For our February issue’s Health column, we asked a few experts how to help dancers find alignment in their spines without overshooting. Here’s one tip, from Megan Williams:

“Finding the neutral pelvis can be tricky, because dancers have strong muscles that want to take over, like glutes and quads. Have a student take a demi-plié, and feel how the pelvis hangs without much support. Have her try to maintain the vertical position of her pelvis as she straightens her legs. There should be a crease at the front of her hips. Tucking erases that crease.” —Megan Williams, former Mark Morris Dance Group company member

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Photo by Kyle Froman