Dancing Longer, Dancing Stronger: A Dancer's Guide to Improving Technique and Preventing Injury Paperback – June 1, 1994

Recommended to me by one of my teachers, great insights for an adult beginner. As an adult dancer it’s important to know your body and have your own conditioning program that will protect and prolong your integrity as a mover. This book serves as a good introduction to the concept, with suggested exercises and simple discussions of anatomy with how it applies to a dance.

When I first got this book, I loved it. However, when I started to learn more about human anatomy & physiology, and exercise science, I began to realize that the approach to strength-conditioning presented in this book is not as useful as I originally thought it to be, with my main complaint being that the exercises aren't as useful as what the book would like you to believe. There are much better, more natural movements that work the same muscle groups presented in the book.There has been more general research done on exercise physiology and dance since this book was written. Although I have yet to find a book that does a good job at taking exercise physiology and applying it to the subject of dancing, I would recommend reading general exercise physiology (text)books, Anatomy of Movement by Blandine Calais-Germain, and "The Dancer's Way: the New York City Ballet Guide to Mind, Body, and Nutrition by Linda H. Hamilton. I DO NOT recommend "The Dancer's Body Book" by Allegra Kent as much of the nutritional dietary information in it is inaccurate and IMO promotes eating disorders.

Great advice and exercises.

Great book for Dance Instructors wanting to prevent injury in their students.