Ausdancersoverseas

Ausdancersoverseas Ex-dancer, now registered doctor and sports nutritionist, researcher with special focus on eating disorders and low energy availability in dance

A contract is supposed to be the end goal. Proof that ‘you’ve made it’.But contracts don’t exist in a vacuum. They exist...
21/04/2026

A contract is supposed to be the end goal. Proof that ‘you’ve made it’.
But contracts don’t exist in a vacuum. They exist inside systems - with norms, pressures, and consequences. And if those systems include underfueling, injury, psychological strain, and are overall relentless, then staying isn’t automatically ‘the best/better’ option. It’s often just the more familiar one - because familiar feels safe.

The problem is, the human brain doesn’t rank options by ‘objectively best possible life’. It ranks them by perceived safety. And once something is coded as ‘this is how I survive (read: ‘best’)’, walking away doesn’t feel like growth. It feels like a risk.

Survival is not the same as ‘the best you’ll ever have.’
But in a relentless system, the Brian often stops knowing the difference.

That’s the level the conversation needs to reach; otherwise we keep mistaking survival patterns for informed choice.

Full blog post: link in bio.

Undernutrition is recognized globally as a medical and humanitarian concern. In some performance contexts, it is reframe...
10/04/2026

Undernutrition is recognized globally as a medical and humanitarian concern.

In some performance contexts, it is reframed as discipline.
When tickets can be sold, it is labeled excellence.

I am not okay with the state of the world, and definitely not with the state of the ballet world.

Here’s what the Chalamet debate missed: Link in bio

Dancers train like elite athletes. But their sleep schedules often look like this:- late rehearsals - late performances ...
12/03/2026

Dancers train like elite athletes. But their sleep schedules often look like this:
- late rehearsals
- late performances
- early class
Sleep quietly disappears from the timetable. And with it: recovery, learning, immune function, and injury resilience.
Sleep isn’t a luxury. It’s part of performance.

Full breakdown (= longer blog post): link in bio

These conversations shouldn’t be happening in private. But they do. Every week I listen to dancers apologize for bodies ...
06/03/2026

These conversations shouldn’t be happening in private.
But they do.
Every week I listen to dancers apologize for bodies that are exhausted, injured, underfueled, or simply human.
Too often, the solution offered in dance is still the same: be tougher, be thinner, cope better.
But many of the things dancers blame themselves for are not personal failures. They’re structural problems.
And until we say that out loud, dancers will keep trying to fix systems with their bodies.

Coeliac disease and a gluten-free diet are not a ‘wellness choice’ in dance. It’s an autoimmune condition. And not alwa...
02/03/2026

Coeliac disease and a gluten-free diet are not a ‘wellness choice’ in dance. It’s an autoimmune condition. And not always easy to navigate as a performer or athlete.
A recently published narrative review looked at gluten-free diets, nutrient absorption, microbiota and performance in athletes.
Here’s the distilled truth:
- gluten-free protects the intestine in dancers/athletes with Coeliac disease
- it doesn’t automatically optimize performance
- if you feel flat despite a gluten-free diet, it may be impaired nutrient absorption, low energy availability, total training load. Or several things at once.
The point is not to push through but to reassess with your healthcare team. You don’t need to feel flat ‘to make it’.
Full breakdown of the review (a good one, and much needed): link in bio

I almost forgot it’s Eating Disorder Awareness Week. Which probably says something … Awareness isn’t necessarily the bot...
26/02/2026

I almost forgot it’s Eating Disorder Awareness Week.
Which probably says something …
Awareness isn’t necessarily the bottleneck anymore. In dance, we don’t lack information. We lack structural courage and change.

‘Fighting for Change’ sounds great; it just requires changing the systems that reward underfueling (and have for decades) - not only treating the aftermath once someone breaks.

And yes, I treat dancers and athletes with eating disorders. But I also treat the endocrine disruption, connective tissue fallout, relative energy deficiency, hypermobility complications, neurodivergent traits, and the cultural patterns so many still act surprised about.
But:
None of it is random.
None of it is mysterious.
Awareness of cultural patterns is what drives change.

