JigStrong Coaching

“Every training plan needs to work backwards. Your most important events of the year—be it World’s or St. Patrick’s Day performances—should be marked down first. These are the anchor points that determine when a phase should start and how long it should last.

The Irish dance competitive calendar is usually what dictates off-season windows for most dancers. These periods should commence with a transition sub-phase of active recovery (1-2 weeks) to allow physiological restoration, including normalization of cortisol levels and repair of musculoskeletal microtrauma.”

Check out the sample plan and learn how to build your own off-season plan.

Planning the Off-Season for Irish Dancers This is the time to build your base to act like a spring board for the higher intensity work that will come in the next couple of months. Here is a practical, evidence-based off-season template for competitive Irish dancers. Use this to help create what works for you or contact me for a free consultation. The structure: • 2 lower-extremity strength sessions focused on unilateral force development and eccentric control • 2 upper-body and anti-rotation core sessions to improve postural endurance and stability • 2 aerobic-dominant endurance days (60–70 % HRmax) to increase stamina without too much stress • Daily targeted mobility and low-load technical practice to preserve or increase range and refine motor patterns without cumulative fatigue This template follows established periodization principles and mirrors protocols shown in dance science literature to increase stamina, jump power, and reduce overuse injury risk. This is ideal for the post-Oireachtas or post-Nationals window when the priority shifts to building a larger physiological base. Note: Dancers attending All Ireland’s and/or World’s should be on a slightly different program that incorporates more high-intensity and dance-specific exercises. For more information and a detailed week, check out the my full article here: https://open.substack.com/pub/tanyastahler/p/optimizing-off-season-training-for?r=d5wb1&utm_medium=ios #irishdance #irishdancer #irishdancing #danceconditioning #dancetraining #exercisephysiology #coaching #coach #offseason #dancecoach #DanceScience #Periodization #sportsscience #strengthandconditioning

“We are seeing higher kicks, bigger jumps, wider splits, flashier aerial positions, and less consistent adherence to the fundamentals that made Irish dance so distinct from other dance techniques. Style and extensions are increasingly rewarded over true technical mastery.”

“For dancers who work relentlessly on turnout, ankle strength, clean footwork, stable pelvis, and controlled landings, this shift can be deeply discouraging. They train for years to build correct mechanics, only to be dismissed in favor of someone with dramatic extensions but inconsistent form.”

Tricks Over Technique? Have we become too enamored with new Irish Dancing tricks?

Key Principles for Irish Dancing Progress in the Off-Season

When you sit down to make your off-season plan, you’re not creating a rigid program of what you’ll try to force your body to do.

You’re creating your best educated prediction of how your body and your dancing will adapt over the next several months.

1. Identify your personal trouble areas — and correct them.
Everyone has them (even if you haven’t discovered yours yet). Common examples:
• Weak ankles/calves limiting your point or toe height
• Weak turnout muscles that results in too much knee torque
• Unaddressed scoliosis creating leg-length differences
• Tight hip flexors causing pelvic tilt

Find your patterns now. Don’t wait.

⸻

2. Fix the dysfunction before you add volume or intensity.

Before you add more practice time, more drills, more competitions, higher kicks, or bigger jumps…
Make sure the movement pattern is solid.

Example:
Don’t keep drilling birdies if your knee collapses inward or your heel drops on landing.

Fix the pattern first.
Then add load.

⸻

Want help identifying your weak links? I can help break down your movement patterns and offer solutions. Contact me for a consultation about training or program advice. I can break down your movement patterns and create or adjust your training plan.

