Guelph Youth Dance, along with the support of registered physiotherapist and Heather Dancer Canada founding member Heather Finn, are excited to announce that we are currently working on building a support network for dancers and dance educators to support dancer wellness. Dancer wellness includes the three main components recommended by Healthy Dancer Canada: Physical, Mental and Nutrition. We are striving to offer these experiences to dancers and the GYD teachers for free in order to strongly encourage everyone to participate in healthy practices.
Our first step is building relationships with regulated healthcare providers in the Guelph area with specific expertise in youth dancers. If you are, or know someone, with experience in the physical, mental and nutritional wellness of youth and would be excited to work with us or if you would like to volunteer, we would love to hear from you!
We look forward to sharing more news as this project develops and we hope to hear form you if you have an interest in joining us.
Workshops
Plates and Pliés, Saturday, January 19 9:30-10:30 a.m.
An introduction to food as fuel. Carbohydrates, proteins and fats are the building blocks of your diet. Learn the differences between these categories and how to combine them for optimal energy, performance and recovery.
Presenters:
- Lauryn Conlon BSc Human Kinetics, BASc Human nutrition, Owner LIFT Guelph
- Skye Balfour-Ducharme, Retired Professional Soloist—Alberta Ballet, BASc Human nutrition
Brain-Body Exercises for Stress, Performance Anxiety and Sleep, Saturday February 9 9:30-10:30 a.m.
Learn to identify the instantaneous activation of your own stress response, the most common triggers of stress/anxiety, and practical ways to dial it down for self-calming, focus, post dance recovery, and better sleep.
Dancer Screenings
Dancer screenings are offered in the Fall and Spring. Screening collects information about a dancer’s health and wellness through surveys and physical tests.
Ideally, screening is performed before any pain or injury occurs. This is the optimum time to evaluate a dancer’s strengths and weaknesses, and come up with goals together with parents, teachers and health professionals.
The screening sessions are 30 minutes and will be performed at the beginning and end of each school year, led by physiotherapist Heather Finn. They are highly recommended for any dancer prone to injuries and for all Company members.
Fee: $40 per session. A registered physiotherapist, at least one of your teachers and a parent will be present.
Please provide payment to Heather Finn directly at the appointment time. Heather is a registered physiotherapist and will provide a receipt for the full amount.
HEATHER FINN
Heather took her first dance class in a church basement in her hometown of Elmira, and hasn’t stopped dancing since. Heather studied ballet at Academy of Dance Waterloo, modern and break dance at McMaster University Centre for Dance, and danced professionally in Hamilton, Ottawa and Guelph. While she has a special interest in dancer’s health, she maintains interests in injury prevention and optimizing health and wellness for all of her patients. Heather’s parents and grandparents are among her greatest influences. Each of them have been caregivers in their own way; as stay-at-home moms, teachers, home-builders and physicians. Heather returned to the area in 2010 to be closer to her extended family. She is married and has 3 children. Heather completed her Bachelor of Arts and Science in 2001 and her Masters in Physiotherapy in 2004 at McMaster University. During her physiotherapy training she apprenticed with Joanna Speller of the National Ballet School, Donna Krasnow of York University Dance Department, and Sunday Homitz of the Cleveland Ballet. Since then she has completed post-graduate courses in Pilates Mat and Reformer, Manual Therapy, Acupuncture and Pelvic Health. Heather is a member of Healthy Dancer Canada and the Canadian Alliance of Dance Artists.