In dance, hypermobility is common. But so is REDs - relative energy deficiency in sport and dance. Reproductive health s...
25/02/2026

In dance, hypermobility is common.
But so is REDs - relative energy deficiency in sport and dance.
Reproductive health symptoms are often dismissed in both. This carousel connects the dots, based on a large study, recently published, by Imbroane et al: Assessing the Risk of Gynecologic and Obstetric Diagnoses in Patients with Ehlers-Danlos Sundromes. PMID 41572880

This post gives you an overview, the full article goes much deeper, including study structure, statistics, subtype nuance, and clinical implications for dance. Also including infographics connecting hypermobility and REDs.
It you’re a dancer, work in dance medicine, education or training, this matter.
🔗 in bio.

Polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) in dancers and athletes recovering from FHA (= missing periods) is frequently misi...
16/02/2026

Polycystic ovarian morphology (PCOM) in dancers and athletes recovering from FHA (= missing periods) is frequently misinterpreted as PCOS (Polycystic O***y Syndrome).
However, in dancers recovering from functional hypothalamic amenorrhea (FHA), a ‘polycystic-looking’ o***y is often a sign of a system rebooting - not PCOS.
Without full clinical history - including energy availability, training load, and stress exposure - diagnosis is incomplete; and many dancers and athletes have received treatment that wasn’t addressing their condition at all, potentially making it worse.

and I have published two detailed articles:
• a technical review for healthcare professionals
• a practical guide for dancers, teachers, and parents

Both are available via the link in bio .

Time for an inflammation audit. 📝Diet and dance culture love to point the finger at ‘inflammatory foods’ (usually just c...
05/02/2026

Time for an inflammation audit. 📝

Diet and dance culture love to point the finger at ‘inflammatory foods’ (usually just code for ‘anything that tastes good’), but they’ll ignore the three-alarm fire happening in their own nervous system.

The Inflammation Starter Pack:
❌ Running on empty (Low glycogen = high stress)
❌ ‘Active recovery’ that’s actually just another workout
❌ Living in a permanent state of fight-or-flight
❌ Dismissing life stress as ‘not a big deal’

If you’re feeling heavy, sore, and stagnant, the answer isn’t less food. It’s usually more carbs and a serious nap. Your body isn’t broken; it’s just exhausted. And it’s in your power to fix it.

WEIGHT-LOSS DRUGS IN DANCE?! I can no longer not talk about it as it comes up more and more often: weight-loss drugs in ...
02/02/2026

WEIGHT-LOSS DRUGS IN DANCE?!

I can no longer not talk about it as it comes up more and more often: weight-loss drugs in dance.

This is a conversation about care, pressure, and where responsibility sits.
fAt-talks and other institutional pressure affect every dancer.
Adolescent bodies deserve to develop without manipulation.
And medicine should protect from - not compensate for harmful systems.

Full text with evidence, analysis and extensive reference list linked in bio.

| Let me DE-INFLUENCE you You don’t need to be smaller to be a better dancer. In fact, the ‘ballerina aesthetic’ we see ...
26/01/2026

| Let me DE-INFLUENCE you

You don’t need to be smaller to be a better dancer. In fact, the ‘ballerina aesthetic’ we see in our feed is often just a romanticized version of low energy availability and/or REDs (relative energy deficiency in sport).
As a former dancer turned doctor and sports nutritionist, I’ve seen the damage up close: the stress fractures that end careers, the hormonal imbalances that last years, and the underfueling that steals the joy of the art form - and our happiness.
I’m de-influencing the idea that starving is a requirement for the stage. You are an athlete. You need glycogen to jump and focus, protein for repair, and enough energy overall to simply think and feel.
Let’s stop romanticizing the struggle and start fueling the performance.

What’s the one ‘rule’ you were taught in the studio that you now realize was actually harmful? Leave a comment 👇🏼

A SATIRICAL FORECAST An imagined future, written for reflection rather than a prediction or promise. It borrows the lang...
01/01/2026

A SATIRICAL FORECAST

An imagined future, written for reflection rather than a prediction or promise.
It borrows the language of inevitability purely for effect, not expectation.
No directors were harmed in the making of this article 😉.
Tradition, however, may require medical review.

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