Key Principles for Irish Dancing Progress in the Off-Season When you sit down to make your off-season plan, you’re not creating a rigid program of what you’ll try to force your body to do. You’re creating your best educated prediction of how your body and your dancing will adapt over the next several months. 1. Identify your personal trouble areas — and correct them. Everyone has them (even if you haven’t discovered yours yet). Common examples: • Weak ankles/calves limiting your point or toe height • Weak turnout muscles that results in too much knee torque • Unaddressed scoliosis creating leg-length differences • Tight hip flexors causing pelvic tilt Find your patterns now. Don’t wait. ⸻ 2. Fix the dysfunction before you add volume or intensity. Before you add more practice time, more drills, more competitions, higher kicks, or bigger jumps… Make sure the movement pattern is solid. Example: Don’t keep drilling birdies if your knee collapses inward or your heel drops on landing. Fix the pattern first. Then add load. ⸻ Want help identifying your weak links? I can help break down your movement patterns and offer solutions. Contact me for a consultation about training or program advice. I can break down your movement patterns and create or adjust your training plan. #strengthandconditioning #coaching #coach #irishdancing #irishdance #irishdancer #dancer #dance #dancetraining #offseason #training #trainer #DoTheWork

"Children should be introduced to skill-based sports in early childhood, but they should not fully commit to one discipline at that age. Early exposure is beneficial; early specialization can be harmful."

"Irish dancing is best approached as a mid-specialization sport, which means that children benefit from a broad base of movement, rhythm, and athletic exposure in their early years, and then transition into more focused training somewhere between ages 10 and 13."

"When Did You Start Dancing?" A look at the best time to start Irish dancing if you want to be a World Champion

To be powerful and safe, Irish dancers MUST train outside of the dance studio. Strength work is necessary for building the strength and stability to drive big, quick jumps and keep soft tissue reliable and strong to support the force we place on them with those jumps and turns.

Strength training is also how we create style in Irish dance. To develop big movements and the ability to resist fatigue, we’ve got to challenge our bodies in ways that will result in both stronger muscle fibers AND translate to better quality of movement in dance.

Add these exercises to your program on days where you do not have dance class the next day.

1. Hello—I’m a weirdo.
2. Split squat with an elevated back foot. (Try to get the knee close to the ground.)
3. Single-leg DL
4. B stance DL
5. Trap bar jumps (good to do right after a heavy lift, such as leg press or front squat; it is called post-activation potentiation or PAP; it activates type-II muscle fibers and neural drive which we NEED for Irish dancing!)
6. Toe-height walks (stay as high as you can, flexing the foot before placing it back down; strengthens the calves, ankles, and feet for stability and injury prevention)
7. Cable core rotations (to maintain carriage)
8. Hanging leg lifts (works the deep core muscles and psoas, which power big kicks and birdies)
9. Ball transfers (my husband does not know angles—this is just a terrible angle—I am so sorry.)
10. Step-ups with knee drive hop finisher (translates to stronger jumps without as much ground contact time)

Rhythm can be learned at any age! Here are 6 tips I give my dancers to improve their timing.

"Watch Your Timing" Tips to improve your rhythm for better dancing

Does it matter what school you go to??

Do Champions Succeed Because of Talent or Because of Their Teacher? Why Your Dance School Might Not Matter

☘️ Want higher jumps? Science says strength training might be the missing piece. ☘️

A recent study followed youth ballet dancers through 16 weeks of lower-body strength training (mostly bodyweight with progressive overload) to see whether it could improve jumping ability and power.

The results were pretty clear!

Here’s what happened:

🚨 Dancers who did not strength train actually lost power over the 16 weeks.
💪Those who strength-trained jumped higher, pushed off the floor faster, and produced more force.
🏋️Even basic, consistent lower-body work made a meaningful difference; no heavy gym lifting required.
🦵Stronger legs = better take-offs, more controlled landings, and more explosivity.

So what does this mean for Irish dancers?

If you want higher jumps and lift, sharpness, and less fatigue, strength training isn’t optional! It is necessary for development and progression.☘️🔥

Don’t know where to start? Give me a shout!

Paper: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/physiology/articles/10.3389/fphys.2021.774327/full

Are you confused about why you aren’t placing better even though you know you’re doing everything right in class?

The Hardest Thing to Teach Why Technique Isn’t What Separates Good Dancers from Great Ones

What to do if you don’t place as well as you hoped.

A “Major” Disappointment What to do when you don’t place how you hoped