How to get a dancer's body

eviegreen

Hey guys! I know a few of you use workout videos in your daily exercise. I wanted to suggest one more because I haven't seen much mention of it here on the forums! Ballet Body by Leah Sarago.

I see a lot of praise for Jillian Michaels, and I have had fantastic success in building my muscles with her DVDs. But Leah's videos for elongating muscles I've built during Jillian's workouts to create an overall leaner "dancer" shape. So if you're looking to add something new to your workout, definitely give Leah's videos a try! They are challenging, but SO so worth it!

Iron_Feline

You cannot elongate the muscle - it is a fixed length. You can only build it or lose it.

Capt_Apollo

muscles exist between two fixed points. you cannot lengthen them.

eviegreen

You cannot elongate the muscle - it is a fixed length. You can only build it or lose it.

Oh, for god's sake. By "elongate," I just meant an overall leaner look, like a ballerina. Let's not get into a semantic discussion. I'm just making a suggestion.

Vailara

I used to dance, and it did not give me a dancer's body, unfortunately. I developed bigger, muscular, stocky legs - more like a rugby player's than a dancer's. I think a lot of it is probably to do with your body type.

I'd be interested in the DVD though. I like the New York City ballet workout DVDs.

_SABOTEUR_

Unless you ar Elastigirl you can't elongate your muscles. They are pretty tightly fixed to your tendon and bone. You can make them bigger or smaller. That is all.

ETA: I am sure the video is very enjoyable though.

Capt_Apollo

You cannot elongate the muscle - it is a fixed length. You can only build it or lose it.

Oh, for god's sake. By "elongate," I just meant an overall leaner look, like a ballerina. Let's not get into a semantic discussion. I'm just making a suggestion.

and overall leaner look is done by reducing body fat, which is achieved through a combination of a calorie deficit and proper nutrition, strength training, cardio, and rest.

eviegreen

You cannot elongate the muscle - it is a fixed length. You can only build it or lose it.

Oh, for god's sake. By "elongate," I just meant an overall leaner look, like a ballerina. Let's not get into a semantic discussion. I'm just making a suggestion.

and overall leaner look is done by reducing body fat, which is achieved through a combination of a calorie deficit and proper nutrition, strength training, cardio, and rest.

Yes. I'm not exactly sure why you're putting your statement in the form of an argument, since I never said anything to negate it...

traceyfunk

How many of you nay-sayers can actually bend over and touch your toes?? Try it and maybe you'll see why you need to "elongate" your muscles!

Thank you, eviegreen for your suggestion.

Iron_Feline

How many of you nay-sayers can actually bend over and touch your toes?? Try it and maybe you'll see why you need to "elongate" your muscles!

Thank you, OP for your suggestion.

I can. That is stretching the muscle - not elongating it.

Once you stop stretching it it goes back to the same length.


Elongate - Definition
› to become or make something become longer, and often thinner:

sexymuffintop

I had a feeling this thread would go down this route. OP's post getting corrected for containing myth material. OP getting grumpy about getting corrected. Meh.....It happens, don't take it personally. It's a good thing, we read, we learn, we improve.

tialynn1

Thanks for the suggestion for the video. I have been looking for videos to help with flexibility.

dotknott

How many of you nay-sayers can actually bend over and touch your toes?? Try it and maybe you'll see why you need to "elongate" your muscles!

Thank you, eviegreen for your suggestion.

Really now?

karenertl

Yes, thank you for the suggestion. Everybody who has said or plans to say something negative needs to remember that they aren't being forced to do anything they don't want to. I might have to take a look around for Leah's DVDs. I could use a good workout DVD to help me lose my stubborn fat.

Relax, everybody!

almc170

How many of you nay-sayers can actually bend over and touch your toes?? Try it and maybe you'll see why you need to "elongate" your muscles!

Thank you, eviegreen for your suggestion.

Oh, FFS that's flexibility, not elongating your muscles. And yes, I can touch my toes. I also have long legs, hence long muscles. The former is the result of yoga. The latter, genetics.

Iron_Feline

Thanks for the suggestion for the video. I have been looking for videos to help with flexibility.

Yes - The DVD will help with flexibility - which is not a bad thing at all. But giving it mystical powers is just wrong.

carissar7

How many of you nay-sayers can actually bend over and touch your toes?? Try it and maybe you'll see why you need to "elongate" your muscles!

Thank you, eviegreen for your suggestion.

I understand where you're coming from, but being flexible will not make your muscles look any different. I can bend over and touch my toes and then some and also do contortion training but my muscles will still look the same. Definitely not trying to argue with you here but just saying.

sexymuffintop

Yes, thank you for the suggestion. Everybody who has said or plans to say something negative needs to remember that they aren't being forced to do anything they don't want to. I might have to take a look around for Leah's DVDs. I could use a good workout DVD to help me lose my stubborn fat.

