Love your feet
“Dancing is like dreaming with your feet”
Or more like suffering with your feet? Lol, no seriously, if you’ve ever danced ballet, you’ll know what I’m talking about.
Feet are of the most crucial importance in a dancer's life, they hold our balance and allow us to move freely.
But in ballet there is something we must not forget… The pointe shoes! Oh, yes, now you must fit your feet into this tiny and BEAUTIFUL shoe that will change your life forever (and the shape of your feet too). Yeii! But why do people love the pointe shoes so much?
There are two things; they are aesthetically pleasing to the eye and they finish the line of your legs in an elegant and curvy way. But it’s not just that, it’s the hard work these pointy devils represent.
Feet gifted
Now let’s go back to the feet.
In the ballet world, you not only have to have flexibility and a dancing skill, but you ,must also have to have beautiful feet. What are beautiful feet by ballet standards?
These are the feet that are "the most bendy" you could say. The feet that, when you point them, curve the most. Now, there is a lot of pressure on dancers for their feet to look a certain way, more so than body types.
For example, if a dancer has amazing feet, they could probably get away with murder. They become this godlike individual that is pretty much just, "feet with a person attached to it".
Your great feet will mesmerise people so much that you will get a "get out of jail free card" for things like; getting in optimum shape, lifting your legs high (bendy feet will make your lines look really good in any position), rotating your hips and more.
But wait a second! What if your feet are not so bendy?
Work it
In Argentina, when dancers think their feet are not bendy enough, they say, “I don’t have feet”. I said this to a teacher once and she replied:
“Of course you have feet, how are you able to walk otherwise?”
This resonated in my head, she was right, I could walk, and jump and dance thanks to them, and in that moment, I felt lucky and proud.
So what if your feet are not as bendy? Firstly, no matter if you are a dancer or not, take a moment to look at your feet, and be grateful to have them.
Feet can be highly improved with hard work. Yes, there are many exercises to improve arches and pointes. It is important to develop not only the flexibility of your arches and joints, but also the strength of the muscles all around.
One tip to consider
Sometimes we may think we are pointing our feet just fine, but if we direct the exercises with the right intention, there is always strength left that could be added. This tiny mindset will make a difference at the time of making progress.
Test yourself by taking your shoes off and stretch your feet to the maximum. Now do the same, but until you get a tiny cramp in the arches. And there you go! That's the difference that you should feel when you work them out.
Love your feet
If you are dancing a lot, or even standing for long periods of time, it is normal that your feet will get tired. It is very important that you give your feet and yourself the rest that your body needs.
Not only to lead a more balanced lifestyle, but also to prevent injuries that fatigue and lack of muscle recovery can cause.