Dancer bodies?

Lib_B

It is impossible to make muscles longer. That is genetics, period. Professional ballerinas have to be talented, no doubt....but they are also usually born with certain bodies that give them the "dancer look." Hence the reason they can make it in the ballet world. I've seen amazing ballet dancers that are not famous and professionals simply because their body type doesn't fit the mold.

^^^ This. I have a friend who is a professional ballerina and the women in her company are all at least 5'10. You put that height requirement on women and they are going to have longer muscles - hence the longer, leaner look. it's genetic and a matter of what body composition/body type you were blessed with.

at my fittest in my mid-20's, i weight trained, but more as an after thought to my cardio. even with a focus on cardio, i appeared pretty cut at 130 lbs. when in shape, i have a naturally athletic build. i have really slim hips for a woman (though i've had two kids since then, weight loss will prove where we are with that these days!) anyway, when i dipped down to 116 on a 5'5 frame, i looked really sick. my sister, whose build is also on the shorter side, but is leaner like a dancer looks good at 116 and a lil' pudgy at 130. whereas i look super fit at even 140 - even though my target is 126.

it's all about what the good lord gave ya'.

BinaryPulsar

I went to the ballet this sunday.....some of them looked long and lean...some of them looked muscular...

there are some things to consider....

1. it's how the body is portrayed. If you are picking up a heavy thing, you're muscles are gonna bunch up. if you are stretching out in a arabesque, you're muscles are gonna stretch out....

2. it's genetics. And a lot of dancers that work for dance companys are chosen for their body. For example, a coveted body type for a dance company is 5'10" very lean, very compact...they want a look of uniformity and length and elongation.

That being said it's changing in the dance world (slowly) and if you googled dancers that are exclusively modern and NOT ballet dancers you would see more muscles in a lot of them.

3. Ballet dancers for the most part do not lift. Zuzanna works with weights I believe.

but the purest answer is genetics.... we can work those muscles any way we want, a large part of how they react to what we do is genetics.

^^what this lovely lady said

I agree here also!

I am a modern dancer. The range of body types is going to be wider, but all will be very fit and athletic for their body type. Most of the dancers I know do not lift weights. I do. The major difference I have seen has been in my upper body. I like it, a lot. But, I also feel comfortable where I am at now, and feel no need to push it further (this is my choice).

As a dancer, I have always had very strong thigh muscles, glute muscles, back muscle, and abs (all have been complimented by people I know, as well strangers, everywhere I go).

I don't understand how anyone can look at the photos of the ballerinas in the OP post and say they are anorexic and weak. A lot of people on here have offered a lot of good insight (it is not only one reason), but there has also been a lot of nonsense.

GiddyupTim

different genetics? They look to be different races too. Different training regimes the dancer's focuses on balance and flexibility well the others focuses on strength and agility. Comparing apples to oranges They are both beautiful and you can see the hard work and training they have put into their bodies.

I have to disagree with the part of this comment that suggests it is training. It is not the training so much as what the company and the director likes. They choose the dancers for the company. And they choose what they like to look at, because that is what professional dance is all about -- that is, getting an audience to want to look at your dancers.
You are looking at ballet and it is wrong to look at ballet as exemplary. Ballet is super rigid, and there is a particular body type prized in ballet.
Look at modern dance companies. You will see all kinds of different body types -- made by dance training. Or, look at all the perfectly good ballet dancers who don't get picked for these high profile companies.

BinaryPulsar

different genetics? They look to be different races too. Different training regimes the dancer's focuses on balance and flexibility well the others focuses on strength and agility. Comparing apples to oranges They are both beautiful and you can see the hard work and training they have put into their bodies.

I have to disagree with the part of this comment that suggests it is training. It is not the training so much as what the company and the director likes. They choose the dancers for the company. And they choose what they like to look at, because that is what professional dance is all about -- that is, getting an audience to want to look at your dancers.
You are looking at ballet and it is wrong to look at ballet as exemplary. Ballet is super rigid, and there is a particular body type prized in ballet.
Look at modern dance companies. You will see all kinds of different body types -- made by dance training. Or, look at all the perfectly good ballet dancers who don't get picked for these high profile companies.

