You can develop aches just by doing something seemingly innocuous, such as climbing stairs, lying down the wrong way, or being too sedentary; what more with performing unnatural movements, stretches, and choreography steps? Regular massages can help dancers move better and stay injury-free.
Dancers: Divided in Style, United in Pain
Body aches are something that all dancers share, no matter what their discipline is. There are so many dance styles, and they all present their own set of hazards. Even the mildest waltz can elicit pains. Ballroom dancing may make you feel genteel, but it’s virtually a spectator sport. You can bet that the ballroom dance floor has constantly witnessed some incredible acrobatic stunts – not to mention wipe-outs.
Of course, you also have classical ballet and jazz, which require the ability to do the most difficult bodily contortions and make them look graceful. Training can be so brutal that you can expect those satin slippers to have blood on them.
You can’t leave out the contemporary styles, especially hip-hop, street, and break dance. B-boying, in particular, calls for crazy ninja moves. The dancers make everything look effortless and fluid, but you can bet that they’re icing various body parts the day after.
No matter their style, however, the dancers are united in their pain, particularly in muscle cramps.
Cramping and other common dance pains
Cramping can strike dancers anytime. It can happen while their body is completely relaxed in slumber or right during a performance. It’s one of the most common aches that dancers suffer, preventing them from doing their best. Many have learned to live with the pain and have devised their ways of dealing with it. As it happens, massage for dancers is a widespread recourse for addressing cramps.
At times, however, dancing injuries are more serious than usual and must be treated so that the body can regain normal movement. Besides the usual muscle cramps, dancer pain often stems from muscle strain, shin splints, plantar fasciitis, or stress fracture. Massage therapy is usually the preferred healing option.
Massage for a dancer – A must in a dancer’s routine
It’s logical to get a massage after the onset of pain, but dancers should realise that it should be part of their routine, even before they strain their muscles. Massage for dancer therapy is a wonder at optimising the body’s movement and capabilities. It primes the dancers for performance, allowing their bodies to go beyond the usual limitations and decreasing their susceptibility to injury.
Massage improves flexibility, stability, and balance by resetting the Master Points. This refers to the Emmett Technique, which is about the sequence of muscle activation points tapped to unlock muscle memory, enabling the brain to re-evaluate the cause of the neuromuscular problem. This combination of light pressure and language reprograms the mind and instils a more accepting attitude.
The massage involved in this treatment differs from the standard acupressure used by most therapists. Pressure application is not meant to be painful. It’s all about the right amount of pressure applied in the right direction for the proper time. Not many practitioners are trained and certified to carry out this revolutionary technique. Still, London dancers who want to experience this kind of massage therapy can go to Ben Pianese of Massaggi.
Dance injury prevention and specialist massage for dancers
Pianese has specialist experience treating dancers. With all their twisting and bending, their lower backs are sure to take a hit, so they usually seek massage therapy and go to Ben Pianese of Massaggi. Thanks to Pianese’s expert massage skills and knowledge, they are delivered from agony. Indeed, many dancers and dance teachers have raved about their Massaggi sessions, resulting in pain relief and improved mobility.
Pianese has also earned praise from Yitzhak “Isaac” Sinwani, a spiritual singer who performed with Madonna on her Confessions Tour and pronounced him the most proficient therapist for tissue massage.
He also inspires the diva’s song, “Isaac.” Pianese helped Sinwani resolve the latter’s neck and shoulder blade spasms — something that members of Madonna’s dance troupe took a special interest in, considering their aches and pains. Dancing, after all, is a highly physical occupation. Retirement comes early for many. To enjoy a long and fulfilling career, dancers need to make sure that they keep their bodies strong and in prime dancing condition; massage can help them achieve this.
Sports massage for dancers – is dancing a sport?
Sports massage for dancers and therapy protocols for treating athletes. This could be done pre-event, post-event, during recovery and rehabilitation, or during maintenance for any of the following intents: to warm up, increase blood flow, improve flexibility, increase strength, recover from exertion, stimulate neurological pathways, etc. Non-athletes may also take advantage of sports massage, but dancers would still be eligible even if it were exclusive to athletes.
Many consider dancing a sport. Dance competitions could be as physically gruelling as any sports match. And not to put down chess, but if it could be viewed as a sport with players just sitting there, pensively eyeing the board, the more competitive dancing should be. After all, dancers are more likely to incur the same injuries as football or basketball players. That’s not to say that grandmasters can’t get hurt playing chess. As mentioned before, people can sustain injury by doing virtually nothing.
Nonetheless, back pain is a common pain among athletes, both physical and mental. It is undoubtedly a frequent complaint among dancers and is hard to eliminate. Those who have not responded well to physiotherapy and osteopathy are excited to turn to an effective new treatment for back pain.
Sports massage (ESM) for injured dancers
During sports massage treatment at Massaggi, we use a precise technique that follows the philosophy of resetting specific points of recognition to balance the feet and improve the body’s general stability as quickly as possible. Dancers majorly benefit from this therapy approach, which increases flexibility, strength, speed, coordination, and endurance.
Dancers often deal with ankle and foot injuries, muscle pain, and joint stiffness. Our massage treatment for dance helps resolve these issues by resetting the body to address joints, ligaments, tendons, Master Points, muscle tensional system, and myofascial meridians. Clients are more than satisfied with the excellent, performance-changing results.
Congruent with the Emmett Technique, our treatment involves a free flow of communication among the brain, spinal cord, and muscles. It is safe, noninvasive, and effective—a wondrous alternative to the usual painful massage treatments. With sports massages for dancers, injured dancers do not have to endure more pain to achieve muscular balance, tension, and pain relief.
Dancers lead a unique lifestyle involving passion, aptitude, talent, training, and discipline. To them, dancing is not only a way of life; it is life. For this reason, it is to their advantage that they get acquainted with a massage specialist who can help them enjoy a long and happy career.
