pointe shoe fitter reacts to HALEY PHAM

if you walk away with anything from this video, know that pointe shoes are NOT made out of wood!!!!

@haleypham we would LOVE to fit you!!!

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Produced, Filmed & Edited by: Jazley Faith @jazzleyfaith @jazleyfaithphoto

[vortex-]

For a french person, “plié” means both “folded” and “bent”. Of course, we understand the difference between the two meanings but we use the same word to describe two different situations. Anyway it might not be the case for every type of French people (because we don’t always come from France) but I only know that I personally use “plié” for “folded” and “bent”.

[mscheyennelynnae]

For those wondering about “six” positions, and why she was confused it’s because in ballet there are only five positions. But jazz dancers are taught six positions, the sixth being feet parallel to each other. 🥰

[sugaplum]

The back thing is very real! I remember being so frustrated in ballet class back in the day bc I couldn’t get a middle split or a 90 degree arabesque no matter how hard I tried 😩 it was only recently (I’m in my 30s now) that a chiropractor worked with me on it and that’s helped with flexibility a lot as I still dance for fun. Hayley (and anyone else who’s dealing with this) should try ashtanga yoga - it’s doing wonders for me!

[wafflesthearttoad]

The decision I regret most in my life. Was quitting ballet THE YEAR BEFORE WE WERE SUPPOSED TO LEARN POINTE. The main reason I quit was because it was a different teacher and the new teacher really liked to blast the music extremely loud and I have very sensitive hearing. Tried moving to another studio, but it didn’t fit my learning style, they went extremely fast and I couldn’t comprehend what they were doing fast enough. It honestly made me hate ballet so I quit. 😞

[cranberry]

The bone thing isn’t an injury. It’s genetic, or at least it is for me. A 90 degree is sort of possible, but not with correct technique. You kind of have to twist your hips and cheat it, which drives ballet teachers crazy.

[isabelleblanchet]

Plié can mean folded, as in "J'ai plié des vêtements" "I folded clothes." But in the context of ballet, it's "bend". Google translate will never be as good as someone who is fluent in both languages.

And for the fused bones in the back, yes that can happen. I know someone who was born with several fused vertebra.

[cherrybomb]

4:14 this is too relatable! I did 7 years of ballet training, and then I moved to hip-hop 2 years ago. My lower body is a mess, but my upper body is still there

[kaelaleedaley]

RE: Spine fusion - it's probably a genetic bone deformity or lack of flexibility/insecure double jointedness in the hips, etc. Spinal fusion is usually a surgery performed for those with Spinal Cord Injuries but is being performed less and less these days because of the lack of mobility that inherently follows this procedure. I could, however, be completely wrong but I have a SCI and was a candidate for Spinal fusion before the doctors decided to do a Discectomy instead. I also have a friend who was born with an extra bone in her foot which made pointework impossible for her until she had surgery xx

[shieldmaidenforchrist]

Actually saw that video a while ago and the "wood" thing was driving me nuts too. Also, it's so clear that the shank is so hard it's holding her up, that's why she was able to hold herself up, in my opinion. If she had been fitted in a softer shank to start out I'm just guessing she wouldn't have been able to get up at all after a few releves once the demi broke in since she didn't have experience training the strength of the foot from demi to full pointe.

[EllenLouise]

Yes the fused bones are definitely a thing! My mum was born with her sacrum and last lumbar vertebrae fused, so she also struggles with range of movement through her legs and hips

[chryst]

I can relate to this video deeply. I went into ballet before traditional school. I was just given my first pair of pointe shoes before having to move halfway across the US. Once moved, I was diagnosed with bad scoliosis, and needed a spinal fusion. Fast-forward 10 years. I now have a baby girl who wants to learn ballet, and wants me to go with her as I taught her the basics. She has no clue that she can do so much more than I. 🥰

[laurabunny]

Yes, you can have a fused bone in the back. It could be that her sacrum and last lumbar vertebra never separated in development so it is just one bone. The opposite happens too where someone’s sacrum doesn’t fuse properly and they have 6 lumbar vertebra instead of 5 (and it can happen on just one side).

[bumblebeing]

Yup I have somewhat the same problem. My lowest 3 vertebrae aren't properly aligned so I can't keep my leg at 90° and keep my torso (somewhat) upright at the same time. I've tried doing it while someone holds my leg up and then in try to straighten my upper body but all that does is lift me of the floor(it's kinda fun to try). So bodies and what they can and can't do are weird (and fun and interesting)

[ThePointeShop]

howdy friends! 🤠 hope ya liked this one!
for past react videos, lots of people have asked for them to be longer - so we gave it a try.
what do you think?? preference on longer/shorter react vids? let us know!!

[jackr.]

Former dancer here. I quit ballet in my preteens because I could never do the proper angle on an arabesque and I struggled with turnout. Turns out I have scoliosis in my lumbar spine and had an untreated broken tailbone as a kid. So yes, spinal problems can absolutely mess up your leg and foot posture!

[MargueriteFan]

Josephine You are a joy to watch whether you are fitting pointe shoes and giving us clear intelligent information or reacting to a YouTube Video. The day is always made brighter by you. 건배

[Majestic-Yeti]

I can't believe how well she's doing on the pirouettes. This is my second year en pointe and my first year doing pirouettes en pointe and that is how I do them.

[andrewcummings]

The fused bone in the back is SO real, in fact I have the exact same thing. I had no idea why my hips were unmovable in my 4 years of dance and I reached a point where teachers would push their full weight into my forward folds and I would not budge. My chiropractor enlightened me after I had stopped dancing that I have a Transitional Lumbosacral Segment, which basically means that there is a fusion between the sacral and lumbar vertebrae. This stops a certain amount of movement that should be happening in the lower spine/hip areas.

[tristengamboa]

I was a gymnast for 8 years and could never get my back leg up high enough either. When I had recurring pain and finally saw a doctor to get an X-ray, they found I had Bertolotti’s syndrome. Apparently one of my vertebrae had fused to my sacroiliac joint and I had a few stress fractures. From all the movements that forced me to bend my back and bring my leg up I had actually been repeatedly fracturing it and the bone would keep fusing again.

[camillegraves]

As an ex dancer myself, she did real good for her first time on point...I used to do jazz, contemporary, modern, tap, & ballet, but never did point ballet...it was always an aspiration of mine, but I've been retired for over a decade or more and all my flexibility is gone-I promised myself imma get back into dancer shape and try to perform just one more time, maybe even try point ballet... I'm proud of her efforts for her first time...and ur commentary was informative, cause I didn't know that about the shoes at all... dancers that never did point ballet, we all think that there is wood block that u stand on in the bottom of the shoe...lol...thanks for the video.