122 Dance Anatomy and Kinesiology
feet free. Dancers who develop high levels of
abdominal strength and excellent technique
may want to perform one set of an advanced
variation with the feet restrained (e.g., under
the strap of an incline bench, Reformer, or
Cadillac) if spinal flexion can be effectively
maintained. However, several sets of exercises
should also be done with the feet free.
Pulling Abdominal Wall Inward When one
is performing abdominal exercises, emphasis
on pulling the abdominal wall inward toward
the spine will help recruit the obliques and
transverse abdominis. Remember that the
transverse abdominis is not capable of pro-
ducing spinal flexion and so will not neces-
sarily be recruited with abdominal exercises
unless its function of pulling the abdominal
wall inward (often termed “hollowing” in
dance) is emphasized. One study showed
that by using multisensory cueing including
verbal cues that emphasized pulling the navel
up and against the spine, subjects were able
to recruit more transverse abdominis and
internal obliques and less hip flexors (ilio-
psoas) on the down-phase of a curl-up (Miller
and Medeiros, 1987). An exaggerated, slow
exhalation or quick, forced exhalation can
also serve to emphasize greater use of the
transverse abdominis (De Troyer et al., 1990).
Emphasizing this inward pull of the abdomi-
nal muscles is also important for helping
develop the aesthetically desired use of theFIGURE 3.40 Technique for abdominal exercises. (A) Correct—
emphasis on rounded spine (spinal flexion) with abdominal wall
pulled inward; (B) incorrect—flat back with emphasis on using hip
flexors to raise torso.A
B
TESTS AND MEASUREMENTS 3.3 (continued)
and touch the elbows to the mid-thighs in cadence with a metronome or count set at 25 curl-ups per
minute for a maximum of 4 minutes (B2) (Sparling, 1997). Count the number of proper curl-ups your
partner completes. The count stops as soon as the elbows no longer touch the knees or the dancer
is not able to keep up with the count. The dancer may not rest and then begin again. The maximum
goal would be 100 repetitions in 4 minutes, but the mean for professional hockey players tested was
50, with 11% of players meeting the endpoint (Quinney, Smith, and Wenger, 1984). Based on some
preliminary tests with dancers, this author considers 40 to 59 repetitions “good” and greater than or
equal to 60 repetitions “excellent.”
Note: Dancers with inadequate strength to touch the elbows to the thighs can cross their arms
in front of their chest and touch their forearms to their thighs. Or they can bring their arms down to
their sides and place a strip of masking tape just in front of their middle finger and a second strip
of masking tape 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) in front of the first strip. With each curl the hands must
move forward to touch the second strip of tape (Robertson et al., 1988; Sparling, 1997).