9. Educating the Dance Community with Lisa Howell

In the podcast episode featuring Australian physiotherapist Lisa Howell, she discusses the challenges faced by hypermobile dancers and provides insights into their training and management. Howell emphasizes the importance of educating dance teachers and parents about the need for building stability before allowing dancers to perform at their full flexibility to prevent injuries. She covers the significance of addressing the mental and physical challenges hypermobile dancers face and stresses the role of stability exercises in maintaining joint support. Howell shares personal anecdotes about overcoming her own hypermobility-related difficulties and highlights the necessity of ongoing assessment and tailored training programs to promote safe and sustainable dance practices. The conversation underscores the urgency of preventing severe injuries in young dancers and advocates for comprehensive pre-pointe readiness assessments to ensure safe progression in their dance careers.