498 Dance Anatomy and Kinesiology
while another study demonstrated that experienced
dancers utilized a longer time to reach the maximum
positions of flexion of the ankle (dorsiflexion) and
knee and hip (Ryman, 1978). Practically, these
concepts are often encouraged by such directives as
“land softly,” feel your body “yield” as you land, or
“use your plié” when you land. These directives are
often used to discourage “stiff” landings with inad-
equate flexion of lower extremity joints.
Another mechanism that can be used to soften
landings is well-timed use of the ankle-foot plantar
flexors. The calf complex plays a critical role in
absorbing the impact associated with landing from
jumps, and the ankle plantar flexors have been
estimated to be responsible for 44% (on average),
34% (the knee), and 22% (the hip) of the total
muscular work done when landing from a vertical
fall of 23 inches (59 centimeters) (Devita and Skelly,
1992). Directives encouraging a toe-heel versus a
flat-foot landing such as “go through your foot” are
often used to encourage use of this mechanism.
However, although optimal use of the plantar flex-
ors is important, it appears that with soft landings
involving greater jump height the contribution of
the hip extensors and knee extensors becomes more
substantial (Zhang, Bates, and Dufek, 2000).
Another important technique consideration is
placement of the knee relative to the foot when
landing from jumps. In leaps, stability must be
present on one leg to allow for development andabsorption of large forces without injury. Thus,
directives to promote good alignment and avoid
excessive rotation or medial-lateral movements,
such as cueing to think of the knees as hinges and
guide the knee over the ball of the foot (Roniger,
2002) or second toe can be helpful. Furthermore,
when stability is a problem, providing supplemental
coordination training such as balancing on one leg
with a balance board or foam roller, utilizing quick
movements of the gesture leg while standing on
one leg, and jumps can be helpful. A conditioning
program developed by Dr. Mandelbaum including
strengthening exercises, agility drills, and plyomet-
rics reinforcing soft landings with bent knees and
hips was found to reduce anterior cruciate tears by
88% in female soccer players when compared to
controls in a 12-week playing season, while another
program with similar emphasis was shown to reduce
maximum vertical ground reaction forces by 22%
and abduction and adduction moments by 50%
(Hewett et al., 1996).
In terms of special considerations, there are many
variations in the way a leap is executed with respect to
positioning of the legs, torso, and arms that will affect
muscle use and movement analysis. For example,
the lead leg can swing forward straight or with a
developing movement; there can be an extra “split”
motion of the legs at the peak of the movement; or
the back leg can bend. In addition, aesthetic criteria
play a key role and may dictate a leap that emphasizes“Go Through Your Foot”
T
he instruction to “go through your foot” is often used by teachers when landing from a jump to
achieve a certain aesthetic and prevent injuries. Toe-heel versus flat-foot landing has been shown
to be advantageous in terms of force absorption. For example, one study found peak vertical ground
reaction forces of about four times body weight with toe-heel landing in contrast to six times body
weight with flat-foot landing (Dufek and Bates, 1990). Another study found that toe-heel landings were
associated with a greater time to reach peak forces (Kovacs et al., 1999). Both of these factors are con-
sidered important for reducing the risk of lower extremity injuries. Hence, cueing to go through the
foot in a toe-heel manner can be useful for reducing impact. This mechanism appears to be developed
in dancers, as trained dancers exhibit a significantly longer time to reach minimum ankle position and
use a markedly larger ankle range of motion than nondancers when landing from jumps (McNitt-Gray,
Koff, and Hall, 1992). However, given the preponderance of ankle-foot injuries in dancers, this cue is
best combined with encouraging a soft landing with adequate flexion of the knees and hips because
the contribution of the plantar flexors has been shown to drop from 50% in stiff landings to 37% in
soft landings, with knee and hip extensors now providing greater absorption (Devita and Skelly, 1992;
Self and Paine, 2001).