Group Fitness Class – Tips for Safety

Simply
body awareness techniques for group dance and fitness classes to help
you get the most out of your workout while preventing injury.

I
am a stickler for technique when I work with my clients and students!
Proper technique is the largest prevention method to injury
available. Proper form allows the muscles to work at their optimal
while achieving the results you are working so hard for. But even the
best teachers can not be correcting every student in the class
simultaneously. So, why not learn some of these tips for yourself.

Here
are some basic tips you can implement for yourself. Go ahead, give
them a try right now and you'll be ready to go when you get to class.

Knees
over the toes. This is something that you should monitor during
your entire class. Anytime you are not standing with you feet
directly below your hips, check to see where your knees are.

Ex:
Lunge:

Knee
should be lined up with the ankle joint, not pushed over and beyond
the toes or back behind the foot. Also remember to keep the heel of
the front foot on the floor.

Ex:
Turned out Squats/ Plies

(This
is for both Narrow (1^st Position) and Wide Stance (2^nd
Position) Plies:)

Knees
should be in line with your toes, not pushing forward (inward) toward
one another. Check that your knees are directly above the ankle
joint. If they are slightly forward (inward) you can easily correct
this by adjusting the turnout of your feet. What this mean is plain
english: narrowing the distance between the toes of the right foot
and the toes of the left foot can release the pressure of your knees.
You can also use the muscles in the upper leg to gently press the
knees back. This can help to take pressure off the knee joint while
intensifying the exercise.It's really important that you are in a
natural turnout position. Be sure not to over extend at the ankle to
get your feet further out.

Shoulders:

There
is a general tenancy of people across the board to lift the shoulders
when learning something new. Do your best to be mindful of the
shoulder blades and keep them down an away from your ears. Just
trying to press down with your shoulders may not get you to the
desired result, and truthfully, it not very comfortable to do.

Instead,
think of pressing your shoulder blades down and inward toward one
another. This engages the muscles of the back that naturally release
the tension in the top of the shoulder (upper trapezius) muscles.

Lower
Back:

When
doing exercises like squats and lunges; or anything that lowers the
body with a bent knee, the correct position of the back may vary.

1) When
doing plies with the toes turned outward, maintain a neutral position
with your pelvis. This is generally a safe place for your lower back
and can prevent pain from hyper-extension of the low back (lumbar)
muscles. It also happens to be the position that will allow the
correct muscles to do the activity, giving you the most gain.

2) For
a squat to be done correctly, (that is when your toes are straight
forward), you'll need to have a slight curve in your lower spine.
You'll also want be sure to keep our chest up to maintain proper form
for the squat.

Students
- Remember, the instructor is there to help. If you are not sure how
to do something correctly, or if it just doesn't feel right. First
adjust your movement so you don't get hurt. Then, ask for help. A
good instructor will be glad to assist you!

If
you are an instructor you may find Essential Anatomy, a
multimedia anatomy course for
dancers and dance teachers interesting. It is an excellent
resource for teaching technique well!

Dance, Move, Live!