A Dancer's Summer Break

Dancers: if you're home for the summer or you find yourself with a bit of a break, here are a few things to think through about getting yourself ready to perform when the season starts again.⠀

1.) Now is a good time to think through the consistent feedback you got during the last season. This is one of the first questions we ask dancers when they come into our studio. "Is there anything you'd like to work on pertaining to consistent notes you get?" Sometimes there can be relatively simple exercises you can add to your training that will help you address these notes.⠀

2.) Consistency can help avoid late-offseason panic. If you've followed our work for a while, you know that we believe dancers across the board need more rest and that recovery is undervalued in the dance community. However, if you can continue showing up for yourself at the gym in some capacity during a layoff, you can avoid the panicked sprint at the end of the off season. Consistent work over these weeks can allow you to simultaneously recover and SAFELY ramp up in the weeks leading to performing again.⠀

3.) Fill your cup. One of the reasons rest is so important is it allows us to remember what we miss about the hardest things in our life. Powerlifters take a deload week not just to let their joints rest, but also to allow themselves to summon some positive anticipation around working that hard again. ⠀⠀

So sit by the pool. Read. Consume art that inspires you. All of that will be in you then when you go to perform. Preparing yourself as an artist isn't just about plyometrics and mobility; it's also about maintaining that creative drive and giving yourself the opportunity to be inspired anew.