How to Improve Your Pirouettes

Most people think that the key to gaining more rotations is to push harder and spin faster. But, there are many different elements that go into being able to do more rotations. In order to gain more rotations it is important to improve core and ankle strength, practice spotting, and have the correct alignment. Below are some exercises that will help you improve your pirouettes.

Strengthen your ankles and legs:

There are a few different exercises you can do in order to strengthen your ankles and legs. One of them is doingrelevés. A relevé is when a dancer goes from plié and pushes through their feet rising onto the ball of their foot. Doing relevés in repetition will help build muscle allowing the dancer to hold their passé longer resulting in multiple rotations. Another exercise dancers can do to strengthen their ankles and legs is a flex and point combination with a theraband. The dancer simply wraps the theraband around their foot and flexes and points their toes. 

Practice spotting:

Spotting is one of the most important elements during your pirouette. It helps you maintain the speed of your rotation and keeps you from getting dizzy. In order to spot you need to focus on one point and find that point over and over again each rotation. A good way to practice this is to stand in front of a mirror, spin in a circle and find yourself everytime you turn around. Each time you practice this rotation you want to hold your head to the front as long as possible then whip your head around to the front.

Incorporate core exercises into your daily routine:

Your core is another extremely important part of a pirouette. Incorporating core exercises into your daily routine will help you strengthen your abs. Some exercises you can do to build muscle are situps and plank. When doing situps, it is important to keep your arms behind your head, elbows out and chin towards the ceiling. Try to do 3 sets of 10 situpseveryday. The other exercise is plank. Plank is when you are in a pushup position on your elbow. Hold plank for 30 second increments to increase core strength.

Practice your alignment:

Something as simple as practicing the correct alignment of your pirouette can help you improve. Starting from the preparation, going through the proper position in passé and finally working on your landing. Making sure everything is in the proper place can really improve your pirouette. Again, stand in front of the mirror and practice going from your prep into your passé hold.

Incorporating these exercises and drill into your daily routine can help you improve your pirouette quickly. 

 The authors

Mandy was born and raised in Fullerton, California. She attended the University of Arizona where she graduated with a degree in Journalism and Communications. Mandy has been an instructor for UDA for the past 5 years. She has taught all across the United States in both the junior high and high school level.