I agree with the second comment.

BinaryPulsar

Another difference in modern dance is that modern dancers will support their body weight in their arms in inverted dance movement.

Dancers need to be strong and powerful, but light enough, to lift their own bodies in many many different ways.

Cp731

Dancing my whole life, thanks to my auntie who Owns a dance Co. In Pa

__Di__

Why do they have such a different look? Their muscles seem longer and more stretched out.

....because a person's body will adapt accordingly according to the dominant activity undertaken.

For instance running, a long distance runner will look totally different to a sprinter, yet both are doing running.

A dancer will have a totally different physique to a non-dancer.

Yogi_Carl

How do you have a 'belief' about something scientific with zero evidence? How does that even make sense?

Of course it'll get shot down. It's something you made up because it sounds nice.

Because I have experienced it and seen it in people I train with. Thank you for your positive criticism though; always helpful.

jonnythan

How do you have a 'belief' about something scientific with zero evidence? How does that even make sense?

Of course it'll get shot down. It's something you made up because it sounds nice.

Because I have experienced it and seen it in people I train with. Thank you for your positive criticism though; always helpful.

Have you spent a lot of time training with people who do yoga and people who lift weights? You've only been here half a year.

Yogi_Carl

Your right - I've only been HERE half a year.

skinnybunny_x

Ballet focuses on balance, energy, impulsion, and flexibility.

Not sure what the other gal does, but it looks like a lot of weight lifting!

Personally, I never liked women who were so overdone. Toned arms, flat stomach, and tight *kitten* is enough. No need to compete with the men.

If she's a professional athlete, then that's different and I have her props.

Lupercalia

You won't typically find ballet dancers with muscles like the first woman pictured because hers is not the body type the top ballet schools and professional companies are going for. When they audition for the schools and companies, they are definitely selecting based on a very certain body type, and part of what they're looking for, especially in women, but with respect to the guys too...is not being what you might call "bulky".

Dancers are not anorexic or weak bodied people, unless of course they are ill with an ED. Most are not, however. My son is surprisingly strong for his size/weight, and says the women he dances with are very strong as well. You have to consider that professional dancers have been working like dogs at ballet since they were little kids. The reason their bodies look as they do is partially genetic--they are selected for those bodies. But also (I suspect) due to the sheer volume of their very specific training.

Just for some perspective--my son started dancing when he was 8. By age 10 he was in a 1.5 hr class daily, 5 times per week. By age 13 he was at a residential school where he danced for around 6 hours a day and schooled in between dance and conditioning work. He danced for a few hours on Saturdays as well. That 6 days/6 + hrs thing has pretty much continued nonstop since then, and they dance all summer long as well, only resting for a few weeks here and there. Couple weeks at the end of summer, and a couple more at Christmas, providing you weren't being "used" in The Nutcracker. My son didn't even come home one year, he was too busy.

DavPul

Your right - I've only been HERE half a year.

HAPPY SIX MONTH BIRTHDAY!!!!








oh, wait, you weren't actually born 6 months ago? Life begins before MFP? who knew?

peachfigs

Why do they have such a different look? Their muscles seem longer and more stretched out.

....because a person's body will adapt accordingly according to the dominant activity undertaken.

For instance running, a long distance runner will look totally different to a sprinter, yet both are doing running.

A dancer will have a totally different physique to a non-dancer.

Thanks. I already know that, I'm interested in the different exercises or the way different muscle groups are worked to achieve the desired results (genetics aside), but it has been covered already now.

Yogi_Carl

Your right - I've only been HERE half a year.

HAPPY SIX MONTH BIRTHDAY!!!!

oh, wait, you weren't actually born 6 months ago? Life begins before MFP? who knew?

