The training of elite dancers has not changed in the last 60 years; it is often only those that have survived the training that go on to have a career, not necessarily the most talented. It is time to challenge and change how we train tomorrow's professional dancers. This book brings you the reasons why and all tools to implement change. 10 years ago, Matthew Wyon and Gaby Allard introduced a new pedagogical approach to training vocational dancers: Periodization. This ground-breaking new methodology provides an adaptable framework to optimise training - it's goal-focused, fits to performance schedules, and is highly sustainable for the dancer. It is the future. For the first time, Wyon and Allard have put their discoveries to paper. Periodization provides clear context to why change is needed, and explores the theoretical underpinnings of this new approach and how it can be effectively applied to a dance environment.

Strength and Conditioning for Dancers is an accessible guide to how to design and incorporate supplemental fitness training into a dancer's schedule. It links current evidence on the relationship between physical fitness, dance performance and injury incidence, breaking it down into clear and convenient sections, starting with the fundamentals of muscle physiology and training principles and moving on to specific training components. Key topics covered in the book include: self-screening; programme design; specific exercises for the core, upper and lower body; basic Pilates; nutritional support for training and finally, programmes to get you started. Featuring practical training programmes to get you started, this user-friendly book will be of great value to dancers, teachers and trainers looking to enhance both fitness and performance.

The training of elite dancers has not changed in the last 60 years; it is often only those that have survived the training that go on to have a career, not necessarily the most talented. It is time to challenge and change how we train tomorrow's professional dancers. This book brings you the reasons why and all tools to implement change. 10 years ago, Matthew Wyon and Gaby Allard introduced a new pedagogical approach to training vocational dancers: Periodization. This ground-breaking new methodology provides an adaptable framework to optimise training - it's goal-focused, fits to performance schedules, and is highly sustainable for the dancer. It is the future. For the first time, Wyon and Allard have put their discoveries to paper. Periodization provides clear context to why change is needed, and explores the theoretical underpinnings of this new approach and how it can be effectively applied to a dance environment.

Dance is an art form that places great stress on the performer.s body. The main emphasis of the dancer's training is on skill acquisition which has resulted in dancers having poor physical conditioning and prone to chronic injury. The purpose of this book was to examine contemporary dance from an applied sport science perspective through a series of connected studies. The initial study examined the dancers perceptions of the physical demands of contemporary dance; this was followed an observational study that investigated the cardiorespiratory demands of dance class, rehearsal and performance. The next two studies examined the heart rate - oxygen consumption relationships during incremental treadmill work and dance exercise, and the development of a field-based aerobic fitness test. The final study, utilising the developed fitness test, monitored changes in aerobic fitness of two dance companies during a class and performance period that reflected on the observed results from the second study.