Technique Tuesday - How to Safely Work on Turnout

As dancers, we all want that beautiful turnout. Many techniques however are not safe for our bodies and can put stress on your knees and hips. Below are some safe and effective ways to increase your turnout without injury.

1. Supine Butterfly
Supine is another term for laying on your back. So to start this exercise, begin by laying on your back with your feet and knees together. Keeping your feet together, slowly allow your knees to fall away from each other to the sides. Once they will not go any further, hold this position for one to two minutes, beathing slowly. Next slowly use your hands to push your knees towards the floor even further. This will move you past your current turnout ability, and will be slightly uncomfortable. After holding for one to two minutes, release your knees back to their original natural turnout.

​2. Center Split
​Begin by sitting upright, with legs stretched out to either side. Push your legs out until you have reached your maximum stretch, making sure knees stay upward towards the ceiling and not rolling foward. Once you're here, slowly walk your hands forward until your yorso touches the ground. If you cannot reach the floor, hold thr position where you feel the most lengthening. In this position slowly shift all of your weight forward until your legs have rotated from knees pointing upright to pointing forward. Support any extra weight on your torso or arms and gently push into a deeper center split. Hold for one to three minutes.

​3.Band Rond de Jombe
​Start standing in second position with a band around both legs slightly below the knees. Rond de jombe right 10 to 12 times and then left. Make sure the band is never around the knee, only below or above.

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