Summertime for dancers can often be a nice break from the performance and training season, but it quickly can feel like we aren’t being productive with our dancing during this time. Of course, dancers deserve a break when we can get it. Summer can be a great time to focus on maintaining the skills we need to continue consistent growth for the upcoming season.

After that last show of the season right before taking time off during the summer months feels like diving onto your couch and going into vacation mode. Breaks are a wonderful time to take time for yourself to rest your body and brain. And taking some time away from dance can be productive and restorative. But don’t take this time to not move your body at all throughout the whole summer. Often, we don’t have the resources to rent or use a studio space to practice our dance skills, nor do we necessarily want to spend our glorious summer months indoors. Let me encourage you to find new and innovative ways to practice your craft without getting pushing yourself too hard or getting burnt out in a studio during the summer.

Here are some fresh ideas for how to continue to work on your growth as a dancer during the summer months.

Get outside and play!
By going outside and doing an activity that you enjoy doing, that maybe you don’t get to do frequently because of your dance schedule, you are staying active and activating your brain in different ways than you do while dancing.
Think outside the box: use everyday items to practice
Use a railing at a park as your ballet barre, find new ways of improvising while on uneven ground like a hill or on wood chips, practice a new skill on an unexpected prop (like Evan in this outdoor pole dance session!)
It may feel weird at first to be out of your safe studio space to practice and explore movement, but the change in environment and elements will stimulate your senses in different ways that may even make something you’ve been working the last year on finally click in your brain!
Practicing outside can also activate different muscles. Your stabilizers will turn on when you’re practicing on uneven ground or utilize that park bench to help with balance.
Engage with community
Use this time to find people to connect with in your community! Whether this is within your dance community or you find a new hobby or interest and center community around that, connecting with new groups is a great way to learn new perspectives, new skills, and find out about other events happening in your area. Take class from a local dance company or studio, take advantage of first week deals at fitness and yoga studios, gather some friends and go social dancing (swing, salsa, line dancing, you name it!), try out a beginner class of something you’ve never tried before that you’ve always been interested in, volunteer some time to a local organization you care about.
See with a new lens
Summer is a great time to loosen the reins on your strict training and rehearsal schedule. Be active in different ways by going out for a hike or visiting a park you’ve never been to with a friend. Visit museums, go swimming, see art, try new food.
When you try these new experiences, rather than thinking about it as a break or time off, use these experiences and activities to think differently when it comes to your art and movement. Maybe you’ll be inspired by a specific piece of art at the local museum. Maybe you’ll find a place in the social dancing community. Perhaps you’ll get into rock climbing and your arms are now stronger to compliment your partner work and inversions. You may have a deeper appreciation for life as a whole and these experiences simply shape the way you move around in this world. The opportunities are endless.