Using constructive rest so that dancers rest constructively, prevent injury and enhance performance

Ann F. Cowlin, MA, CSM, CCE Yale University

BEGIN • Lying on back • Feet together • Knees bent & apart • Arms outstretched, at shoulder height NOTICE with your mind… • Back of head, spine & back down to tail • take note of how your head, spine & back feel against the floor BREATHE in deeply; exhale; repeat SLOWLY • Bring knees together • If desired, move feet slightly apart BREATHE in deeply; exhale; repeat BEND at the wrists • Fingers reach toward the ceiling Bend at the elbow • Hands reach toward the ceiling Bend at the front of the shoulder • Finger tips touch above chest BREATHE in deeply; exhale; repeat SLOWLY • Allow hands to slide past each other and arms to fall down across chest • Continue until arms lie released over the chest and hands rest near opposite shoulders BREATHE in deeply; exhale; repeat SLOW your breathing • Breathe in slowly counting to 5 and breathe out slowly counting to 5 • Repeat for 12 to 15 breath cycles. NOTICE your head, spine & back – any difference now?

FAQs: 1. Why do we begin in the “open book” position? The back muscles take tremendous stress and loading in dance. We allow them to rest in their shortened position before placing them in CRP’s gravity neutral position – in which the body is supported by the ground force. This stops the stretch reflex and allows these muscle to relax. This is a passive version of PNF and is sometimes called the “Jones Principle” in physical therapy. • PNF (proprioceptor neuromuscular facilitation): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PNF_stretching • Receiphrocal Innervation: "Sherrington’s law." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2010. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 20 Oct. 2010 <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/540155/Sherringtons-law>. • Stretch Reflex: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-stretch-reflex.htm 2. Why is there so much focus on breathing in recovery? How does recovery work? Slow, deep, mindful breathing is a simple method for eliciting the Relaxation Response – a parasympathic recovery state characterized by lowered pulse, respiration, blood pressure and oxygen demand, and an organizing alpha brain wave with associative focus a precondition. This state permits recovery by improving oxygen recovery, reducing neuronal inhibition, and facilitating the body’s reduction of inflammation. Physical activity can produce pro- or anti-inflammatory effects. In highly active individuals, high loads must be offset by recovery to reduce inflammation. Men require slightly longer initial periods of relaxation for recovery than women, and both require sufficient protein and carbohydrate intake along with relaxation shortly after cessation of activity to maximize recovery. • Benson, H et al. The Relaxation Response. Psychiatry 1974;37:37-46. • Bernardi L et al. Slow Breathing May Reduce Blood Pressure in Hypertensives. Hypertension 2005;46:714-718. • Bleakley CM, O”Connor SR, Tully MA, Rocke LG, Macauley DC, Bradbury I, Keegan S, McDonough SM. Effect of accelerated rehabilitation on function after ankle sprain: randomised controlled trial. British Medical Journal. 2010 May 10;340:c1964. doi: 10.1136/bmj.c1964. • Febbraio, MA & Pedersen BK Contraction-induced myokine production and release: Is skeletal muscle an endocrine organ? Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, 2005;33(3), 114-119. • Fielding RA, Parkington J. What Are the Dietary Protein Requirements of Physically Active Individuals? New Evidence on the Effects of Exercise on Protein Utilization During Post-Exercise Recovery, Nutr Clin Care 2002;5:191–196. DOI 10.1046/j.1523-5408.2002.00606.x • Gaesser GA, Brooks GA. Metabolic bases of excess post-exercise oxygen consumption: a review, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 1984; 16(1): 29-43. • Häkkinen K. Neuromuscular Fatigue and Recovery in Male and Female Athletes during Heavy Resistance Exercise, Int J Sports Med 1993;14(2): 53-59 DOI: 10.1055/s-2007-1021146. • Ischlander M et al. Physical activity, growth and inflammatory mediators in BMI-matched female adolescents, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise 2007;39(7):1131-1138. • Jae SY, Heffernan KS, Park SH, Jung SH, Yoon ES, Kim EJ, Ahn ES, Fernhall B. Does an acute inflammatory response temporarily attenuate parasympathetic reactivation? Clinics in Autonomic Research 2010 May 1. [Epub ahead of print]. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20437076 • Sweigard’s system corrects posture by rest. Life Magazine Science section, January 6, 1941 Pp. 45-46. http://books.google.com/books?id=M0oEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA45&lpg=PA45&dq=constructive+rest+position+Sweigard&source=bl&ots=mMW9NVxAPB&sig=COmQlSwFzQSv5M_P8q5yDdzuaio&hl=en&ei=q9oSTI2eGcSblgeTiPjYDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=constructive%20rest%20position%20Sweigard&f=false 3. How does CRP enhance performance experience? In addition to releasing tension and allowing for improved motor activity, recovery quiets the brain, allowing the mind a calm enjoyment of movement expression. • Batson G. Somatic Studies and Dance. IADMS Resource Papers (online), 2009. http://www.iadms.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=248 • Bernard, A., U. Stricker and W. Steinmüller. Applied Ideokinesis: A Creative Approach to Human Movement and Body Alignment. Berkeley, California: North Atlantic Books, 2006. • Franklin, E. Dance Imagery for Technique and Performance. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. 1996. • Ideokinesis.com | Bibliography. http://www.ideokinesis.com/bibliography/bibliography.htm#introduction • Matt, P. “The Nature of Ideokinesis and Its Value for Dancers,” in Dance Kinesiology by Sally Fitt. 2nd Edition. New York, NY: Schirmer Books. 1996, 338-341. Ann F. Cowlin, MA, CSM, CCE. anncowlin@sbcglobal.net IADMS 2010

Directions for getting up: Slowly • Roll onto one side into a fetal position • Release into the new position, breathe deeply and exhale • Slowly roll into a hands and knees position • Tuck chin to chest • Slowly rise to standing in preferred manner, lifting the head last.