Beyond Strictly Dancing

Are you eager to elevate your dance skills? This in-depth resource details how athletic training can boost dancers’ agility, coordination, speed, endurance, and strength. Drawing on research not yet widely used in Ballroom and Latin American dance, it explores a world where gravity generates power and centrifugal force is key. Learn why counterbalance matters for technical accuracy and how characterisation adds depth to performances. The book also weaves in stress management, movement science, comparative methods, and nutrition advice to address typical challenges faced by Ballroom and Latin dancers. Both dancers and coaches will discover practical fitness and training tips designed to foster individuality, creativity, artistry, and musical expression.

Peter van der Veek (born 1960) boasts a distinguished career as a professional Ballroom and Latin American dancer and trainer. Inspired to write for dancers what has been done countless times for elite athletes, this is Peter's first handbook for dancesport devotees. An active youngster raised in Lisse, the Netherlands, his adolescent interest in ballroom dancing developed into an extensive international career representing both the Netherlands and New Zealand. After retiring from competitive dance, Peter’s enthusiasm for holistic development and lifelong learning drove him to qualify as a personal trainer, specialising in biomechanics, neurobiology, exercise physiology, and sports nutrition. Today, he inspires dancers to strive for athletic achievement while fostering appreciation for the social, sporting, and artistic dimensions of dance.