5 Ways Dance Improves Athletic Performance
A football player in a ballet class?! A Heisman trophy winner working on a pirouette! Why are college and professional athletes turning to dance class? Could it be that dance offers something that other sports and workouts can’t provide? One former NFL player said that ballet helped him train muscles that traditional strength training methods were unable to!
Strength
Dance is a unique physical activity that can greatly improve athletic performance. Dance allows athletes from other sports to use new muscles and have greater body strength. Dance classes like ballet focus on flexibility, mobility, and core conditioning. This can provide a more balanced strength training workout. It targets muscles that traditional strength training regimens cannot and allows athletes to get a different muscular tone that they may not achieve in other sports!
Flexibility
Flexibility is key in preventing sports-related injuries. While many athletes stretch to reduce muscle strain and injury, they aren’t fully utilizing the benefits that flexibility has to offer. Dance moves can push the body to the limits in terms of stretching. A dancer can bend and twist without breaking. Some professional football teams have incorporated barre work into their training, resulting in lower injury rates across the season.
Endurance
There is no denying that dance is an excellent cardiovascular workout. It can improve your body’s ability to deliver oxygen which in turn builds endurance! Endurance is an important aspect of many sports like soccer, football, basketball, and track and field.
Coordination
Dance training involves a large amount of memorization and repetition of specific steps. If other athletes practice dance, these movements may allow them to become more coordinated and have better spatial awareness. This can allow for an athlete to have better coordination on the field and be more aware of their surroundings.
Agility
Agility is the ability to change direction and the position of the body quickly and effectively while under complete control. It requires quick reflexes, coordination, balance, speed. This is an important skill for any athlete. Dance is an excellent way to increase agility because a dancer is constantly transferring weight from one side of the body or one foot to the other, or from the toes to the heels.
So why Nan’s School of Dance in Raleigh?
At Nan’s School of Dance in Raleigh, we understand that dance can offer a variety of physical benefits. Dancing is unique in that its movements allow the body to focus on areas that other sports may not. Through dance, a student can transform their body and enhance their athletic performance.
Learn more
Want to learn more about the importance of physical activity in children? Check out this article about the benefits of physical activity.
Don’t forget to register!
Sign up for our popular 2021 classes! From ballet to hip hop, we offer dance classes for ALL ages and skill levels in a variety of styles. We place students in classes that will challenge them while offering a fun atmosphere for learning and growth. We also offer Mommy & Me classes, (18 months – 2.5 years)
Register online or give us a call at 919-803-6044 to hold your spot!