10 Ballet Foot Exercises: Warm-up, Boost Your Technique and Foot Strength
Foot exercises are an essential part of a ballet dancer’s training as they provide important strength and technique benefits. Developing strong and flexible feet is a big part of the groundwork you lay as a dancer. Given the exceptionally demanding nature of ballet, appropriate foot exercises help prevent injuries, maintain correct technique, and contribute to achieving the desired aesthetic lines on stage.
After all, dancers’ feet are so central to everyday life as well as to our art that we want to keep them in great shape. In a previous article, we covered some of the injuries that affect ballet dancers’ feet and legs including sprains, strains, and stress fractures. In this article, we’ll cover warm-ups and exercises that you may wish to consider adding to your routine. Remember, if you are experiencing pain, make sure to seek medical advice and let your teacher know – it’s always better to catch potential problems early.
Warm-Up Ballet Foot Exercises
Most dance classes will start by warming up your feet (and the rest of your body). It’s a great way to help prevent injuries. Repeating these exercises as part of a “cool down” at the end of dance class/training can also be very beneficial.
Ankle Circles
Let’s start with a simple warm-up for the ankles. Either sitting or standing, move your ankles in a circular fashion, one ankle at a time, clockwise for 5-10 circles, then change direction to counter-clockwise. Repeat on the other side.
Tennis Ball Circles
Take a tennis ball and roll it under your toes and the balls of your feet in circles as demonstrated in this video:
You can also use products such as foot rollers in a similar way and some dancers report that they have given them relief from various foot conditions. If you need a foot roller, take a look at this one.
Toe Points and Foot Flexes
This classic exercise really helps warm up and stretch the muscles in your feet, right to the ends of your toes. This can be done either sitting down or standing up.
First, press your toes toward the floor, pointing your feet, and hold the position for 5-10 seconds.
Then switch to flexing your entire foot up toward your body and hold this position for another 5-10 seconds.
Foot Rolls
Next, warm up your arches by lifting your heels off the ground and rolling onto the balls of your feet, one foot at a time, and holding it for 2-3 seconds, as shown in this video. Complete around 5 sets of these.
Strength Training Exercises for Ballet Feet
Now that your feet are warmed up, we move on to ballet foot exercises to strengthen the muscles around the feet and ankles, assisting with both stability and flexibility.
Towel Scrunches
Towel scrunches
Try this standing up. Use your toes to grip and pull the towel closer to you, “scrunching” it up each time and repeating until the towel is pulled all the way toward you. A variation of this is picking up and moving a small ball or similar object with your toes.
Alternatively, in this video, professional ballerina Nikki White shows us the 5 steps to towel scrunches in a sitting position, as well as “reverse towels scrunches” and the “grab and pull”. Ignore the cover image – the video should play fine.
The Ball exercise:
This is a popular strengthening exercise and goes beyond foot strength, helping to develop calf strength and flexibility. First place a ball (or a similar round object) between your ankles. Use controlled sets of lifting and lowering the heels.
TheraBand Resistance
TheraBand exercises are a form of resistance training for the foot, with the bands available in different levels of resistance. With the Theraband wrapped around the foot, there is a wide selection of movements and exercises available. This video shows a great one to start with:
Don’t yet have a theraband? No problem! Check out here.
Domed Foot Presses
Domed foot presses are a great way to activate and strengthen the muscles of the foot. The exercise can be performed effectively by following the steps below:
Place the foot flat on a solid surface. Lift the arch of the foot as high off the floor as possible without bending the toes.
Maintaining healthy feet as a ballet dancer
Nobody wants an injury, so look after your feet – and the rest of your body. We’ve covered a lot in this guide. Here are a few recaps and wider considerations:
1. Warm Up and Stretch
Never skip warming up your feet as part of your overall warm-up program. We’ve covered a few suitable exercises today including ankle circles, tennis ball circles, toe points and flexes and foot rolls. Equally, remember to perform a “cool down” at the end of your class or training.
2. Strengthen Foot and Ankle Muscles
We’ve looked at a variety of ways to help build strength including towel scrunches, domed foot presses, the ball exercise and TheraBand resistance training.
3. Proper technique
A common thread through all these tried and tested techniques featured above (and in dancing generally) is using the right technique. Performing exercises with poor form can have serious consequences, so really pay attention to following the techniques and alignments demonstrated in the videos.
4. Suitable Footwear
In our guide to the best pointe shoes, we cover some important considerations such as getting the right fit and level of support depending on your specific foot type and ballet experience. Wearing comfy, supportive shoes (i.e. not high heels) outside of dance class, like trainers or Birkenstocks, is a rule many dancers live by.
5. Gradual Progression
As with any sport, but especially one as physically demanding as ballet, avoid injury by building gradually up to more strength, flexibility and advanced movements. Going too hard, too fast, is counter-productive and likely to cause injury.
6. Listen to Your Body
Your intuition about those early warning signs your body gives you is important. Listen to this and get help when you’re unsure. Early intervention can prevent more severe injuries from developing.
7. Get expert help
If you experience any pain or discomfort during or after dancing or exercising, tell your family, dance teacher, doctor, or professional specialising in dance injury. They’re there to help and want the best for you.
That’s it. We hope you’ve found these ballet foot exercises and techniques useful. We wish you happy, healthy dancing!
Other related articles about Ballet:
Disclaimer: We hope you find his guide helpful but please remember that all information, guidance, or advice provided on this site is for informational and educational purposes only and used at your own risk.
Coaching of each move in dance class is often the best way to learn. Improper execution of exercises can cause health problems. Consult your healthcare provider if you are having problems with your feet or are looking to make changes to your exercise regime.
Ballerina Feet: Ballet & Foot Health
Cover photo by Astrid Schaffner on Unsplash.
This article was originally written by our editor Emma, checked and contributed to by Almiria Wilhelm.
- About the Author
- Latest Posts
Almiria Wilhelm is a ballet teacher with twenty years’ experience training dancers of all ages to become professional. She started dancing at the age of five and in addition to ballet, she also trained in flamenco, Argentine tango, ballroom, latin, salsa and more styles. Almiria speaks several languages and also works as a translator (because it’s tough to pay the bills with dance). She has lived on 3 different continents and visited upwards of 30 countries.