When I was training, I did grand plié, a lot of them, in all positions. I had one Russian teacher who started us off with four in each position, first, second, fourth and fifth. I danced for 18 years and never had a knee injury. Was I flat turned out? No. What I was, was aware of my placement. I never rolled in on my feet. I was always centered on my feet. My knees went over my feet. One time, my sister brought a friend backstage at the Kennedy Center. I was warming up, and her friend looked at my feet and said, "Wow, you don't roll in, at all!" I knew what happened to your knees if you did, so I didn't.
Grand plié is important. Grand plié is essential. But, Jerry, grand plié is bad for your knees!
At the bottom of your grand plié, you are at your most turned-out. This gives you the opportunity to work at holding that extreme as you straighten your legs.
In first, fourth and fifth, the positions where your heels come off the floor (unless you're like my Dad, Kazimir Kokich, who could do grand plié in first with his heels flat on the floor), you are forced to use your hips and thighs more. How many times have you seen somebody do demi plié at one speed, then plummet to the bottom of their grand plié? That's what's bad for your knees, the execution, not the movement.
When I was a personal trainer (two certifications), I was told there were a number of contra-indicated exercises, ones we weren't supposed to have our clients do, because they were dangerous. They weren't. Doing them wrong was dangerous. I was taught by a former Marine, Cpl. Clarence Scriven, who was built like a solid block of granite, how to do all those dangerous exercises properly, and I never injured myself. Exercises like Squats, Box Squats, Deadlifts, Seated Good Mornings, Stiff-Legged Deadlifts, The Farmer's Walk, stuff that scared some people.
No exercise, done properly, is dangerous. Any exercise, or physical activity, is dangerous, if done improperly. You can get severe carpal tunnel syndrome from typing on a keyboard!
There's a weight training method called "partial reps", where you only do part of a full movement. For example, lifting a barbell only halfway up, to target a specific area of a muscle. This can be a valuable addition to your training regimen, but we used to say, "Partial reps build partial muscles". The same can be said for avoiding grand plié or only going down part way. Now, you shouldn't bounce off the bottom, or sit down there, but that's part of the whole do it properly thing. You need to go all the way down to completely work the leg through its full range of motion. The Slave Master, Lankendem, in "Le Corsaire", has a variation that starts with assemble into grand plié, then into a turning sissonne. If you haven't trained your grand plié, that variation could destroy you.
Do grand plié. It's necessary. It will build strength and flexibility. Don't water down your training; learn to do it properly. It's only dangerous if you do it wrong.
See you in class.
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