Dance Flexibility, Strength Training Dancers, Injury Prevention Dance, Dance Parent Advice, Flexibility Vs Strength, Dancer Performance Metrics

The Flexibility Question Dance Parents Ask, And What Really Keeps Dancers Safe

IThe number nobody's tracking

I talked about this recently with Karina Klepach on the Thriving Dancers Podcast. If a dancer wants more flexibility, her strength has to keep pace with it. Otherwise range without control isn't a skill. It's just where the next injury starts.

Here's a concrete benchmark. At the collegiate and professional level, dancers' calves should be strong enough to perform around 25 single-leg relevés. For a high schooler still building toward that, something in the range of 18 to 20 is probably a realistic target.

Most dance parents have never heard a number like this, because most studios aren't tracking it. Flexibility gets measured constantly, in splits and extensions and how high a leg can go. Strength almost never gets measured at all.

Why this order matters

Stretching past what a dancer can control doesn't buy her anything. Holding a stretch longer than 30 seconds, more than a couple of times, isn't building range. It's just time spent. What actually changes a dancer's capability is strength built to match whatever range she already has, so the new range is usable and not just visible.

Think of it this way. A split with no strength behind it isn't an achievement to post. It's a liability waiting for the wrong landing.

What to actually watch for

You don't need to be a clinician to notice the gap. Watch how your dancer comes out of a big extension or a deep stretch. Is it controlled, or does it collapse. Can she do multiple releves without her ankle giving out and without her form falling apart.

If the answer is no, that's not a flexibility problem. That's a strength problem wearing a flexibility costume.

The reframe worth having with your dancer

Next time she asks for help getting more flexible, try asking a different question first. Not "how do we stretch you further," but "how strong are you at the range you already have." That's the conversation that actually protects her body long term, and it's usually the one nobody's had with her yet.

This is just one thread from a longer conversation. Karina and I covered a lot more on theThriving Dancers Podcast, including what actually makes a dancer thrive and what to watch for as a dance parent.

Jena Hansen-Honeycutt, DAT, LAT, ATC is a dance medicine athletic trainer and clinical educator at George Mason University's School of Dance, and founder of The Skilled Collection. She works with dancers, hypermobile athletes, and the clinicians who care for them.

© 2026 ThriveWell Consulting LLC. This post is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for medical advice.