Dancer bodies?

Compare the two:

Zuzanna (not a dancer), who has shorter, "chunkier" muscles, especially in her arms









Then compare her body with the Cambridge ballerinas, who have a different kind of athletic look:







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

Ballerinas don't train their arms.:laugh:

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Strength training is going to bulk you up, your going to have a toned look and a very visble defined look. When your a dancer you do not want a defined look, you want a smooth gentle look the way a dancer trains her body is by stretching, constricting, balance, and core. Your movements are very controlled and concentration is very important. When your weight training your focused on the muscles your building at the time not every single one at once. If your looking for a true understanding i suggest looking into a dancers workout they have one they have been advertising.

If you want a toned, hard, defined look strength train with bouts of cardio.

If you want a smooth gentle look core, cardio, and balance are key.

pretty much nonsense here

This.

sigh @ sigh!

We've been here before - but:

My belief (no evidence here) is that if you stretch a muscle while it is under tension - for example doing a quadricep stretch while pushing the foot back into your hand - you place the tension, the intensity of the contraction, across the entire length of the muscle rather than it being concentrated in the middle (the belly) of the muscle. This increases muscle mass across the entire length of the muscle rather than the middle of the muscle.

Hence, stretching while contracting (as in dance work, yoga, etc) will give a longer muscle appearance and contracting without stretching (as in weightlifting generally) will give a bulkier more rounded muscle.

A second theory, which negates the above is that it is all down to genetics and people are generally attracted to what their bodies do more naturally because it is this that we gain the most satisfaction from and that is why the two groups look different.

Watch this get shot down. I love MFP!

Not totally agreeing with the genetics answers. Not all ballerinas have been genetically crafted and formed and destined by fate to have these longer arms. It's to do with the amount of muscle both Zuzanna and the ballerinas have. Before I worked out I had loooooong, thin arms, very much like the below pictures, but since I've gained some muscle, my arms appear much more 'compact'? and a little shorter I guess. I bet if you were to see Zuzanna without the muscle on her arms, they would appear much longer.

I'll just drop this off here, this is a good friend of mine who is a professional dancer:




Edited to add: This is obviously a move that requires strength and power to pull off, as evidenced by her musculature. I think the idea that dancers have to have some "willowy" form is an insult to the strength they build from their hard work. It's not all barre exercises and gentle flowing moves. My youngest sister is also a dancer, has been for 20 years, and I have several friends that do the same thing.

This is exactly what I wanted to say in one amazing picture! If you meet dancers or go to the ballet you will see that they are incredibly athletic and when moving you can see their muscles in action. It's also interesting on the photos posted on the first page of the thread that while the ballerinas may have less obviously muscular arms they have equally muscular legs.

Bottom line is I'd kill for the fitness levels of all the dancers and heavy lifters posted in this thread!

Dancers train their lower bodies much more than their arms (although her back will be pretty muscular.) If you could compare their legs they'll be pretty similar in muscle mass.

Also, ballerina's don't bulk. The power of their movement comes from strength enhanced by lightness, which makes the moves easier to perform.

The other woman has probably bulked at some point to get bigger muscles.

THIS THIS THIS!!!!!

I really like the pictures of the dancers.. I am a dancer, I always get inspired by other dancers.. Thanks for the post.. I do not have your answer, but maybe someone has already given you one.

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 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.

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.

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

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.

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