• Proprioception – body’s ability to understand orientation in space • Why do warm-up exercises: to improve muscular strength and endurance • How is warming up useful?  Increase heart rate & body temperature  Enhance blood circulation  Enhance body flexibility  Reduce risk of strains • 3 kinds of stretching: static, dynamic, ballistic • Also useful for enhancing coordination, technique as well as psychological focus (mental preparation) • Stretching exercises should be tailored to the kind of dancing that you do. • A ballet dancer needs to build up her upper body strength by lifting weights because the ground reaction force from landing from a jump is 3.5 to 5 times her body weight • Also important to do cooling down exercises  Gradual reduction in heart rate to prevent dizziness  Clear lactate to reduce soreness the next day • Eating a balanced diet (food + fluids) is important so that we inject high performance fuel into our bodies[^1}

[^1}: Yes, I am the teacher in charge of the Dance Club.