Excellent! Have you not heard my other theory - that Yoga as rejuvinating powers if you do it long enough? I really am six months old.

MuseofSpace

The other thing to mention is that (female) dancers don't train their arms all that much relative to their core or legs. So you're posting pictures of these women with very strong chests and arms and comparing them to ballerinas- they're two completely different things.

If you want an better comparison of strength training vs dancers, go look at the aerial dancers in Cirque du Soleil. A lot of the aerialists I know train primarily with body weight, but you'd have a difficult time telling them apart from someone like Zuzanna.

Comparing people like Zuzanna with aerialists would have definitely been a much better comparison. Ballet dancers usually don't need to train their arms, since it's core, leg strength, and endurance that's required. Aerialists train with their body weight and a lot of focus is on their arms. And genetics definitely do play a role, there are slimmer aerialists and there are aerialists that look closer to Zuzanna, it depends on their frames and how their body gains muscle. My coach is definitely strong, but her body doesn't look like Zuzanna's. However, it is more comparable to Zuzanna's body than a ballerina's body is, simply because ballerina's don't train strength as much as they train endurance and their core (They do have leg strength though. How else would they get their high leaps?)

peachfigs

Comparing people like Zuzanna with aerialists would have definitely been a much better comparison. Ballet dancers usually don't need to train their arms, since it's core, leg strength, and endurance that's required. Aerialists train with their body weight and a lot of focus is on their arms. And genetics definitely do play a role, there are slimmer aerialists and there are aerialists that look closer to Zuzanna, it depends on their frames and how their body gains muscle. My coach is definitely strong, but her body doesn't look like Zuzanna's. However, it is more comparable to Zuzanna's body than a ballerina's body is, simply because ballerina's don't train strength as much as they train endurance and their core (They do have leg strength though. How else would they get their high leaps?)

You're right. There Cambridge ballerina photos I posted aren't a brilliant example, but there are some fantastic ones on this pinboard: http://pinterest.com/garad/tap-shoes/

Like this:

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m0ovc7OceB1qedzdjo1_500.jpg

Note: The woman is nude in the photo, so I can't post it properly on here

Yogi_Carl

Do dancers, acrobats, yoga practitioners appear to have longer muscles simply because they do have developed muscles obviously but they also work on flexibility so they have a greater range of movement compared to many weightlifters who tend to have a shorter range of flexibility and so appear to have shorter muscles.

I know that is a general statement and there are weighlifters who do work on flexibility just as there are dancers who have a shorter range of suppleness.

- so it's perhaps not a case of muscle size but how far a muscle can be stretched - a stretched muscle appearing to be longer and leaner than a comparatively contracted one?

peachfigs

Do dancers, acrobats, yoga practitioners appear to have longer muscles simply because they do have developed muscles obviously but they also work on flexibility so they have a greater range of movement compared to many weightlifters who tend to have a shorter range of flexibility and so appear to have shorter muscles.

I know that is a general statement and there are weighlifters who do work on flexibility just as there are dancers who have a shorter range of suppleness.

- so it's perhaps not a case of muscle size but how far a muscle can be stretched - a stretched muscle appearing to be longer and leaner than a comparatively contracted one?

This is interesting...

Plus, I read about lifting lighter weights but doing more reps, which is supposed to give the appearance of "long", lean muscles (using the word "long" loosely here). I'm wondering if that, combined with yoga, might achieve something similar to the svelte dancer look? Without being a dancer, of course.

Misty Copeland is a really nice example of the body type I like:

__Di__

Why do they have such a different look? Their muscles seem longer and more stretched out.

....because a person's body will adapt accordingly according to the dominant activity undertaken.

For instance running, a long distance runner will look totally different to a sprinter, yet both are doing running.

A dancer will have a totally different physique to a non-dancer.

Thanks. I already know that, I'm interested in the different exercises or the way different muscle groups are worked to achieve the desired results (genetics aside), but it has been covered already now.

Ahh that's okay then, nothing really left to say.