Ballet & Weight

Ballet dancers are renowned for their poise, grace and skill. They make difficult steps appear effortless, like turns, jumps and leaps. Dancers, teachers, choreographers and company directors often place emphasis on maintaining low bodyweight. Female ballet dancers are expected to appear thin and lithe while male dancers are expected to appear lean, yet muscular and masculine. Both require maintaining a low body fat percentage, so most ballet dancers do not have curvaceous figures. According to Dr. William McArdle in the book "Essentials of Exercise Physiology," ballerinas have an average body fat between 8 and 15 percent. The American College of Sports Medicine places 7.1 to 11.7 percent body fat in the 90th percentile of fitness for 20- to 29-year-olds, and advises that a range of 10 to 22 percent body fat for men and 20 to 32 percent for women is accepted as healthy. Athletes average between 14 to 17 percent for men and 21 to 25 percent for women.

Technique

A typical ballet piece or class includes grand allegro and petite allegro, exercises composed of large and small jumps. Grand and petite allegro require speed and precision and can be quite strenuous. Excess body weight makes it difficult for the dancer to jump and can impair her ability to adequately perform the exercise. It also increases the impact of landing and may increase risk of injury. According to an article in "Arthritis Today," each extra pound places four times more stress on your knee joints. Adagio require the ballet dancer to lift her legs up into the air, as in slow lifts like développé and envelopé and fast lifts like grand battement. Heavy legs are harder to lift, resulting in a poor lift height, line and balance.

Partnering

Ballet involves partner work, typically the partnering of a female dancer with a male dancer. Male dancers are often required to lift the ballerina into the air while she performs challenging maneuvers. Excess weight can make lifts difficult to perform and increases risk of injury to both dancers. Overhead lifts are especially challenging and dangerous for the lifter.

Concerns

Disordered eating can lead to clinical conditions like anorexia and bulimia. Clinical eating disorders are prevalent among dancers, especially ballerinas, because they are subjected to pressure to be thin from a very young age. Your likelihood of having disordered eating or a clinical eating disorders may depend on your environment, however. A November 2005 study in "the International Journal of Eating Disorders" showed that ballet dancers at national ballet centers reported more incidences of dieting, disordered eating and purging than dancers at regional and local schools.

Weight Standard

Weight is not the most appropriate standard for ballet dancers to adhere to, as it may not reflect their true body composition. Weight does not recognize the difference between fat mass and lean body mass like muscle, bone and organs; two dancers can be the same weight while having different body fat percentages and one dancer may be considered overweight even though her body fat falls in the elite category. The ballet community should focus on body composition instead of weight and focus on constructive ways to attain a low but healthy percent body fat.