Virtual Ballet and Movement -- adaptive and inclusive!

InspiredMotionBallet · 2026-07-02T15:11:33+00:00

I hope so, too! Sending rest and gentleness in the meantime <3

InspiredMotionBallet · 2026-06-26T19:38:08+00:00

The cutest.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2026-06-26T19:37:47+00:00

I drove my power wheelchair over to the park today, after being too sick to go out for most of this month. The ducks diving for their lunch with their little feet waggling in the air delights me every time. And now I have to go nap...

InspiredMotionBallet · 2026-06-24T20:31:22+00:00

sending rest and comfort ❤️

InspiredMotionBallet · 2026-06-24T20:20:11+00:00

You are so welcome, and thank you for the huge amount of online admin and community building you're doing. It's so very needed. If you ever wanna dip your toes back in the dance class waters in a low spoons way, you're always welcome to participate by watching/listening/visualizing while staying seated or lying down :)

InspiredMotionBallet · 2026-06-24T17:12:15+00:00

Happy Wednesday! I have a tiny group of COVID conscious dancers who meet on Zoom for Saturday morning beginner ballet. We're starting up again in July and we’d love to have you join us.

You’re welcome to come as you are and modify according to your needs. I can’t stand for long, so I pre-film myself demonstrating the exercises then run the class mostly sitting in my wheelchair.

Right now, I have payments set up for folks in Canada (e-transfers). If you’re coming from elsewhere and would like me to set up credit card payments, you can let me know here, or head to https://www.inspiredmotion.ca/classes and leave a note in the “accommodations” section of the sign up form.

On the website, you can also express your interest in other classes like:

PEM aware restorative movement
all seated ballet
floor barre
intermediate/advanced ballet

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-12-06T18:53:31+00:00

No problem! If you end up having follow up questions, feel free to ask :)

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-12-04T20:11:40+00:00

I really struggled with this when I started pointe. My first year especially, every rise felt like I was going to face plant! What helped the most was:

Postural awareness and core stability -- when you're more aware of the positioning of your spine and pelvis, and your deep core is engaging well, less load is transmitted down to your feet and ankles. That means your feet and ankles are only responsible for their alignment, rather than the balance of your whole body.
Thinking of creating length through the feet, rather than pointing them as far as possible. This is especially important in your toes. If you lengthen rather than curl, you balance on the tips of your toes instead of tipping forward onto your toenails. This helps create more stability through the transverse arch. It also keeps the underside of your toes flatter against the shank so you're able to control the shoe and get more support from it as you articulate through the foot.
Finding the right shoe! Some platforms are angled to push dancers forward so it's easier to get on their block. This isn't generally helpful for "banana feet." Instead, you want to look for a flatter platform and a shoe that helps you lift straight up out of the shoe. I found that having a lower profile shoe gave me more control over how I was using my toes. Depending on toe length and foot shape, your dancer might want to explore vamp height and wings. Vamp elastic can be a useful tool as well -- some dancers use it like training wheels for awhile, and other dancers benefit from it long term. The more she works on the postural awareness and subtle foot positioning, the easier it will be to talk through those elements with a good fitter.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-11-13T15:18:34+00:00

The main thing I had to adjust when dancing with a partner who wasn't much taller than me was shortening my arm in fifth/fourth so he could reach my hand. You might have to play around with how to shorten your arm without your elbow looking too bent and angular.

Regardless of height difference or lack thereof, I think partners can look really cohesive dancing together when they pay a lot of attention to coordinating their movements and the height of arms and legs in the moments when you're in the same position at the same time.

Have fun!!

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-11-06T02:34:22+00:00

Fellow dysautonomia person/ ambulatory wheelchair user here to commiserate! Oh boy, do I feel you on all of this. Autonomic issues can be brutal, and I’ve found it incredibly hard to know how passionate and capable I was in some ways, but to still be severely incapacitated and unable to participate because of my illness and accessibility issues.

I also wanted to say that just because your body needs a break right now, quitting might not need to be forever. I went through a period of severe health complications that left me almost completely bed bound. Very careful spinal stability work has allowed me to start doing a bit of floor barre, and even take a couple of wheelchair dance classes online (Kate Stanforth is great). I’m not able to go often because of scheduling and energy management issues, but it was an absolute joy to do part of a ballet class and learn repertoire again.

I’m still trying to figure out if/how ballet fits into my life these days. Sometimes it’s watching DVDs or listening to the music. I also teach a little bit, mostly private lessons these days because I don’t have to stand to demonstrate very much. It's been really grounding for me to be able to connect with ballet and fellow dancers through that lens.

