Boise Ballet active release techniques

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Ballet Fascial Self-Care, Studio-Care & Assessments

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Beauty in the form of motion
Below represents a "in the nut-shell" look at what I have learned over my last 8 years of clinical practice working with the connective tissue and high-performing nervous systems of you talented ballet dancers. I wanted to give you some simple yet effective free self-care strategies as well as studio-care that we offer our dancers at the studio.

I don't need to tell you the importance of consistent keeping connective tissue health at home in order to maintain the top-performing requirements to be a professional ballet dancer. Below I will share with you some basics to maintain and some detailed work I do in the studio in the event you wanted to advance the care of your connective tissue in relation to dance. Image of Ballet Shoes Above is Accredited to Isabel

"Working with Brandon proved to be integral in extending my time as a professional dancer. He helped me find the true sources of misalignment that contributed to limiting mobility and pain. In addition to excellent results from our sessions, Brandon also taught me how to improve my self-care regime outside his studio."

​Sarah Ellis Worden
(Ballet Dancer formally located in Boise)
​Click here for 100+ more testimonials

Anatomy of Psoas/Hip Flexor & Gluteal/Hip Muscles
(posterior & anterior views)

Just to give you some insider view on some of the individual tissue that is addressed at Body Epiphanies Massage & Nutrition.

Fascial Health General Suggestions

Fascial Tools:

  • Rumble Roller (as recommended by Tim Ferriss and many top-performers in the way of athletics)​
  • Mustard Packets for halting cramps (I recommend popping into Whole Foods and in the cafeteria area grab two or more of their mustard packs. This is one of the top pro tricks for any athlete to pop a packet of mustard and keep it in your mouth than swallow and within 1-2 minutes it tends to interfere with the cramping process. Don't forget to stay hydrated with coconut water or water mineralized with electrolytes to prevent this from happening. Here's a great article on this.)
  • Ballet Stretch Band (great tool to maintain fascial flexibility)
  • Lacrosse Ball (I carry one in my laptop bag and have multiple at home, use it with slow compression and shear throughout tissue that is restricted on your body while watching TV, etc.)
  • Crocodile Creek Solar System Playground Ball, Blue, 5" (it is wise to use softer tools such as these in particular situations, tissues and days)
  • Squatty Potty (pooping ergonomics make all the difference in the world, so don't judge ^o^.)
  • Vital Proteins Collagen​ (one of the best tools along with homemade bone broth to repair all connective tissue and joints)
  • Epsoak Epsom Salt (take a bath each day you dance, it'll take a significant load off of the delayed on-set muscle soreness and replenish some magnesium and sulfur reserves via transdermal delivery)
  • Foundation Core Training (hands down the best overall self-care system I have ever explored or seen clinically relevant)
  • Teeter Inversion Table (in certain instances e.g. knee ligament laxity, eye-pressure or high blood pressure, this may not be indicated)

Supplements for Inflammatory Cascades: (see personalized recommendations here) 

  • Phenocane (this substitute for Asprin helps with inflammatory pathways associated with wear & tear. It's best not to take right away after a workout, however the next day as you don't want to interrupt the inflammatory process of rebuilding tissue overnight.)
  • Thorne Research - Meriva SF (Soy Free) - Sustained Released Curcumin Phytosome (incredibly potent anti-inflammatory especially when used together with the organic spice turmeric, the spice you'd want to consume about 1/2 - 1 tsp a day)

Dancer/Fitness Fascia Books:

Some Assessment Tests Used In-Studio

These are some brief examples of assessment tools used at Body Epiphanies Massage & Nutrition to determine where to direct manual therapies for each specific individual. Not every session requires testing, however in difficult cases or for professional athletes it is important to assess and reassess to determine if therapies are appropriate for each individual client.

Ballet Specific Studio-Care Videos

Below you will see a series of videos of the kind of care I deliver to my clients. Because time is ever so short and I never liked the idea of reinventing the wheel, these videos are not of me, but of therapies and strategies that I use in the studio on a near-daily basis. 
This along with the remaining 5 studio-care videos will give you a simple series of protocols to help assess and address fascial-chain dysfunction, trigger points and hypertonicity that may be preventing you from performing at your top-peak level. I hope you enjoy these insights into therapies and strategies used in Boise at Body Epiphanies Massage & Nutrition.
This is often needed to decreases over-activity within the gastrocnemius and soleus of the lower leg. 
After some assessment with a overhead squat or positive thomas test it can be determined whether or not the need of psoas and illiacus bodywork. This is involved with low-back pain, SI-joint pain, anterior-chain dysfunction, etc.
Static Manual Release (Soft Tissue Mobilization) of the Flexor Hallucis Longus and Flexor Digitorum Longus (FHL & FDL). This is absolutely necessary to treat in nearly any and all ballet dancers due to the stress-load put on this particular muscle and surrounding tissue.
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Commonly used static release techniques for the anterior adductors that tend to get over-loaded in ballet dancers.
This, as with each one of these videos represent some of the more commonly address tissues, the clinical reasoning, assessment and treatments.

Ballet Specific Self-Care Videos

​To break it down, it involves inhibiting tonic (or tight) musculature via self-myofascial release (foam rolling), inhibiting further through selective dynamic warm-ups, along with stabilization drills for the anterior and posterior portions of the hip. Afterwards, a specific low load, long duration stretch is recommended in order to facilitate actual length if adductor length is determined to be short.
Stretches To Improve Flexibility - 8 Minute Basic Dance & Ballet Stretch Exercise Routine In this video, Donnie shares the basic stretches to increase flexibility in the legs, hips and back. This is great to help with the splits and is perfect for ballet, dance or cheerleading.
Personal trainer Kai Wheeler shows you how to release the calf muscles. Trigger points in the gastrocnemious and soleus can refer pain to the feet, achilles and the calf. Common symptoms are plantar fasciitis and cramps in the calves.
A great foot self-care strategy to keep your connective tissue healthy.
10 Day Flexibility Challenge Day 1 – Basic Stretches & Warmup Workout Dance with Catherine This is a series of 10 videos designed to improve your flexibility for dance, cheerleading, gymnastics, Ballet or just general fitness.
When I first started working with my new ballet coach 6months ago, the first thing she told me to do was “lengthen my neck.” What does that mean?...
"I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to dance better than myself."

Mikhail Baryshnikov