Unsafe Dance Practices on Social Media That We Need to Re-think

If you follow me on Instagram, you've probably seen me post about the unsafe exercises and advice that I see all. the. time.

It's disheartening to see these crazy stretches and see people actually following their advice! Now I'm not just talking about social media... I see these exercises being done in the studio as well.

Let me explain one exercise that I'm sure we are all familiar with or have at least seen once or twice:

Now this "stretch" is supposedly going to get you some hyperextended knee joints (major sarcasm intended).

In this exercise, the dancer is holding the quadriceps muscle group with her hand to keep the knee straight. She is then taking the other hand to lift the foot off the ground and "stretch" the back of the knee.

Let me just bust the myth right now - you CANNOT stretch to get hyperextended knees!!!

It makes me cringe just thinking about it.

You CAN strengthen the quads and stretch the hamstrings and calves to improve knee extension. But you should not force the ligaments in your knee to stretch.

Unfortunately, I see this happening all the time due to the "ballet aesthetic" of hypermobile joints. But instead of working on the stability and strength within the joints, we are increasing our risk of injury.

There are a few other "stretches" and "exercises" that could be considered unsafe for dancers. I actually did a full webinar about this topic with fellow dance trainer, Mara Coy.

In this 45 min webinar, we discussed 5 different exercises and why they could be harmful to the body. We also provided alternative exercises to do instead.

I'd love to teach you more about how to be safe with your dance fitness training!

Click here to watch the webinar for FREE on YouTube.

Hope you enjoy it!

-Kendall