Relax, everybody!

Theres no negativity, it's just correcting bad information. I'd rather have a bit of snark then false information.

Woomytron

I don't care about getting a "dancer's body" but I do like trying new things. Can you find these videos on youtube?

eviegreen

Yes, thank you for the suggestion. Everybody who has said or plans to say something negative needs to remember that they aren't being forced to do anything they don't want to. I might have to take a look around for Leah's DVDs. I could use a good workout DVD to help me lose my stubborn fat.

Relax, everybody!

Theres no negativity, it's just correcting bad information. I'd rather have a bit of snark then false information.

I didn't intend to provide false information. I just wasn't thinking about my wording when I posted. I was rewording, in a rather poor way, what Leah gives on her own site: "Ballet Body workouts creatively integrate traditional body-weight resistance exercises with muscle elongating techniques to achieve maximal lengthening in the muscle fibers."

Anyway. Early in the morning, haven't had coffee yet, etcetera. Everyone just calm down now...

stealthq

Oh for Pete's sake. 'Elongating muscle' has been a phrase used for at least 20 years. It doesn't mean literally making the muscle longer. It means making the muscle appear to be longer. Instead of going for a compact-looking, tennis ball lump of a bicep, you go for a smoother, more rubber-band-like bicep. Not a myth if understood properly.

eviegreen

I don't care about getting a "dancer's body" but I do like trying new things. Can you find these videos on youtube?

You can preview the videos on Youtube, but you'd have to buy the full DVDs. Previews here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVeMyfixW68
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw_rkSeRPyw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hiYUXWUMyg

deanna418

Yoga Booty Ballet is also a great workout. I have the DVD's and I need to break them out again!

Alatariel75

I already have the body of a dancer. I keep it in the freezer.

ImpossibleGrl

How many of you nay-sayers can actually bend over and touch your toes?? Try it and maybe you'll see why you need to "elongate" your muscles!

Thank you, eviegreen for your suggestion.

almc170

Oh for Pete's sake. 'Elongating muscle' has been a phrase used for at least 20 years. It doesn't mean literally making the muscle longer. It means making the muscle appear to be longer. Instead of going for a compact-looking, tennis ball lump of a bicep, you go for a smoother, more rubber-band-like bicep. Not a myth if understood properly.

Ah, the old appeal to women's fear of "looking bulky" if they lift weights. Marketing bs is marketing bs.

sexymuffintop

I already have the body of a dancer. I keep it in the freezer.

Go for a rugby player instead, more meat on them.

etoiles_argentees

Ohh... chronic exercise of the ordinary variety leads to an increase in the diameters of slow-twitch fibers. If the connectivity of the motor neurons is reversed so that a red slow-twitch fiber is energized by a fast neuron or vice versa, then the slow-twitch fiber slowly becomes fast or the white fast-twitch fiber slowly becomes slow. This implies that if the higher levels of consciousness which control muscle action dictate a new role for a muscle, it's responsiveness, chemistry, and morphology all will change in sympathy with the new demands made upon it by the altered neural signal activating it. In this way, a yoga or ballet practice can change the muscular form and responses of the body.

Capt_Apollo

You cannot elongate the muscle - it is a fixed length. You can only build it or lose it.

Oh, for god's sake. By "elongate," I just meant an overall leaner look, like a ballerina. Let's not get into a semantic discussion. I'm just making a suggestion.

and overall leaner look is done by reducing body fat, which is achieved through a combination of a calorie deficit and proper nutrition, strength training, cardio, and rest.

Yes. I'm not exactly sure why you're putting your statement in the form of an argument, since I never said anything to negate it...

i'm not arguing.

i'm right.

Capt_Apollo

How many of you nay-sayers can actually bend over and touch your toes?? Try it and maybe you'll see why you need to "elongate" your muscles!

Thank you, eviegreen for your suggestion.

part of my post work out stretching routine includes stretching down to touch my toes. i also do this thing where i lay on my back, and my legs go all the way over my head, and my toes touch the floor

jonnythan

You cannot elongate the muscle - it is a fixed length. You can only build it or lose it.

Oh, for god's sake. By "elongate," I just meant an overall leaner look, like a ballerina. Let's not get into a semantic discussion. I'm just making a suggestion.

You can't make a muscle look lean or not lean. The muscle is just the muscle. How lean you look is a function of how much fat you have on top of the muscle.

The appearance of, say, a thigh is a function of the size of the muscle and the amount of fat on top of it. Those are the only two variables you can control in terms of appearance: muscle size and fat.