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BalletBoyMumma

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    Time out…

    in Doing Dance

    Posted

    7 minutes ago, Dancing unicorn said:

    Morning 

     

    My dd was at KS from 16 full time and gained her trinity level 6 diploma! They don’t take under 16’s full time, but they do have a part time school, including Associates classes which, had we known about we would definitely attended instead of going away at 11 🥲

    If you still want further info re KS then yes please do contact me 🩷

    Ah, thank you! My misunderstanding! 
     

    Will DM you. 😊

    • Like 1

    Time out…

    in Doing Dance

    Posted · Edited by BalletBoyMumma

    On 19/01/2024 at 08:35, Dancing unicorn said:

    We can not fault KS at all, they put our dd back together again after attending one of the schools that’s been on the tv! We had a big blip after watching the documentary, brought back too many bad memories, but she’s picked herself up and is on the up again! We’re soooooo proud of her and her determination to get somewhere 🩷


    I’m so pleased to hear that your DD has been put back together and is back on top form. 
     

    This process is so brutal. 
     

    Would you mind if I DM you regarding KS Dance? I didn’t realise they offer places at age 14. 

    Stretching. How much is enough?

    in Doing Dance

    Posted

    5 hours ago, drdance said:

    20+ hours a week sounds like an awful lot in my opinion. Is this all ballet? How old is your DC? (Feel free to PM me if needed). 
     

    Stretching isn’t the only way to improve flexibility and joint mobility. Within the realm of “stretching” there are lots of different approaches; passive vs active, dynamic vs static, end-range focus, ballistic, PNF, dance-specific, etc etc. 

     

    As others have suggested, it’s better to get an individualised programme. During the adolescent growth spurt flexibility decreases anyway so that’s a consideration, plus there’s the whole stress and tension element too - psychological or physiological stress can cause neural tension leading to what looks like poor flexibility. Once the person relaxes or the source of tension is removed, the movement becomes freer and flexibility appears improved. Lisa Howell has written / produced a fair bit of content on neural tension. 

    Thank you drdance - I’ve sent you a message with a bit more info. :) 

    Stretching. How much is enough?

    in Doing Dance

    Posted

    1 hour ago, taxi4ballet said:

    With the school holidays coming up fairly soon, I wonder whether a visit to an osteopath might be worthwhile, just to make sure there's nothing out of alignment in the neck, back or hip areas. 

     

    It could just be a growth spurt - we were told that the bones grow quicker than the muscles and tendons, and you have to wait for them to catch up. Meanwhile, flexibility is reduced considerably. Another reason to avoid stretching I suppose. Leg bones also have a tendency to grow one leg at a time for some odd reason, so if that's the case, that will throw everything out of kilter.

    Good point. I will add that to the plan. He’s otherwise growing well but might be worth checking more closely on those joints. Thank you. 

    Stretching. How much is enough?

    in Doing Dance

    Posted

    2 hours ago, Neverdancedjustamum said:

    I can totally understand. My DC was reasonably flexible as a child, did gymnastics for about 2 years. Artistic (I think this is the one with apparatus?), not rhythmic (from which many transition to ballet), so was always more about strength than flexibility and agility. That should have given me a clue then! DC then had multiple significant growth spurts (at one point over 10cm in a year) and their back just got sturdier and stiffer, affecting hips too. Perfect for physical sports but not for ballet, according to the physio. Unfortunately for DC, these are the very things that are immediately visible in terms of the aesthetic of the arabesque line for example. I still don’t know if DC will regain the required flexibility in those areas, especially with DC’s (non)love for stretching but we have recently tried gyrotonics. It’s very early days so I won’t be able to tell if it makes a difference. DC definitely enjoys it more than solo stretching. It is a shame that lack of flexibility is immediately apparent in ballet, as often this overshadows their other strengths. My DC’s strengths are turns and jumps but these appear to be less appreciated than a stunning arabesque line I find. I think the best thing is to speak to your DC’s teacher and a physio who specialises in dancers. They can help guide and are qualified to do so. In terms of physios, I would suggest doing research and not immediately going to the ones usually posted on social media. Whilst they are no doubt very good, I find that the fees they usually charge can be limiting if you want regular sessions. Dig deeper and you will find more affordable but just as qualified ones (who often work with company dancers and vocational school students).


