Effectiveness of Ankle Strengthening using Pilates Reformer vs. Balance Board to Improve Balance in Dancers

Abstract

This study was conducted to analyze the alignment of various collegiate dancers’ ankles in order to strengthen the muscles surrounding the ankle joint and improve balance. The research was conducted using a pre and post-test consisting of the Star Excursion Balance test and the Stork test. Participants from the Texas A&M dance program that did not have any lower extremity injuries in the six months prior to the study were randomly assigned to either the Pilates intervention group, balance board intervention group, or a control group who continued their regular training regimen. The participants met three times a week for five weeks to go through the intervention exercises. After the intervention period, a post test was conducted to collect data from the same tests used for the pre-test. It was predicted that the balance board group would have the greatest improvement because the exercises were fully weight bearing and challenged their balance more than the reformer group.