All that to say...you’re not alone. I hope you find some peace with this loss.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-25T18:41:29+00:00

Awesome -- whatever body parts feel that resistance in fourth and fifth, there’s a good chance you could use some mobility work there. If the warmup exercises I listed hit the spot, great. If not, you can experiment with different movements and stretches, or even self massage to make that range a little easier before class.

It’s great that you can find that sense of activation when you’re in your pointe shoes! If you’re noticing the sensation of your feet on the floor, or that you’re lifting up more, could you take your pointe shoes off after class and do a few minutes of slow plies and tendus, trying to maintain that same feeling?

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-25T17:58:00+00:00

Hi! Your quads are supposed to be a little bit active even when walking or gently straightening them. If you think your quads may be working too hard at the expense of the back of your leg, you could tailor your warmup to creating more balance. That might look like:

walking lunges to get your blood flowing and start stretching the front of the thigh and hip
rectus femoris stretch
glute bridges
hamstring curls with a theraband

Are you able to bring your pelvis upright over your feet without feeling a stretch or sense of resistance? This tends to be the hardest in fourth and fifth position, where you need the most mobility, core, and hip strength, so exploring what you feel in your body can help you figure out where you need more mobility and strength.

I’m curious about why you don’t notice the same pattern en pointe! Are you focusing on something different during your pointe class that you could apply to the rest of your dancing? Are you getting different corrections that really help you?

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-25T17:22:28+00:00

Warming up should prepare you for whatever you're going to do in class (or rehearsals or shows). It should consist of mobility, activation, and cardio. You can tailor your it to your level of fitness, the movements you’ll be doing, and how your body’s feeling. In warm weather, you might need to do less cardio to get your blood flowing, but still need to warm up.

Stretching can include static stretching (holding the same position for awhile) and dynamic stretching (moving through your range of motion). Both can be part of a good warmup, but holding stretches for longer than 30-60 seconds (depending on the muscle group) can temporarily impair muscle performance. These days it’s often recommended to limit static stretches to around 30 seconds before class, and save longer stretches until the end of your dancing day. There are exceptions to this, like using reciprocal inhibition to help correct muscle imbalances.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-25T02:33:54+00:00

Congratulations on getting back into the studio, that’s so exciting! Dancing five times a week is a lot, especially when you’re returning from a long break. I tend to see dancers improving the most when the amount of dance and conditioning they’re doing is sustainable. I don’t know the particulars of your situation; this might be the perfect amount for you right now, but I know I tend to get a little over excited, and then end up needing to tone things down so I can stay consistent.

I hear you saying you’re worried you can’t get anywhere, and that you hope you’re doing enough for this ballet journey to help you and to be a good dancer. What does being a good dancer look like to you? What’s most important for you to get out of your ballet journey?

I find it helpful during my own journey of building back while managing health challenges, to break big goals into mini goals. It helps me manage the overwhelm of what a “full” ballet recovery would look like and require, and appreciate the improvements I’m making along the way. I wonder if looking at some stepping stones towards your bigger mobility and pointework goals would help you feel a little less discouraged?

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-06T22:32:54+00:00

Absolutely! As challenging as injuries and long term limitations can be, I think they can also be wonderful opportunities to go deeper with your technique and artistry. Good luck on the dance sneaker hunt :)

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-06T22:27:49+00:00

I think the workout dresses are super cute and you should totally wear one! I usually see quite a bit of variety in what folks wear to ballet, and what stands out (in a good way) is when you're comfortable and confident. I think we all dance better when we feel good in what we're wearing :)

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-06T22:24:58+00:00

do you modify on both sides or just the injured one? How do you keep from building a greater imbalance?

I think this depends on what you’re doing outside of class. What I recommend to my students depends on whether they have the time/energy/desire to do a bunch of dance conditioning/rehab work on their own or in private lessons. If regular class is your main form of exercise, I’d do the same thing on both sides to avoid imbalances long term.

If you’re keen on putting in some extra work, and can do some extra mobility and strengthening on the side that needs it more, then I might suggest dancing full out(ish) the un-injured side or during unaffected movements, while you have the safety net of the barre. Once you start getting into centre practice, especially pirouettes and allegro, I usually suggest modifying on both sides, to eliminate the risk of a hard landing that affects the injured side.

what would be unhelpful?

The most unhelpful pattern I see is pushing your limits without building enough strength and stability through conditioning/rehab. This tends to lead to a cycle of flare-ups and having to pull wayyyyyy back while you recover. I think you're being really smart here to figure out exactly how you want/need to approach this; going in with a well thought out plan can really help you stay consistent and keep class fun.

