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Since childhood, Ive been obsessed with ballet.
I never made it back for a second class.
Experts in This Article
Andy Reynolds is the medical director at the English National Ballet.
Andy Reynolds is the medical director at the English National Ballet.
Isabelle Brouwers is a professional ballerina and first artist at the English National Ballet.
Behind every graceful move hides unimaginable power.
We are essentially elite athletes, and I think thats something people take for granted.
Its no secret that a grueling training schedule forms the backbone of a ballet dancers daily routine.
Brouwers has a class in the studio every morning that lasts just over an hour.
Well, it turns out the answer is pretty complicated.
If theres one thing a ballerinas body needs to be, its adaptable.
A dancers workout routine changes with the seasons.
When were doing classical work, I have to do a lot more intrinsic foot exercises.
Andy Reynolds is the medical director at the English National Ballet.
[My workouts] will change around what were doing, and what were doing is changing constantly.
Were having to adapt and maximize the strength of our bodies in different ways.
Its a routine thats constantly shape-shifting and evolving.
On top of this, Brouwers squeezes in two or three strength and conditioning sessions a week.
I check that this reminder is etched in my mind before I begin.
Note to self: Approach with caution.
And all I can say is, wow, my workouts will never be the same again.
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Then it was onto some deep core warm-ups and gentle glute activations on the mat.
Brouwers recommends performing three sets of eight reps, but emphasizes that there is no magic number.
I start with90-90 toe-taps, keeping my pelvis as stable as possible.
Then ontobicycle crunchesand someside plankpulses to really fire up those obliques.
Next up is Brouwers non-negotiable move:glute bridges.
She starts with both legs rooted to the ground, before switching to single leg glute bridges.
At this point, Brouwers would move on to the main event in her morning workout: the reformer.
Obviously ballet is very turned-out so you really have to strengthen the rotators, she says.
To be honest, strength training has never been my thing.
One F45 class was enough to put me off for life.
When in the gym, I rarely stray from the cycling machine, avoiding theweights sectionlike the plague.
And to make matters more complicated, there is no one-size-fits-all strength routine for me to follow.
Reynolds approach is fundamentally data-driven.
However, I think theres also a subjectivity at play, he adds.
Brouwers herself let me in on a little secret: She doesnt enjoy running.
This is welcome news to me.
Brouwers will typically perform three sets of eight, though it varies depending on her training program.
I start withRussian deadlifts, one of her favorites.
Up next isweighted calf raises, before I move on to the leg press machine.
Well do leg presses with up to two times our body weight of resistance on the legs.
I leave the gym feeling confident.
What I thought would be deeply intimidating and challenging turned out to be pretty approachable.
The key was adopting the same mindset as a ballerina: Dont push yourself for the sake of it.
Its all about building strength gently and gradually, and every movement has its purpose.
As Reynolds tells me, its all about workingwithyour body rather than pushing it to its limit.
When ballet dancers are rehearsing all day long, its important not to fatigue them, he explains.
More is not better.
Friday: Surprising conclusions
I wont beat around the bush.
In their own right, the weeks workouts werent overly hardcore or intense.
But thats because dancers are rehearsing for six or so hours a day on top of them.
The intention is to exercise mindfully and with maximum efficiency, to avoid fatigue and injury.
Ultimately, we could all learn something from ballet dancers.
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