For most ballet dancers, turnout is a lifelong project — a goal chased in every plié, développé, and tendu. We often idolize the “perfect” 180 degrees of turnout, but the truth is that this ideal is both rare and often unattainable due to individual anatomical structure. What is attainable, however, is strong, controlled, and functional turnout — the kind that supports high leg lifts, clean lines, and injury-free dancing. In this post, we’ll explore the science behind turnout, how passive and active range of motion affect leg height, and what role strength training plays in helping dancers improve their technique safely and effectively.
Turnout in Ballet: Why It’s Not Just About Hip Rotation
Turnout is often taught as coming “from the hips” — and this is anatomically sound advice. But in reality, total turnout is a composite of motion from multiple parts of the lower limb:
- ~60% from external hip rotation
- ~20–30% from the lower leg
- The rest from foot and ankle adjustments
However, most of these lower-limb contributions are either fixed by anatomy or best left unmodified to avoid injury. Trying to force turnout through the knees or feet often leads to joint strain, “rolling in”, and injury risk. This is especially common in static positions like fifth or first, where dancers feel pressure to “look turned out.” Instead, the focus should be on optimizing hip turnout based on your own anatomy — and supporting it with strong muscles, smart alignment, and flexibility training.
5 Key Factors That Affect Ballet Turnout and Hip Flexibility
According to Wilmerding & Krasnow (IADMS, 2011), there are five major anatomical factors that influence a dancer’s natural turnout:
- Femoral Anteversion/Retroversion
- Forward angle limits turnout; backward angle increases it.
- Not modifiable.
- Acetabular Orientation
- More sideways hip sockets = more turnout.
- Not modifiable.
- Femoral Neck Shape
- Longer, concave necks allow more rotation.
- Not modifiable.
- Y-Ligament Elasticity
- Resists turnout and hip extension.
- Respect limits — don’t force.
- Muscle Strength & Flexibility
- Trainable! Weak or tight muscles restrict turnout. Balanced strength improves function.
Functional Ballet Turnout: How to Train for Strength, Control & Alignment
If Dancers want to master their turnout they must become aware of:
- Core engagement and hip alignement
- Proper use of the six deep lateral hip rotators
- Avoiding compensations at the knees or ankles
- Maintaining turnout during movement, not just static positions
- Their active and passive range of motion (AROM & PROM)
AROM is the range you can control with your own strength — like lifting your leg in développé or holding your turnout.
PROM is how far it can go with assistance — like in a partner stretch. The goal is to turn PROM into usable AROM.
This article gives a brief overview, but we’ll dive deeper into active and passive range of motion in future discussions.
Does strength and flexibility training really work to increase a dancers active range of motion?
Findings from Wyon et al. Research
The 2013 study by Wyon et al. highlighted the significant impact of strength training on a dancer’s active range of motion (AROM).
- Strength training led to the largest gains in AROM.
- Low-intensity stretching also improved AROM, albeit to a lesser extent.
- High/moderate-intensity stretching enhanced only passive range of motion (PROM).
These findings underline the necessity of strength training over passive flexibility exercises. Strength provides the control necessary for executing higher leg lifts and improved turnout.
Comparing Stretching and Strength Training
When it comes to improving ballet turnout, which approach yields the most effective results: targeted stretching or focused strength training? In 2016, dance researchers, in another pivotal study, explored how dancers perform with each method. Their findings echoed previous research, stressing that while stretching enhances flexibility, strength training is essential for practical improvements in AROM. However, it’s not just about which method is superior; it’s crucial to understand how each contributes to the overall mastery of turnout. While stretching helps maintain the body’s necessary flexibility and allows access to certain ranges of motion muscle, strength training builds the control required for dynamic movement. Without the foundation of strength, dancers often find their flexibility unstable, leading to techniques that lack the finesse of, continuous and deliberate extensions, and grande allegro showcasing true muscular capacity.
Ultimately, dancers aiming for enhanced ballet turnout need both methods.
I am sold! So, how do I strengthen and stretch my turnout?
Let’s explore the basics of strength training first.
Strength Training for Dancers: Improve Turnout, Leg Height & Injury Prevention
Many dancers avoid strength training, fearing it will make them bulky. But hypertrophy doesn’t equal heaviness — it means developing precise, resilient muscle fibers that support technique.
Based on Brad Schoenfeld’s research (2010), hypertrophy (muscle gain, which you need if you want to lift your legs higher or turnout better) happens through:
- Mechanical Tension – Resistance applied through full range
➤ Think a leg lift starting from the floor à la seconde where you lift it as high as you can - Muscle Damage – Slow, controlled eccentric contractions
➤ Think développé lowers, controlled plié descents - Metabolic Stress – Time under tension, moderate-to-high reps
➤ Think isometric holds or 8-12 repetitions, of clam shells for improved turnout
Ballet dancers often choose strength training exercises that are too light, focusing on control but missing the intensity needed to create real change. Without enough resistance or challenge, the muscles don’t get the stimulus they need to grow stronger or more responsive — especially at end ranges. This often leads to frustration and a conclusion of the exercises not working. To improve turnout and leg height, the effort needs to match the goal. If you are stopping at 12 repetitions but you could have done 20 you are working too light. More repetitions are not necessarily better — in fact, they often mean the intensity isn’t high enough to provide the stimulus your muscles need. A perfect example of an exercise that is often done a bit wrong is the clamshell where the intensity is massively lacking.
Train strength 2–3x per week, with rest days in between. Focus especially on the final 10–15° of your range — where strength often drops off.
Here are a few strength exercises designed to help dancers improve turnout and développé height.
Strength and flexibility training — when done right — can help every dancer build a more functional, sustainable turnout and achieve higher, more controlled leg lifts.
Individual plans and assessments available, find out exactly what is holding you back!
The truth is that turnout and leg extension strength is all improved by individual measures; age, experience, individual anatomy etc. all effect how improvement should be sought out. If you feel you need more targeted support in developing your turnout or improving your développé height, we offer individual strength and flexibility assessments both online and in person. At IdealHealth, we can assess your hip structure, AROM vs PROM, and muscular control to identify exactly what’s holding you back. From there, we’ll create a fully individualized program tailored to your anatomy, goals, and technique needs. Whether you’re looking to refine your performance or overcome a plateau, we’re here to help you train smarter.
Get in touch to book your personal assessment and start building strength and flexibilty that supports your dancing — reach your full potential.
Get in contact: bea.hogdal@idealhealth.fi
or book an appointment here https://idealhealth.fi/henkilo/bea-hogdal/
Bibliography
Wilmerding, V., & Krasnow, D. (2011). Turnout for Dancers: Hip Anatomy and Factors Affecting Turnout. International Association for Dance Medicine and Science (IADMS).
Schoenfeld, B. J. (2010). The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 24(10), 2857–2872.
Wyon, M. A., Smith, A., & Koutedakis, Y. (2013). A comparison of strength and stretch interventions on active and passive ranges of movement in dancers: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 27(11), 3053–3059.
