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The art of dance is changing. We are in an age of unprecedented competition, where many performers are forced to retire by their early twenties. Dancers are working longer hours, earlier, and often commence pointe work at a very young age. The new commercial nature of ballet, and of the many different types of dance, encourages many young dancers to push the boundaries of their capacity. Companies are also less willing to sustain support of under-performing artists, whether this is due to injury or incompetence, as there is always someone else ‘waiting in the wings’.

To survive these challenges, a dancer needs to know her body more intimately than ever before, and guard against the injuries that befall so many would-be stars. She needs to build a strong base in her initial training, as this is from where her career grows. As dance teachers and dance medicine specialists, we also need to take a new approach to the art of developing the prima ballerina.

The intention of “The Perfect Pointe Book” and “The Perfect Pointe System – Pre Pointe Assessment and Teacher Training Manual” is to introduce Dance Teachers to an advanced system of assessing and preparing a student for pointe training. Strict criteria takes the subjectivity out of the decision, and helps the conscientious teacher enable the transition of her students onto pointe in the most integrated and responsible manner.

The question of when is the right time for beginning pointe training has always been a difficult one. Until now there has never been a definitive guide to this process, and many dance teachers worry at pushing girls too early, or leaving it too late. The book explains in detail assessment techniques and specific prescriptive exercises determined by the test results. This allows for tailoring of pre-pointe classes most effectively, for optimal strength and control in minimal time, and a reduced incidence of injuries.

To find out more about The Perfect Pointe System (The Teachers Manual) simply CLICK HERE

Good control of balance and stability of the foot and ankle are essential in any dancer. However many dancers are unaware of the many things that combine to give you good balance, and how to train the components individually. Poor balance reactions may make your supporting foot wobble and you might find it hard to stabilise en demi-pointe, or be constantly corrected for rolling arches! Poor stability in your supporting ankle is a huge barrier in increasing how high you can lift your leg en l’air, as you will be working off an unstable base.

There are so many things that can influence your balance, including; your vision; your sensation of where your foot and ankle ligaments are (proprioception), and the balance sensors that actually sit inside your inner ear. It is important to train the stability of the ankle while removing one or two of the feedback systems that we use to develop all parts of the complete system. Many dancers rely far too much on their vision to maintain their balance, and this becomes a problem when turning or performing in low light situations.

Test yourself and the strength of each system by trying each of the following exercises. Try standing on a single leg in parallel or turnout, with each of the following variations:

• Closing your eyes.
• Standing on a pillow, or soft foam mat.
• Try turning your head from side to side.
• Tilting the head from side to side.
• Try a fondu/small knee bend on each leg.
• If you are already in pointe shoes, try all of the above in bare feet and then in your pointe shoes and feel the difference!

All of these are great tests and training ideas for improving your control of your ankles. Remember to always switch on your deep turnout muscles and core stabilising muscles when balancing in turnout, so that your hips don’t twist too much!

Developing control of the small ‘intrinsic muscles of the feet are essential to developing good balance. Many ideal exercises for this are explained in The Perfect Pointe Book, a resource developed especially for dancers to gain optimum control of their feet and ankles. It is an essential component of any dance training whether or not the dancer is en pointe.

If you have good mobility of your big toe and a good pointe range, but can’t quite show this off in your single leg rises, it is important to train this area in isolation from your regular dance training. Improving strength and control in this area is a great way to guard against a number of foot and ankle injuries common to dancers. Try the following exercise to improve your strength. It helps wake up all the small muscles of your foot that need to work to get a full demi-pointe position.

• See how many full height single leg rises you can do in parallel, as a base measure.
• Face a barre or wall with finger tips gently resting for support.
• Stand in parallel to begin, with the feet slightly apart.
• Slowly rise on both feet to your full height of demi pointe.
• Transfer your weight to one foot, maintaining the height of demi-pointe.
• Lift the other foot off the floor and hold your balance on one leg for a few seconds.
• Slowly lower the heel of the supporting leg to the floor, remembering to maintain the inside of your arch.
• Place the lifted foot back to the floor and repeat 10 times each side.
• Once you are confident that you can maintain the full height of demi-pointe, try the same exercise starting in first position, focusing on maintaining turnout as you rise and transfer the weight.

This will help improve the control of all the small muscles of your feet quite quickly. After several weeks of doing this, retest how many full height single leg rises you can do! For a video of this exercise click on the following youtube link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbDrJHItcEU