Diet vs. Dance

Diet vs. Dance

Most of you have probably heard the stereotype that dancers don't eat or dancers starve themselves to be able to look the way they do, which I am here to inform you is not true. Yes, there are some dancers, much like other people in the world, who do feel the need to starve themselves or restrict there food intake based on calorie counts or fat content. However, to make this stereotype about all dancers is by no means true. 

I personally have been a part of the dance world for 10 years now I can honestly say I have seen it all from the super skinny to the bigger girls, but majority are just average. Dancers understand, probably more than the rest of the world, the basics of nutrition, such as you need to eat fruit and vegetables, avoid overly fattening foods, and exercise regularly. Dance is a highly demanding sport that can bring with it a lot of stress to not only "dance the part" but "look the part". This is where a lot of the eating disorders unfortunately begin, especially when looking into high end ballet performing arts schools where that image is almost a requirement of the position. 

  People sometimes don't realize how much exercise we actually get from dancing each week. For example, my schedule generally consisted of classes Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights from about 5pm till 10pm (depending on the night). Fridays were solo and duo/trio practices lasting a minimum of 2 hours, then our competitive groups would get together on Saturdays from about 11am till 5pm and then again on Sundays from 9am till 11:30am. That's roughly 26 hours we spend working our bodies in just one week!

In turn, since we realize how much we are burning off, we see it as okay to treat ourselves to chips, pop and candy when we want to. We know we will burn it off the next time we have class, not having to worry about time in a gym to burn it off. There needs to be a healthy balance between indulging and watching what you eat - cutting either one completely out of your diet isn't good for you.

  We all have secret food pleasures, what do you indulge in? How do you balance the eating junk with staying fit? Maybe going to the gym? Or maybe you have a weekly fitness class you attend? Whatever it may be, I don't think that we should stop enjoying the things we love in life just because we are so preoccupied with a number on a scale. We only live once so why not enjoy it - right? 




(Picture by Caitlyn Tink)