Ballerinas: Daily Life

The typical day of a ballerina who is in an upcoming or current program may start early with an hour and half class to warm up and refine their technique. Class is usually followed by 4-6 hours of rehearsals, sometimes followed by an evening performance. On the dancer’s 1-2 days off a week, they may be found doing normal activities such as grocery shopping, laundry, errands or even a movie.

Ballerinas eat just about anything, even ice cream, not just carrot sticks and celery. They must eat a good balanced diet that provides plenty of protein in order to maintain the level of energy needed to exert their bodies during demanding physical rehearsals and performances. They may even eat all day to maintain this level. There are some dancers though who suffer from an eating disorder called anorexia nervosa in which the person starves themselves. This problem affects both professional dancers and non-professional dancers. Beverly