222 Dance Anatomy and Kinesiology
Hip External Rotator StrengtheningDeveloping specific strength and activation of the hip
external rotators can help dancers realize and main-
tain their full potential turnout. The prone passé
(table 4.5M) is designed to emphasize strengthening
the DOR with larger range of motion of the femur.
Care must be taken that the knee is stabilized with
appropriate muscles and that the rotation is occur-
ring from the hip and not at the knee. The prone
frog (table 4.5N) incorporates a smaller motion of
the femur and is helpful for encouraging mainte-
nance of turnout, such as when holding one leg in
passé during a pirouette. This exercise can also be
helpful for dancers who feel that they are excessively
using the front of the thigh (sartorius) for rotation,
since the slight horizontal abduction against gravity
utilized in this exercise will encourage activation of
the desired deep outward rotator muscles.
Strengthening and specific use of the hip external
rotators can also be encouraged through addition
of external rotation to the other hip movements
of flexion, extension, abduction, and adduction.
For example, hip rotation on elbows (table 4.5O)
combines hip abduction with hip external rotation.
Many of the other exercises as just described and
included in table 4.5 can also have hip external
rotation added to them. This approach will allow
strengthening of the rotators in a specific manner
that will tend to enhance particular movements
mimicked by the exercises. Furthermore, many of
these exercises can incorporate hip external rota-
tion with the knee extended, a valuable alternative
for any dancer who experiences knee discomfort
in exercises in which the knee is bent, such as the
prone passé.Hip Internal Rotator StrengtheningInclusion of strengthening exercises for the hip
internal rotators is an area of controversy. One
approach is to selectively work the external rotators,
to purposely create an imbalance that will favor
the maintenance of turnout and help prevent the
common technique error of letting the knee fall
medial to the foot. Another approach is to include
at least some internal rotation out of concern that
selectively strengthening the external rotators with-
out the internal rotators may predispose dancers
to certain types of injuries. Further research will
be necessary to clarify this controversy. Prone hip
internal rotation (table 4.5P) is an exercise for the
internal rotators that can be easily performed after
prone passé by just switching the strap or tubing to
the other foot.Stretches for the Hip
Extreme range of motion at the hip is essential to
achieve the desired dance aesthetic. Table 4.6 pro-
vides the normal range of motion for non-dancers
in each of the primary movements of the hip, and
selected average values for elite dancers are also
provided to demonstrate the need for ranges tremen-
dously higher than seen in non-dance populations.
Since the passive limits to many hip movements (as
shown in table 4.6) are muscular in nature, consis-
tent stretching can yield dramatic improvements in
range of motion. Stretching of the hamstrings, hip
flexors, and hip adductors is particularly important
for achieving dance aesthetics. Sample flexibility
exercises for these and other hip muscle groups are
provided in table 4.7, and a brief description of the
importance of these exercises follows. Dancers who
utilize turned-out positions in their dance forms
should perform these stretches with the targeted leg
turned out as well as parallel.Hip Flexor Stretches
Adequate hip flexor flexibility is critical for allowing
proper technique when working the leg behind the
body (i.e., hip hyperextension), and inadequate
flexibility will tend to limit the height the leg can
be raised and necessitate the undesired technique
errors of excessive and premature lumbar hyperex-
tension, anterior pelvic tilting, or “opening the hip”
(i.e., pelvic rotation) in an effort to achieve desired
height of the back leg. For example, a dancer with
tight hip flexors that allow only 5° of hip hyperexten-
sion will not even be able to perform a tendu to the
back or walk (requires 10° of hip hyperextension)
without tilting the pelvis forward or arching the low
back. In contrast, a dancer with 30° of hip hyperex-
tension would be able to raise the leg a third of the
way to horizontal without an anterior pelvic tilt or
compensatory hyperextension of the spine.
Given this association with hip hyperextension, it
is not surprising that in a study of non-dancers, low
mobility in hip extension showed the highest corre-
lation with low back pain (Mellin, 1988). Hence, it
is important that hip flexor range be evaluated (see
Tests and Measurements 4.5, p. 212) and that daily
stretching be made a priority in dancers who are
limited by this constraint. However, angles beyond
about 20° of hyperextension are often limited by
extensibility of the joint capsule and ligaments as well
as the hip flexors. Hence, stretches should be done
carefully, with the body adequately warmed up and
with a slow application of a low to moderate stretch
in a pain-free range.