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How to Stand on Your Toes When You Are Dancing

Ballet dancers train for years to learn how to dance on their toes. The term for this is pointe work or en pointe and the dancers wear toe shoes or pointe shoes to help them dance on their toes. Pointe work is considered the zenith of learning ballet, since it takes considerable skill, strength, flexibility and balance to dance on toes to the music on the dance studio floor or the stage. Plan on a few years to master the art of dancing on your toes. Children under 12 should not dance on their toes since it can adversely affect their feet, legs and hips.

Things You'll Need

  • Pointe shoes or toe shoes
  • Teachers
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Instructions

    • 1

      Take ballet lessons. Private dance schools offer lessons for all ages and often have a number of classes for beginners. Dance students need to learn to execute the techniques, and it takes time for both the body and the brain to master and develop your body into one that will be capable of pointe work.

    • 2

      Practice the lessons in your free time once you know how to move correctly. One of the most significant reasons for learning from an expert is that he can tell you how to make the moves without injuring yourself. Falling happens when learning dance, but other injuries to the muscles by using improper posture or techniques also contribute to soft tissue injuries like torn muscles, tendons or ligaments.

    • 3

      Master the plie. This ballet step used in each of the five traditional positions in ballet involves placing both feet entirely on the ground, lining the knees directly over the toes and bending the knees to lower the body. Dancers use the upward motion when rising from a plie to thrust themselves onto their toes in a graceful movement. You can use a single or double-footed plie to lift yourself onto your toes.

    • 4

      Meet the requirements of the school you attend for students to progress to the point of learning en pointe techniques. Schools may require a physical evaluation of your foot type, making sure you have enough of an arch to do en pointe work. The teachers may also test your total body strength and flexibility, essential to being able to dance on your toes.

    • 5

      Obtain toe shoes once you get to the point of being ready to start practicing standing on your toes. The shoes make a difference in how long you can withstand dancing on your toes.

    • 6

      Listen and watch carefully to the lessons the teacher presents. Do not overdo it when you are just learning, as to avoid injuring yourself. Injuries can manifest themselves years after they happen when learning to dance on your toes, especially to feet, ankles, legs and hips.

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