Female Collegiate Dancers’ Physical Fitness across Their Four-Year Programs: A Prospective Analysis

Dance is physically demanding, requiring physical fitness (PF) that includes upper body, lower core fitness, and balance for successful performance. Whether PF changes as dancers advance from when they enter (freshmen) to graduate their collegiate program (seniors) unclear. We prospectively compared dancers’ freshman-to-senior PF. recorded in regard body strength endurance (push-ups), (front, left-side, right-side, extensor plank hold times), power (single leg hop—SLH—distances % height; Leg Symmetry Index: LSI = higher/lower × 100, %), (anterior reach balance, length, LL; %) 23 female (freshman age 18.2 ± 0.6 years). Repeated measures ANOVAs (p ≤ 0.05) were used compare freshman senior years. Across programs, remained unchanged. Specifically, push-up numbers 0.93), times (left: p 0.44, right: 0.67, front: 0.60, 0.22), SLH distances 0.85), symmetry 0.16) stayed similar. Also, right 0.08) left 0.06) similar, with better < 0.001) seniors. Overall, did not change across programs. Thus, may be an adequate baseline reference measure devising rehabilitation programs determining readiness-to-return-to-activity post injury.