HYDERABAD: In today’s “instant” driven world, we often find ourselves drawn towards convenience and ease, sometimes at the expense of our physical well-being. This tendency can lead to a sedentary lifestyle, posing significant risks to our health. Recognising this, many have turned to fitness as an essential part of their daily routine. One particularly engaging and entertaining way to stay fit is through dance.
The book ‘Dance and Fitness,’ authored by Dr Venkata Rajasekhar Kali and Dr Mallesh Edugani, delves into the profound connection between dance and physical fitness. Dr Venkata Rajasekhar Kali, the Director of Sports Sciences at the University of Hyderabad, and Dr Mallesh Edugani, a passionate dance trainer at a reputed international school in Hyderabad, bring their expertise together to highlight the natural factors that contribute to a successful, high-performing dancer. The book also helps readers understand important physical issues such as systematic fitness training principles.
What inspired you to write the book ‘Dance and Fitness’?
Dr Mallesh Edugani: Dance is now extensively used to enhance individuals’ fitness and achieve health benefits. Examples include Zumba and Bollywood dance forms. While regular dance activity can improve health and fitness, it is crucial to recognise that individuals need matching levels of fitness elements, including physical, emotional, and intellectual fitness, to engage robustly in dance movements.
Without these fitness adaptations, individuals may face issues like acute injuries. Many professional dancers have ended their careers due to injuries resulting from a mismatch between their physical standards and their involvement in difficult dance movements. Therefore, maintaining a certain basic level of physical fitness before engaging in dance activities is essential.
Fitness training ensures higher levels of physical capacity and anatomical strength, preventing possible injuries during dance activities. Additionally, dancers must undertake specific fitness training to properly develop their abilities and achieve successful performances.
Can you mention a few key elements of dance covered in your book?
Dr Mallesh Edugani: For some, dance is just a physical movement, especially for those using dance as a fitness tool. However, for professionals, it is a fulfilling, meaningful, and graceful activity that captivates viewers. Genetics plays a vital role in providing physical and emotional advantages, similar to a sportsperson.
Not everyone can become a profoundly influential and successful dancer, as complex dance movements are possible only for a few elite individuals supported by their genetic makeup. Nonetheless, it is important to understand the different fitness domains that influence dance movements and how these need to be trained.
This book provides a scientific explanation of the required genetics for a successful dancer, advantageous anatomical structures, and neuronal elements influencing complex dance movements. It also covers physical and neuro-muscular training for enhanced physical movements, various physical and motor elements of dance, training protocols, and a special section on preventing dance injuries.
Can you share unique insights into fitness training customised for dancers and dance enthusiasts?
Dr Venkata Rajasekhar Kali: Excelling in dance performances requires a suitable genetic advantage that determines favourable anatomic structures, such as swift feet, well-structured lower extremities, and excellent neuro-motor facilitation. The book offers detailed insights into this aspect of genetics and addresses injury prevention during dance practice and performances. Neuro-muscular facilitation issues are discussed in detail, aiding dance enthusiasts in planning their training scientifically.
Can you shed light on the background work for this book?
Dr Mallesh Edugani: We visited several dance studios to interact with trainers and discuss various dance training issues. We also visited fitness dance studios to gather experiences related to training and the challenges faced. We sent emails to distinguished dancers and collected questionnaires and answers on curricular and pedagogical issues in dance training in India.
What challenges did you face while working on the book?
Dr Venkata Rajasekhar Kali: Initially, email replies were very discouraging, and we had to pursue several times to get responses. Many dancers were unwilling to openly discuss curriculum aspects, and top dancers often did not respond, displaying a certain level of hypocrisy. Very few dancers participated in the survey and interviews.
Can you share some personal experiences while working on the book?
Dr Mallesh Edugani: Many dancers and teachers, whether in professional dance training or fitness dance training, lack basic knowledge of the kinesiological, physiological, and genetic issues related to dance. They often disregard the science of fitness training and injury prevention, which is especially true among Indian dancers.
What is the connection between sports training principles and dance training? How do you integrate them into dance training?
Dr Venkata Rajasekhar Kali: Dance, like sports, is a physical activity. Artistic gymnastics and dance are highly similar in terms of training and anticipation.
Complex sports activities, like football, have established scientific training principles. Adapting these principles to systematic dance training (focusing on fitness) is essential to enhance fitness and achieve complex dance movements with ease and grace.
Your book mentions various fitness domains beyond physical ones. Could you explain how these influence dance and fitness?
Dr Venkata Rajasekhar Kali: Dance is a complex set of graceful and flowing physical movements. Even dance training for fitness involves high-intensity physical activity. It is important to consider other fitness domains such as nutrition, social, and environmental factors to progress in physical fitness, enhance dance performances, and safeguard physical health, including injury prevention. Therefore, dancers should incorporate concepts of sports and exercise nutrition and sports psychology elements.
What can readers take away from the book?
Dr Mallesh Edugani: The book helps readers understand the natural factors that contribute to a successful, high-performing dancer and the important physical issues like systematic fitness training principles. It serves as a scientific guide for both dance professionals and trainers, providing proper training for better fitness and dance performances.