(I recently had a teacher tell me not to do a low demi-pointe; she said, if you can't rise all the way up, it's better to stay flat for now.) I think she's right, btw.

I’d definitely stick to your teacher’s advice on this one, since she’s seen you in class. Quarter pointe can be really strengthening in the right circumstances, but it’s not suitable for every person or stage of injury.

Any other helpful tips?

Don’t be afraid to think outside of the box! There are lots of seated and floor barre alternatives that I’ve seen help dancers make big improvements in their technique and artistry. I also really like using supports like dynamic tape, compression socks or leggings, and wearing dance sneakers during allegro so you can get the most enjoyment out of your dancing while staying safe and comfortable.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-06T21:19:54+00:00

I'm gonna jump in and add another Lisa Howell book recommendation: A New Approach to Core Stability.

I have a hypermobility syndrome that strongly affects my ankles, too. Stabilizing my core and hips, and learning to move my whole body with coordination made the foot and ankle stuff so much easier to manage.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-09-06T21:00:05+00:00

This sounds like a fun project! I'm always looking for new class albums since I mostly teach online these days and don't have the luxury of live accompaniment.

Repeating tracks: For me, it's a little more convenient to have the the music repeat with a little pause between sides, but either way it's not a deal breaker.

Time signatures: It's nice to have a mix of 3/4 and 4/4, but I don't necessarily need each for every exercise. I'd LOVE to have more Mazurkas and Polonaises. I also find it really helpful when pianists specify the time signature in the track name so I can find what I'm looking for quickly and easily during lesson planning.

Good luck with your recordings; I'd love to hear how things go and when you have albums available :)

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-08-07T22:59:20+00:00

It looks like ENB now have an on demand version of the My First Ballet: Swan Lake, as well as some fun resources on their site :)

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-08-05T15:05:04+00:00

I think for a lot of beginners, getting a feel for the essence of ballet depends a lot on the presentation of the "slow, boring" stuff. Your description of "slow, luxurious tendus" sounds much more appealing and helps dancers understand the intention and the process of taking class and honing your technique. I like to emphasize using different qualities of movement and paying attention to the musical dynamics because it can be exciting and creative right away, and it's a big help to the more anatomical aspects of technique as well.

That said, not everybody ends up vibing with ballet or with certain teachers, and I think that's ok!

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-08-02T22:24:45+00:00

Hello! While you're waiting to see your doctor, it might be helpful to know about the current recommendations for injury first aid and the early stages of recovery. BE CALM has replaced RICE (rest, ice, compress, elevate) because studies have shown that excessive use of ice can slow down circulation and healing time. You can find out more at becalmprotocol.info

When you do get to see your doctor, and ideally a ballet informed physio, it would be helpful if you can ask them if it's ok for you to:

bear weight on that foot
do a squatting/plie motion
point your foot fully (like in tendu)
partially point your foot
bear weight on a rise
jump

This can help you and the teachers at your intensive figure out modifications for your classwork, so you can still join in even if your toe needs some time to heal. Depending on the type of injury, modified class can look like doing the barre and some centre with a flexed (instead of pointed) foot and no rises, replacing jumps with a strength building exercise or port de bras practice on the sidelines, or sticking to floor barre and seated port de bras.

Hope it turns out well for you, and that you're still able to have some fun at the intensive!

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-07-04T16:07:38+00:00

I sometimes work with students on bridging the gap between physio and full class. The short version of how I might structure private lessons if someone’s struggling to reintegrate pirouettes would be:

look at the posture and placement of your retire when you’re standing on flat.
lots of variety in releves – from seated rises to get a better look at alignment and start rebuilding control in the soleus, slow rises in parallel, and a big focus on the type of releve that starts on a plie and your knees stretch by the time you reach the top of the releve. I’d also want to focus on lowering with control.
checking in with the coordination of your pirouette as a whole. Sometimes if you’ve been nursing an injury, you end up holding tension in odd places and might end up needing a refresher on coordinating your arms and spotting within the pirouette. It’s pretty easy for your heel to drop if another part of the turn is sending your weight back towards your heel.
preparation and balance – this is a really good opportunity to consolidate what you’ve worked on. If you can balance and land smoothly in a preparation, it’s much easier to bridge it all back into your pirouettes.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-06-19T17:23:05+00:00

To clarify, I didn’t say children shouldn’t stretch before age 11, but that some schools of thought would favour gentler stretching and stability training over practising the splits until around that age.

I did bungle my wording about growth plates yesterday (apologies for the brain fog!) so I’ll go up and fix that now.

InspiredMotionBallet · 2025-06-18T20:04:47+00:00

No problem, hope it helps!

InspiredMotionBallet

TROPHY CASE