The Case for Bringing Your Own Snacks to the Studio

For busy dancers on the go, it’s easy to grab a premade salad on the way to class or scroll through delivery options as rehearsal comes to a close. But bringing homemade meals and snacks to the studio or theater has real payoffs. And making it happen doesn’t have to be as difficult as you […]

A Dietitian Weighs In On Three Dancers' Rehearsal-Day Diets

Finding the right balance of meals and snacks to get through a dancer’s day can take a lot of trial and error. To give you ideas, Dance Magazine asked three professional dancers to share the meals that kept them moving throughout one rehearsal day this season. Registered dietitian Emily Cook Harrison, who runs Nutrition for […]

Can Studio Stress Affect Weight Loss?

After living on junk food during a long break, I finally set up a plan for healthy eating and aerobic exercise. I was feeling positive as I approached my target weight, but then I hit a hectic period of rehearsals and stopped losing. Now what? —Jordan, Stamford, CT A sudden onslaught of rehearsals can make […]

Why Can't I Heal? 8 Reasons Your Injury Might Be Taking Longer To Recover

You’ve rested and rehabilitated. But what if an injury still bothers you? Health-care professionals share eight reasons dancers might heal more slowly than expected. You Got the Wrong Diagnosis Make sure you’re targeting the right injury. Photo via Unsplash If a chronic injury won’t heal, make sure you are treating the right one. According to […]

The Gray Area That's Not Quite an Eating Disorder, But Is Common Among Dancers

When the cat food started smelling good, I knew I had a problem. I’d always considered eating disorders to be extreme. Someone who never eats. Someone who weighs less than 100 pounds. Someone who gets hospitalized. My behavior didn’t fit the mental health definition of an eating disorder. I ignored it because I didn’t know […]

The Worst Nutrition Advice This Dance Dietitian Has Ever Heard

When it comes to what you should be eating, rumors often catch on like wildfire. Dietitian Rachel Fine, who works with dancers in New York City, shares the most misguided nutrition strategies she’s recently encountered. Rumor: Drink Bulletproof Coffee Every Morning. Give your body carbs when it wakes up. Photo by Mikesh Kaos/Unsplash Reality: The […]

Is the Ketogenic Diet Safe for Dancers?

Although the ketogenic diet has been around since the 1920s as an epilepsy treatment for children, it’s experiencing a new wave of popularity. Thanks in part to social media, where “healthy” keto-friendly recipe videos are going viral, the high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet is gaining ground. But is it safe for dancers? We checked in with Rachel […]