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One aspect that is not fully appreciated is that utilizing a strength training program will allow the dancer and athlete to withstand a higher capacity for work. That is, if a dancer is looking to increase performance on a specific level, there must likewise be a larger general foundation to allow for this specific adaptation to take place.

Further, following a resistance training program offers bigger benefits than simply bigger biceps – there are increases in bone density, muscle strength, muscle hypertrophy, along with other physiological benefits seen through the energy systems if appropriate protocols are followed.

If you have a bboy who wants complete a certain combination of powermoves: Swipes to flare, to windmill, to backspin, and they can only perform swipes to flare before fatiguing, there are several things to examine: technique, relative strength levels, ability to recover between movesets, along with individual movement styles.

If this individual cannot perform the movement without sacrificing technique through muscling the movement into place, how else can they increase their performance?

The two things that come to mind involve movement dysfunctions, and a lack of work capacity (or the ability to perform greater workloads, or even more simply put they fatigue too quickly for the given demand). While I view this through a continuum of general to specific movement, Gray Cook refers to a pyramidal scheme. Let’s analyze this in relation to dancers.

Performance Pyramids

This idea is best exemplified through Gray Cook’s Performance Pyramid, which can be found through his book Movement. At the end of the day, a larger base of general work capacity and movement foundation will allow the athlete or dancer to more specifically hone in on their skill level down the line. The buffer zones refer to areas that could use work to either help restore function or improve performance.

Optimum Performance Pyramid

The Optimum Performance Pyramid shows the profile of a dancer who owns their strength on a relative level, and at the same time they can perform the finest of movements and control. This can be said of almost any dance at the “advanced” level of movement. However, if a dance wanted to increase his performance levels, perhaps it would benefit him to increase his functional movements (or increase his base), then increase his requisite strength and power levels (his performance), and then let’s analyze where he lies afterwards due to his larger increase of capacity.

On this notion, let’s look at this in terms of a dance who displays great levels of relative strength, but cannot display this strength in his movements on a fine and specific level.

Overpowered Performance Pyramid

This is an athlete that exhibits great power and strength in order to dance, but lacks the requisite stability for finer movements such as single leg work, or even diaphragmatic control under duress. I’d even venture to take a guess that this is a dancer that may get several injuries over time due to the lack of their understanding of the functional movements (squat, lunge, push-up, hip hinge, anti-rotation, anti-extension, etc.)

Underpowered Performance Pyramid

Here is a dancer who has requisite mobility and stability, but lacks the ability to truly power through their movements. Along with specific technical training, this dancer will see both technical and muscular growth on several levels after appropriate training takes place.

Underskilled Performance Pyramid

This is variation of dancer that excels in athletic qualities outside of the dance, but simply cannot apply those qualities to the specific skillsets, whether it is due to lack of time practicing technique, effort levels, or maybe he or she has transferred to dancing recently from another sport! Whatever the case may be, this is perhaps the one dancer that does not need any further pursuit of large increases in strength and new ranges of motion (mobility), barring injuries, imbalances, etc.

CONCLUSION

So, what are the next steps for an aspiring dancer that often spends large amounts of time practicing specific technical movements (footwork, powermoves, transitions, etc)?

1.  Next time you compete, practice, or session, after watching rounds or movements, analyze which pyramid represents your skill and movement level, and see where you can improve.

2. Increase functional movements (whether strength related or increasing stability in movements).

2. Address weakest portion of movement patterns (often found through movement assessment).

While the optimum performance pyramid should be the end goal for any dancer, in reality the path towards that will look different for each dancer.

For example, if I were to begin dancing again, I would need to spend large amounts of time on technical training, as I have the requisite mobility (I’m hypermobile as it is) and my strength levels are more than adequate. However, for another dancer, other qualities might need to be pursued!

Keep it funky.

MA

For the uninitiated on what the Postural Restoration Institute’s (PRI) philosophy entails, my journey down the figurative rabbit hole began at an internship at Cressey Performance. Green behind the ears, I stood there and did my best to absorb what the philosophy of these strange positional breathing exercises provided for the athlete and client.

Fast forward one year (time flies when you’re hustling), and PRI is a common household acronym that we throw around here at Endeavor Sports Performance.

For the uninitiated, PRI benefits can be derived as such:

 

Due to the functional and structural schematics that the body naturally has (heart to the left, liver on the right lower abdominal wall, larger size and more crural attachments of the diaphragm on the right side, among many other landmarks), our bodies will likewise shift to one side easier. To extrapolate the idea to a strength and conditioning program (and in reality, even a general population mindset), but increasing volume on top of a “dysfunction” will exacerbate the dysfunction. (I believe Gray Cook has talked about that idea).

 

As an amateur athlete competing in powerlifting…

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=De7rbB2bteE]

…and as a coach who values the integrity of the human body in all of its complexities, PRI has value to me on a personal and professional level for several reasons:

 

1. It reduces muscular tonicity through the systemic oxygenation that techniques associated with full diaphragmatic breathing can elicit.
2. Specific positional drills and stretches can activate often “sleepy” muscle beds through the facilitation of key muscle groups, and through reciprocal inhibition via the length-tension relationship that muscular beds can exhibit.
3. Indirectly, it allows an often hypertonic athlete or client, who may feel anxiety due to pressures to succeed, sports, life, etc. to slow down and as a result of increased diaphragmatic breathing, reduction in sympathetic drive, and reduction of an increased heart rate due to this, among many other associated effects.
4. As a coach, it allows me to clear specific movement patterns that are analogous to pain and/or movement dysfunction. (Not claiming that I clear pain, but rather I clear movement patterns via specific exercise drills.)
5. Also it has the ability to restore neutrality in sporting endeavors that require such extreme positions within the hips, shoulders, etc. This bears significance because if pushed too far down one end of the continuum of patterning and all of the above benefits are not pursued, then the soft tissue can reach an overuse threshold that much faster.
6. To take a page out of powerlifting, it allows a deeper appreciation for the role that the diaphragm takes when aiming to stabilize under heavy loads relative to the athlete’s stabilization strategy.

 

I’m sure there are a few points that I’m missing as well, not to mention just the refresher on anatomy that is given.

In all, PRI has several great benefits to understanding and at the very least, appreciating and not immediately throwing under the bus (unlike someone’s obsession with everything anti-Tracey Anderson), and I will hopefully continue to take this journey further down the rabbit hole.

With that off of my chest, I’d like to point out that Endeavor Sports Performance is hosting a weekend seminar on Postural Respiration on October 12-13, 2013 in Pitman, NJ (20 min outside of Philadelphia), and if I recall correctly, this could perhaps be one of the main courses that is the metaphorical centerpiece of PRI’s body of work (see what I did there? ;o) ).

The weekend’s itinerary will look something like this:

Day 1

• 6:30-7am: Smash eggs omelette (invite only; my house).
• 8am: Begin PRI (Intro and Anatomy Review)
• 8:22am: Co-worker (or myself) will somehow draw blood from the sheer intensity of the review.
• 12pm: Break for Lunch.
• 4 or 5pm: Dinner and/or brews.

Day 2

• 8am: Hop right into movements, testing, and case studies etc.
• 12pm: Find out how I can compensate and cheat every test!
• 5pm: Sleep from overdosing on functional anatomy.

All jokes aside, even with its relatively new following, PRI has value whether you are a personal trainer, strength coach, athletic trainer, physical therapist, manual therapist, and/or chiro.

For more information, check here for more PRI goodies.

–> REGISTER HERE <–

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Keep it funky.

-MA