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Not for the Delicate: Popular TV show's casualties demonstrate the dangers for adults who want to get into the swing of things
AP Photo
Holly Madison, shown here with Dmitry Chaplin, suffered pain in her ribs before elimination from Dancing With the Stars.
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Published: April 26, 2009
Taking a spin on the dance floor got dangerous this season on ABC's Dancing With The Stars.
So far, six stars scheduled to compete were slowed or stopped by injury. Singer Jewel Kilcher fractured both of her tibias (shin bones), and Nancy O'Dell, a co-anchor of Access Hollywood, tore the meniscus in two places in her knee before the competition even started. Gilles Marini, an actor and competition favorite, had a shoulder injury. Apple Computer's co-founder, Steve Wozniak, kept dancing despite a fractured foot -- until he was booted off the show. Others have complained of various aches and pains.
That's not surprising, given the six- to eight-hour rehearsals and weekly deadlines that these novice dancers face, said Melissa Stafford, the campus principal of the Orlando Ballet School at the Patel Conservatory in Tampa, Fla. It's a recipe for injury.
"You can't be Michael Phelps overnight," she said.
Though some adults are naturally flexible and take to dance quickly, many discover the harsh reality that there's a lot of stretching, technique and physical discipline involved. It takes commitment -- and time -- to do it right, Stafford said.
"It's a process. That's not going to happen in just six months," she said.
Serious dancers who get injured often seek help from sports-medicine specialists, who often will focus on both the injury and technique issues that caused the pain.
Typical dance injuries involve overuse -- tendinitis, lower-back pain, muscle strains and stress fractures. "(Dancers are) athletes, no doubt about it," said Jeff Konin, the executive director of the Sports Medicine & Athletic Related Trauma Institute at the University of South Florida.
This season's slate of celebrity dancers proves that point. A TV stunt performer, Steve-O Glover, tore back muscles in rehearsal; he was voted off the show on Tuesday. Jewel's replacement, reality-show star Holly Madison, suffered serious rib pain before she was eliminated.
"People see it as a competition and not as art," Stafford said.
That's not the case at Patel, where you'll see students of all ages spend a lot of time learning how to stand and move properly. Stafford's introductory ballet classes include a focus on standing with legs turned out and arm placement.
It's a misnomer that dance focuses on the steps and choreography, said Ashley Hilton, 24, an instructor at the conservatory who also attends a modern-dance class for adults. All dance is based in the techniques of ballet and on building muscle memory -- the ability to teach your body to move and pose a certain way -- so there is a lot of repetition.
But even those learning correctly get hurt, Konin said. SMART Institute doctors regularly treat dancers studying at the USF School of Performing Arts and meet every fall with freshmen dancers to talk about avoiding injury.
"Over a period of time, even if you're in good shape, your body needs you to back off," Konin said.
Most injured dancers don't want to stop. Konin said that treatment centers on modifications to frequency or amount of weight bearing on the injured body part.
Dancers who start as adults are usually looking for a more graceful way to stay fit, Stafford said. And while dance doesn't expend as many calories as some other exercise, it is an excellent way to tone muscles.
Nondancers contemplating competitive dancing should focus on slowly building stamina and simple steps akin to "fancy walking." Avoid big jumps, which require a lot of muscle control. Men planning to lift a partner also should develop core strength.
And, Stafford said, pay close attention to exactly what you are asking your body to do.
"Focus on what the body is doing and not just letting it happen," she said.
■ Mary Shedden writes for the TampaTribune.
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