Dear everyone,

I am a podiatry student and also interested in ballroom dancing. Being a fairly new new person in the field of ballroom dancing (WC swing is my favourite ;-p ), I havent yet encountered any injuries or problems with my feet.

I would like to know what are the common injuries or problems on the lower extremities from dancing, and what are your solutions to them.

I hope to compile a reference or something like that to my fellow classmates and dance-mates, and to everyone who could be benefited!

Thanks a lot for your help =)

Joyce

Well, I don't know what my exact problem is, but my feet hurt constantly! I spend 3-4 hours dancing or teaching several nights a week, and in the morning my feet don't want to function! Even on mornings where I didn't dance the night before. The entire foot hurts, not just the bottom. My arches ache sometimes, too. I'm going to a podiatrist on Monday to see what he thinks.

Because of the fact that some dance floors are "hard," I always wear footpads inside my dance shoes. That really alleviates the pressure on the ball of the foot. Also, pads like odoreaters are thicker than the standard pads - they last longer. I usually end up changing the pads every couple of months.

Regards,
Hoofer

Thanks for all your replies so far! i just finished all my final exams and am very glad to hear from many of you.

Vince A:
Thanks for sharing your experience, and glad to hear that you are back to swing again Do you know by any chance which structure on the top of your right foot was broken? Regarding the cracked toenails, I think there is just too much pressure on it, sort of a tradeoff between nice nails and enjoyable dancing. As long as they are healthy, and are not bothering you, that should be fine. If I know a way to prevent or to correct that, I will post it up.

twnkltoz:
So, what did your podiatrist say?

CALLUSES and CORNS are there for a reason, that is totally correct. It could be congenital, I mean individual differences in bone length, width, and the way they are connected. This causes increases pressure at some spots as you walk. Some activities might increase pressing particular areas and thus calluses built slowly. Trimming it down is a very effective way. Wearing an orthotic or a shoe insert to change the biomechanic of the feet also helps, but i think it doesn't work for ladies opentoe shoes.

JOINT PROBLEMS cannot be overlooked. It could lead to more serious problems if the pain or the inaccurate motions leading to pain persisted. Stiffer joints, ligament tearing, arthritis...etc.

I still donno much in terms of causes and treatments, but I am slowly learning

[This message was edited by ecyo987 on 12-23-02 at 01:42 PM.]

Your question really hit home with me. I'm just getting back into dancing following a lengthy healing procees due to a "top of the foot break" injury.

West Coast Swing is also one of my dances of choice, and it was during a WCS that my foot was injured.

During the dance, on an extremely crowded dance floor, when I "hit a break" with my partner, a lady right behind me executed a ronde (not sure of the spelling) - a leg sweep, and her heel connected with the top of my right foot. I didn't walk the rest of the weekend.

The foot specialist said it would never heal, as he put it "breaks to the top of the foot rarely heal." It took nearly eight months out of my dancing before I could "swing" again.

I am in excellent physical condition, so I attribute that to whatever caused the pain to eventually go away. Exercise, taking MSM and extra calcium, and at least a three-times-a-week foot massage did the trick.

One other problem that I have, and have heard of others complaining about . . .

I wear Latin shoes with a 1 1/2 inch heel, which pushes the foot forward, putting pressure on the toes. I also like the shoes to fit somewhat snug. I've noticed that my toenails are beginning to look "cracked," for a better word. I do not know what this is. Any ideas???

Any questions, get back to me . . .

i'm an older dancer, and i have problems with my big toe joints
The other comment about toe nail looking 'cracked' is, i think, a classic indication that the toes are too cramped. i used to do a lot of running and regularly lost big toe nails. But they grew again.
The big toe joint problem is probably the start of an arthritis problem, but i can get a lot of relief with a 'toe-pulling' technique (DON'T laugh!) a physiotherpist taught me, and i do this regularly, and it controls the problem

You mean besides tripping over my own feet???
My biggest foot problem? Calluses (sp?) I've been dancing for 13+ years now and have 4 calluses that will not go away. It is my unqualified opinion, however, that those calluses are there for a reason. A lot of pressure is on those particular spots. All I do is cut them back. Luckily, they're not too deep.

Somewhere around 1985 I had a swollen foot. Went to the doctor, who said I was on the verge of a stress fracture and told me to get off my feet. HAH! I had to go for therapy for a while and that fixed the problem. FYI: No, during that time I didn't stop dancing - I slowed down a little bit. ;-p

I went today...I have Plantar Fasciitis. (the tendon at the bottom of my foot doesn't want to expand, creating soreness and a kind of "pulling" sensation). Caused by a combination of the dancing, a rapid and extreme weight gain, and extremely tight calf muscles. I have to do calf-stretching exercises, wear arch supports, and YAY wear athletic shoes as much as possible!