Expert: Dianne M. Buxton - 11/4/2007

Question
QUESTION: My
daughter's pointe teacher wants her to give up her toe pads.  What are the pros and cons of using toe pads in pointe shoes?  Can they help prevent potential injuries such as bunions, arthritis, hammertoe, stress fractures,bone spurs etc. I have these problems and I want to prevent her from experiencing my fate.

ANSWER: Hi Nancy. Pointe shoes being what they are, I don't see any reason why anyone should give up any kind of padding if it prevents pain. Even when a pointe shoe is a (gift from heaven) perfect fit, sometimes a pad or wrapping of some kind around the toes is still needed to work properly.

If her teacher believes that removing the padding is good for the character or some such idea, then that is terribly old fashioned. Bearing preventable pain doesn't make a dancer more professional.

You might ask her if she can check the fit of your daughter's shoe - maybe it can be improved at the next purchase. If so, less padding or sometimes none will be needed.

Personally, I used to be nauseous from pain in pointe classes. My class at that time had no help fitting our shoes, breaking them in etc. While padding was not forbidden, there was an unspoken air of "you'll get over the pain". When I got older and more independent I bought longer shoes and used LOTS of padding. I worked much better. I remember Karen Kain telling me once that she took 8 aspirins before performing "La Fille Mal Gardee" because of all the running around on pointe.

In her later years, she also switched to longer shoes and whatever padding she needed, and she describes this in her autobiography.

So, it seems like you need a conversation with her teacher...hopefully it will go well. While padding will prevent blisters and being blinded with pain while one tries to work, only well-fitting shoes (pointe and good roomy street shoes) will help prevent the other afflictions you've mentioned.

As far as I am concerned, dancing in needless pain can lead to any kind of injury because it is so distracting.

You might like to take a look at some of my articles and other professionals' videos re pointe work at http://www.theballetstore.com.

Please let me know how this goes!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: What does it mean when a teacher says that a pointe student must "feel the floor"?  Do toe spacers help reduce the occurance of bunions?  Can wrapping the knuckles of the toes prevent hammertoe?

Answer
Hi Nancy. I honestly don't know what a teacher means by "feel the floor", in regards to pointe work. Teachers tend to have their own expressions. Frankly, in pointe shoes, feeling the floor is not usually a problem.

Regarding both bunions and hammer toes, here's the thing with toes in pointe shoes.

Toes shouldn't be buckled or squished. The shoes need to have enough width. Bunions are from too narrow shoes, and are usually forming before pointe shoes come into the picture. You can definitely use toe spacers if there is a potential hereditary problem, but bunions are not a given just from the fact of doing pointe work.

Also, the toes should be strong enough to be straight, not buckled, in pointe shoes. If the second toe is longer, that is awkward, but then only the second toe might be buckled slightly. There is specific padding for the long second toe problem.

Here's two great exercises for the foot and toes. The first is dragging a towel along the floor. You need wood or other slippery surfaces. Throw down a hand towel. Put the toes on the edge of it, and pull the towel under the foot by grasping with the toes and pulling. If cramps occur, then the tiny muscles in the foot are weak. They can be strengthened. Do this for a few minutes every day.

For the toes, splay the toes and place them down onto the floor, one by one. Like playing the piano. Over and over. Splaying is stretching them out and lengthening them, as much as possible.

If a student has been curling the toes during initial training, in their soft shoes, then they will not have the strength needed to keep them long in pointe shoes. But the above exercises will help a lot.

Also, pointe work should start out as 15-20 min. at the barre, once or twice a week. Unless the dancer takes a class every day normally, that is about what she should do. With slow, careful exercises, there shouldn't be any worries about bunions or buckled toes.

I hope that helps, all the best.