How to Prevent Foot Injuries in Dance

A person's feet are one of the most important parts to being a successful dancer. Since so much weight is put on one's feet, it is imperative to stretch one's feet and warm up prior to dancing to prevent foot injuries.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Dance shoes
• place to warm up
• barre
• foot support for one's type of foot (i.e. arch supports)

Warming up/stretching

1. In ballet, there are different tempos, one of which is petit allegro. Petit allegro is essentially small jumps. If you hold on to a barre, you can make quick, small jumps that warm up the feet. Warming up the feet without putting much stress on them can drastically reduce the chances of injuring your feet. While performing a petit allegro, make sure to roll through the foot, isolating your foot from the ball of your foot, to the point of the foot, back to the ball of the foot. Imagine this as a wave motion for the foot.
2. Roll the ankle around to warm it up. Plant the ball of your foot and roll it clockwise and counterclockwise to loosen it.
3. Another way to prevent injury in the foot is to massage before putting any weight on it. This can be done any number of ways. The more time you spend massaging the foot, the more you will figure out where the tension in your foot is. You will eventually figure out the places in your foot that hold the most tension, which will in turn make the massaging more effective.
4. Watch the transfer of the body's weight. It is very easy to roll an ankle while dancing. An easy way to remember how to prevent ankle injuries is by making sure the weight is on top of your knee, which is on top of your foot. That is, make sure that your knee is always directly above your foot, not at all to the side. If you jump and land without your knees straight above your feet, it is easy to roll the ankles.

Tips & Warnings

• Stretching is easily one of the most important ways to avoid injury in dance.
• Always be conscious not to roll an ankle, which is a frequent occurrence in dancing.
• Make sure to warm up before dancing to ensure that you are not dancing on cold muscles.