Ballet dancers are usually perceived as delicate and petite humans with a sense of frailty to them. Even the men are generally scoffed at for lacking strength or seen as soft but that could not be further from the truth. This misconception leads to an array of convoluted thoughts and feelings amongst young and aspiring dancers, even dancers I have seen transitioning into the professional world of classical ballet. Dancers are more than that. We are athletes who spend most of our waking hours training our bodies, so we should be treating them as such through correct nutrition and constant physical maintenance.
Nutrition is a massive aspect of this (probably the most important) and if we aren’t giving our bodies the nutrients required then we won’t be performing to best standard we can possibly achieve. I like to think of my diet as fuel! Food to me is what petrol is to a car, if you don’t fill up enough or use the correct petrol in the car then it won’t run. On big days full of heavy rehearsal, I know that I will need a high calorie breakfast with lots of carbs and adequate protein to give me the energy to survive the morning. Lunch will need to be a similarly balanced meal whereas dinner will be purely focused on recovery so high protein, maybe a bit less carbs and smaller portion sizes as I won’t need all that excess energy to sleep. When you’re busy with rehearsals and classes, eating when your body requires it is relatively easy to balance but always remember there really isn’t any need to overfill the tank. You wouldn’t do that for a car so why would you do that to your body? The whole misconception that ballet dancers don’t eat is dated, if anything we must be eating 3 solid meals a day with healthy snacks in between just for our bodies to meet the energy needs required for us to perform at our peak. Of course everyone’s body is different but taking the time to find out what works for you and your body will only aid you in the long term.
And then there is body image, which is also a tricky and often taboo subject. Yes, we want to be aiming for lengthened and lean muscle growth but that is too often confused with people aiming to be underweight and malnourished. Ballet dancers, in my opinion at the least, ought to be examples of supreme fitness. We have to combine long term endurance with short term explosive movements and our bodies should reflect that. We should appear lean and toned like a long-distance runner but at the same time have the muscle density and strength to explode off the floor, or kick and swing ourselves in opposing directions in the slightest moment. There are many ways to achieve this, but what I have seen and experienced to be the best is a combination of Pilates, weighted gym work, cardio and cross training on top of the class work we routinely drill on a daily basis. The pressure to fit a certain size, have a certain chest or waist circumference is all too real but we aren’t clones, so we can not expect this of ourselves. We’re human. We come in all different shapes and sizes and it will ALWAYS be a different journey for each dancer to achieve a strong a powerful physique.
Some may require daily cardio paired with a consistent Pilates or gym schedule on top of everything they do in a studio just to maintain and improve their appearance where as someone may just do class and rehearsals and maintain a desired aesthetic. Either way, your path to reaching a point where you are happy to look in the mirror isn’t all sweat and sacrifice but a bit of soul searching too. View yourself objectively, identify your strengths and weaknesses. We all have them. Face them, and accept them for what they are. Work towards improving them but also don’t forget to take stock on all your strengths. You might have beautiful port de bras, excel at picking up choreography or be an outstanding pas de deux partner. Don’t forget to acknowledge them! They are what make you the dancer that you are! Take little steps every day because 1% every day for a whole year equates to 365% and who knows what you can do with that extra effort.
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