Power Up Your Petit Allégro With These Squat Exercises

September 25, 2016

This story originally appeared in the June/July 2016 issue of Pointe.

Though you may not think about it much, building strength in the muscles around the hips is a must for ballet dancers. Pacific Northwest Ballet’s physical therapist Boyd Bender even likes to think of the gluteus maximus, medius and minimus and the deep external rotators of the hips as integral core muscles. “They’re as important as the abs and posterior trunk muscles,” he says.

Why? Because they give dancers a strong support base for the torso and standing leg, so the working leg can move freely. And they’re key players in petit allégro, since these muscles help create propulsion for jumps and control the hips and the rest of the legs during landing. Bender recommends the following exercises, both takes on a basic squat, for boosting overall hip strength. If you’re not injured, they can be done every other day after warming up.

You’ll need:

  • A Thera-Band
  • A clear space against a wall

Thera-Band Squat

1. Tie a Thera-Band in a loop around your thighs and position it just above the knees. Stand with both legs in a parallel position, knees slightly wider than your shoulders.

2. Lower into a squat, sinking your weight into your heels as your arms reach forward. Return to standing. The goal, Bender says, is to use your left and right legs equally. Try to counteract the resistance of the Thera-Band, which is attempting to internally rotate and adduct the hips.

One-Legged Squat

1. Stand in parallel or with slight turnout, with your back toward the wall and one foot against it for balance. The raised shin should be parallel to the floor.

2. Keep a neutral spine as you lower into a one-legged squat. It’s okay to pitch forward slightly with your upper body. Bender says this alignment will challenge the gluteal muscles even more. Return to standing (keeping the back leg up on the wall) and repeat on the same leg. Do all reps on one leg before switching to the other.

Challenge yourself:
Once you’ve mastered this one-legged squat, Bender says you can move away from the wall to add more of a balance component. Practice the exercise in center with one leg raised behind you in the same bent parallel position.

Switch up your reps:
For a balance between strength and stability, Bender recommends the following rep patterns for both exercises. On Monday, do 3 sets of 10 squats at a moderate pace. On Wednesday, do 1 set of 10, pausing 5 seconds at the bottom of each squat. (Keep alternating the sequences each time you work out.) Remember: More squats build strength, whereas longer pauses focus on stability. “The holds also give time to ensure your technique is correct,” says Bender.

Photos by Emily Giacalone, modeled by Nicole Buggé