – rest I – ice C – compress (bandage/support) E – elevate D – Diagnosis (doctor)

P.R.I.C.E.D As soon as you injure yourself cold therapy will decrease the blood flow and bruising, which damages soft tissue. It limits the swelling by lowering the muscle’s need for oxygen and thus relieves pain. Apply ice for no longer than 10-15 mins and repeat if necessary every few hours until the swelling, local heat or bruising stops.

P.R.I.C.E.D Bandaging and raising the injury will help lessen swelling. After two days, alternate between cold and hot in order to stimulate blood flow to the injury and encourage healing. The ice should never have direct contact with the skin. It burns! You can get heat sources from spray cans, heat packs and infra red lamps.

Over to You We have now completed an overview of safe dance practice for this course…. It is now your responsibility to research into everything we have discussed and get a deeper understanding. There are books in the classroom, which go into masses of detail, please use these if you are feeling confused… Now try and answer this question…

Mock Question In relation to your own dance training, discuss the following aspects of safe dance practice and explain their benefits: Warm Up Cool down Diet