Fitness Assessment and Prevention   [back to the Category]

Fitness assessment & Prevention   [read the french version]

Author :   Docteur Anne Thiescé

The physical fitness certificate for ballet dancing must eliminate clear-cut, ballet dancing contra-indications which are essentially cardiovascular. This is done by carrying out a relaxed ECG and a Ruffier test. As far as the examination of the locomotion system is concerned, it must detect future problems and, in part, prevent them. The medical profession does not generally intervene in the morphological fitness decision which is still the domain of the “instructors”. This decision is made during entrance examinations for professional ballet schools.
This examination of the locomotion system contents itself, for an amateur activity, with a clinical examination to detect the beginnings of scoliosis and hyperlordosis. It can be accompanied by a request for X-rays when the time to go to professional schools comes:
- full spine, front view, for scoliosis,
- full spine, profile, for growth dystrophia and spondylolisthesis,
- 3/4 lumbar, for spondylolysis,
- patellar axials for patellae that are out of position, especially lateral dislocations and lateral hyper-pressure syndromes, common amongst longilineal and hyper-mobile teenagers,
- ankle profiles that check for a trigone bone or a long posterior process of the talus,
- pelvis, front view, for hip dysplasia.
Thus, the numerous observations made, lead, if necessary, to strict supervision and / or advice on preventive measures and a gymnastic therapy complementary to the “ballet” activity. For example: - specific exercises for the abdominal area and stretching of the anterior pelvi-femoral muscles for hyperlordosis or formed lysis problems; - specific exercises for the vastus medialis and for stretching the rectus femoris, with good relaxation awareness of the quadriceps femoris during "pliés", in patellar syndromes; - advice on active rather than passive arch exercises, mainly on the medio-foot, when the ankle profile photographs show a trigone bone or a long posterior process of the talus; - proprioceptive exercises amongst dancers who have already suffered from tibio-tarsal or femoro-tibial sprain problems.

Thus, the ballet dancing physical fitness assessment, becomes a preventive measures' assessment. This pathology prevention is also part of the student's environmental choices: suitable studio with a suspended parquet flooring, qualified and careful instructor, pace suited to age, desire and physiology. French law, now ensures that ballet training is carried out in suitable locations but physical training, physiological pace and recovery concepts are still often missing, despite the fact that they are related to well-known concepts in, what are, mainly anaerobic sports.
Lastly, as part of the preventive measures, comes the necessary training in the basic rules of dietetics. In actual fact, if ballet is a sport, it is practised by dancers who are often willing to subject their bodies to dangerous nutritional and other behaviour, as much on the metabolic as the locomotor front and this in search of such aesthetic ends as an even greater slimness.

Bibliography

Chauvard S., Médecine du sport et danse, un apprentissage à risque,
Impact médecin no. 272 17/3/1995 p26