Training Demands and Physiological Profile of Cross-Disciplined Collegiate Female Dancers

Sanders, DJ, Walker, AJ, Prior, KE, Poyssick, AN, and Arent, SM. Training demands and physiological profile of cross-disciplined collegiate female dancers. J Strength Cond Res 35(8): 2316–2320, 2021—Little is known about the physical demands of high-level dance training. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the physiological demands of a typical ballet and modern class through training load (TL) and to assess differences in TL between the 2 class types. In addition, a physiological profile of cross-disciplined collegiate female dancers was determined. Seventeen college-aged female dancers were recruited and performed a battery of performance tests assessing body fat (%BF), lean body mass, vertical jump (VJ), peak power, maximal oxygen consumption (V̇o2max), and ventilatory threshold (VT). Two ballet and modern dance classes were monitored for TL and exercise energy expenditure (EEE) using the Polar Team2 Pro System. Performance testing results were as follows: M%BF = 24.1 ± 4.2%, MLBM = 46.8 ± 8.5 kg, MV̇o2max = 42.9 ± 4.3 ml·kg−1·min−1, MVT = 76.2 ± 6.5% of V̇o2max, MVJ = 44.1 ± 1.4 cm, and MPP = 519.1 ± 177.5 W. Training load of 41.0 ± 17.0 for ballet and 44.8 ± 27.4 for modern dance was found, with an EEE of 394.0 ± 111.9 and 421.9 ± 161.4 kcal, respectively. Time spent at or above VT was 1.2 ± 2.6 minutes in ballet and 3.4 ± 8.3 minutes in modern. Compared with other female power-endurance athletes, the dancers accumulated a muc...
Source: Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research - Category: Sports Medicine Tags: Original Research Source Type: research