P90X For Dancers

Everybody knows I'm a huge advocate of P90X. It's a very well rounded program and it can be an extremely beneficial tool for dancers who are looking to increase their fitness level. I modified the program to suit my needs as a dancer because I wasn't sure how my body was going to respond or what was included in the program.

I started P90X in August of last year after seeing the infomercial and hearing about it from friends. All of my dancer friends wanted to try the program, but we were all afraid of getting bulky and how that would affect flexibility. I was still under the impression that bulk would limit mobility since that is what every single dance teacher I've ever had told me. It isn't true. I decided to be the guinea pig of the group and I ordered the program and have had amazing results from it. I'm still just as flexible, if not even a little bit more, but I'm much stronger and that has helped me with my dancing.

I didn't do the pull ups since I was afraid that it would limit shoulder mobility. I'm still not sure if this would happen, but the next round I do I'm going to try them and see what happens. Other than that I kept the program exactly the same. I always tell my students to cross train with either yoga or Pilates, so Yoga X was perfect for me. It helps build stabilizer muscles and that definitely helps with barre work (if you're a ballet dancer). Pilates does the same thing, but, it was much more convenient with yoga built right into the program.

I also substituted X-Stretch with my own stretching regimen. It's a great DVD for the average person, but I was taking a nap the whole time, and I think most dancers would probably feel the same way.

The cardio workouts are great to obviously build stamina. As dancers, we only really need the stamina for short bursts at a time while either moving across the floor or during a performance. Nobody needs to see a huffing and puffing cygnet in "Swan Lake", so the cardio workouts make class, and life, a lot easier.


Let's face it, dancers are changing. Dance is changing. We're able to do more now than we ever have before because of advances in pointe shoes, or even technique in general. We have to be strong and not waif-like. Most professional dancers now are getting to be very bulky to keep up with the demands of the choreographers. Try out the program, and if you aren't jumping higher after doing Plyometrics, either you were some kind of Superman before, or you're doing something wrong, because I'm jumping even higher than some men that I know. I'm not getting winded at all (far from it). I'm stronger and more confident and that, in turn, makes my dancing that much better.