    Sounds very similar.
    I do often think life would be a lot easier if DC didn’t love ballet so much (or want to pursue it so desperately), but went for a sport instead. 😅 But then that would probably bring its own issues. 

     

    Thank you. 🙏 I will do some thorough research (and keep asking around). I agree on the high fees - definitely more benefit from a regular check in than a one off session. 

    • Like 2

    Stretching. How much is enough?

    in Doing Dance

    Posted · Edited by BalletBoyMumma

    Thank you everyone. This is all super helpful. 
    DC is strong but the strength/flexibility just isn’t balancing well at the moment, instead the lack of stretching combined with lots of dancing/training is resulting in tightness, and general joint stiffness, particularly in the back and ankles. My older DC had similar issues around this age (not at vocational school) and even just adding a weekly PBT class and Pre-pointe/pointe class helped immensely with both of those areas. Younger DC is away so can’t try these things unfortunately (and I’m not sure the school will allow DC to try pre-pointe/pointe classes 🫣). 

    It’s a bit complicated regarding talking to teachers/physio but I have asked them for help (we have been advised that next academic year this will happen) but I will definitely look for some more tailored guidance in the mean time from a dance physio (if I can find one). 
     

    That might need to be my next question 😅 Where does one find a dance specific physiotherapist? We have plenty of sports physios nearby but none who specialise in dance. 

    Stretching. How much is enough?

    in Doing Dance

    Posted · Edited by BalletBoyMumma

    Thank you @Neverdancedjustamum

    I agree, it’s a very tough question to answer. That 80/20 ratio is really helpful - that must make things so much clearer.  
    We seem to have the opposite (don’t stretch so much while growing, which I find confusing). I also found the information was very clear in associate scheme (JA) so I was intrigued to see what is suggested in various settings. 

     

    Yes it is a lot of training (I can’t indicate who with or where unfortunately) but the small amount of stretching doesn’t seem to be nearly enough for my DC so trying to figure a way around this. DC has very little time around the busy day-to-day schedule to add this in. Plus it’s simply not allowed of an evening. 
     

    There have been concerns raised, mostly physical/body type which may prevent my DC continuing much longer, but much of it is related to lack of flexibility (in various areas), my DC is very capable of being flexible but it doesn’t seem to be happening while in the programme, in fact they often rapidly lose flexibility in areas like back, ankles, hips (turnout) during the term. Which is then regained on long weekends or holidays at home where there is time for attention on those areas. Wondering if this is normal or maybe we we just need to move to a more tailored approach for DC (due to needing more) rather than continue on a programme. I hope that makes some sort of sense. 

    Stretching. How much is enough?

    in Doing Dance

    Posted

    Hi, 

     

    Just wanting to pick the brains of those more in the know. Say, for example, you do about 20hrs of ballet a week, broken up into various times, what is the minimum amount of stretching that should be done? I realise that everyone is different and some will require lots, or not so much, but generally speaking, what would be recommended from a teaching/young dancer’s point of view? Say, the minimum requirement to even just maintain some sort of flexibility and prevent from stiffening up/becoming inflexible? 
     

    Summer intensives - what is out there for young dancers?

    in Doing Dance

    Posted

    1 minute ago, OnTheMove said:

    This is a few I know of (the most popular UK ones):

     

    Royal Ballet School

     

    Yorkshire Ballet Seminars 

     

    Elmhurst Ballet School 

     

    Rambert

     

    Central School of Ballet

     

    Moorland Ballet Academy 

     

    Tring Park 

     

    Masters of Ballet 

     

    Malvern Ballet Seminars

     

    Bristol Russian 

     

    Natalie Kremen School (?) 

     

    Academy of Northern Ballet 

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Thank you! Perfect. Already many more than I was aware of. 😃

    • Like 1
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