My name is Debbie Upwood, the director and developer of Pilates for Dancers™. I am registered in STOTT Pilates®, TOTAL BARRE® and Acrobatic Arts instruction. I am also a dance studio owner with over 20 years of experience.
I began developing the Pilates for Dancers™ program in 2024. My passion to incorporate pilates and functional training into dancers’ weekly technique and conditioning classes stemmed from the physical demands that dancing at a competitive level has on a dancer’s body today. I had noticed there was a need for improvement in dancers’ technical training, and that their fundamental technique classes, such as ballet, jazz, tap, and acro, were not always providing them with the tools to fully understand how to engage and coordinate the body’s muscle groups to maximize their technique and help prevent injury.
Injury prevention should be industry standard, and I believe in shifting the mindset from “push through” to “train smart”. Dancers train just as hard as any athlete and the physical demands placed on their bodies calls for supportive, supplemental training. I have developed a program that gives dancers a solid foundation from head to toe and provides them with a deeper understanding of the muscle engagement and alignment that is needed to support technical execution.
This program will have a lasting effect on dancers throughout their dance careers and encourage them to continue this kind of self-care post-graduation. My goal is for Pilates for Dancers™ to help elevate industry standards and encourage dancers to train smarter, get stronger, and sustain long, healthy careers in dance.