Ballet Keeps Athletes on Their Toes
Benefits for Most Hard-core Athletes
Are you familiar with Albert Einstein’s famous quote: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”? This should challenge athletes and coaches at any level to think outside their box to develop creative alternative cross-training methods to enhance all-around athleticism. Performances can become stale when boredom during training sets in. Incorporating modified ballet exercises as cross-training is one way to keep things fresh and interesting.
The idea of engaging in ballet or dance usually elicits strong reactions, especially from male athletes and coaches. Their chorus of protests includes comments such as: “I won’t wear tights or a tutu!” “What does this have to do with my sport? I feel really stupid doing this stuff.” But the doubters would do well to consider the benefits of dance in helping fine-tune their performance. Dancers are among the world’s most athletic individuals, a fact not often acknowledged in the sport community. A case in point: a study comparing fitness levels between dancers from England’s Royal Ballet of London and a squad of International British swimmers (including Olympians) found that the dancers were more fit, scoring higher on seven out of 10 standardized tests, and 25 % stronger on grip strength. It is clear that ballet offers effective resistance training since the individual’s body weight pushes into the floor during every specific leg exercise, whether it’s jumping, leaping, hopping, turning, or other associated dynamic movements. These activities strengthen muscles and build and maintain bone mass and bone density. Therefore, it makes sense to examine the total body training concepts within ballet for potential integration into any sports program.
Famous NFL players have used ballet as cross-training for decades. The American Lynn Swann, (Pittsburgh Steelers, 1974-1982), described as “the Baryshnikov of Football,” attributes his grace and skills on the field to ballet training he began as an eight-year-old boy. Willi Gault, former all-American wide receiver for the Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Raiders, and Olympic athlete in sprinting and bobsledding, also credits his success in sport to extensive training in ballet.
Today, there are plenty of athletes in various sports who have taken up ballet in order to improve core stability, dexterous leg and footwork, correct hip alignment and pelvic instability, prevent injuries, and for rehabilitation purposes. For example, former Canadian hockey goaltender Ray Emery (Chicago Blackhawks) was told that his playing career was finished due to a bone condition known as ‘avascular necrosis.’ His daily training routine after surgery included ballet, Yoga, Pilates, and swimming to strengthen the core, hip, and thigh muscles, which helped him to resume his playing career. But it’s not just football and hockey players who report benefitting from ballet. British world-class swimmers took up ballet as cross-training and for Warm-up purposes. Liam Tancock, world record holder in the 50 m back crawl, who competed in the 2008 Olympic Games, had this to say about his ballet engagement:
…[It’s] very physical and you need a lot of strength and precision. They [dancers] make it look effortless but it requires a lot of concentration. You become more aware of your body and what your limbs are doing, how you’re positioning your limbs, fingers and toes…
Elite swimmers such as Tancock recognize that dancers not only deserve great admiration for their daily rigorous workouts, work ethic, and dedication but also for their concentration and focus on physical and mental components. As a former elite swimmer myself, I know I benefitted a great deal from my dance training. So it was a natural step for me as a coach to modify concepts from dance to create the Long-term
Athlete Development Model from the Calgary-based study of 24 young athletes and their progress over eight years. Ballet was incorporated into the program as one type of cross-training. The athletes in this study tested well below the Canadian National Fitness norms for their respective age groups at the start but were off the charts by the end of the 8-year study, thus demonstrating the positive effects of ballet as a cross-training activity. Ballet helped to enhance their physical and athletic abilities to achieve an efficient and more effortless movement repertoire.
The artistic and aesthetic nature of ballet still creates lots of stereotypes, especially among males. However, ballet offers much more than layers of tulle and satin ribbons. It develops strength, balance, and overall athleticism. Therefore, athletes and coaches should be encouraged to consider the potential benefits to be gained from ballet. There are plenty of athletes in various sports, who have taken up ballet to improve their posture, core stability, hip alignment, and pelvic instability, as well as to improve dexterous leg and footwork. Furthermore, ballet helps to prevent injuries (strengthen legs, ankles, toes, hamstrings, and groin) and is used successfully for rehabilitation purposes.
NFL Receiver Lynn Swan in Air … “Poetry in Motion!”
Kalos Athletes working on Explosive Power, Body Alignment, Body Control, and Toe Balance. Stills from Modified Ballet for Athletes available in our shop!
*Original article printed by the Coaching Association of Canada: Vol. 14 Coaching Plan.