Common Dance Injuries And How To Prevent Them

The scene is set in a heels dance class you've been looking forward to all week because you FINALLY get to dance to Hot Girl Summer by Megan Thee Stallion! You're in the groove and doing your thing, and then...you fall and sprain your ankle. So much for being a college girl but a freak on the weekends! Throughout all these years, I have only had one injury which was an ankle sprain due to an attempt at gymnastics when I was 12. So with dance, I've maintained to play it safe this whole time. However, ever since an audition I had this past June, I've been experiencing sudden sharp pains in my left knee that comes and goes. Because of this, I decided to do some research on common dance injuries and how I can prevent them.

The most common injuries in dancers fall into three categories including: tendinopathies (type of tendon that results in pain), swelling, and impaired function, sprains (injuries that involve ligaments) and strains (injuries that involve muscles). Some common injuries for dancers include:

1. Back

2. Hip

3. Knee

4. Leg and Ankle

5. Foot

Ways to prevent these types of injuries are to drink fluids, mainly water, and keep a healthy diet. Some physical ways to prevent these injuries to to take barre or pilates classes. Barre focuses on small, intense movements that push muscles to the point of fatigue, often in an aerobic setting. Pilates is non-aerobic and moves between small and large muscle groups, focusing on core strength and flexibility. It is a full-body workout, though it is best paired with a cardiovascular exercise such as barre.

Prevention is always the best cure. It's always heavily critical to take care of your body outside of the dance studio. Find some studios for pilates and barre in the Houston area with the app ClassPass!