Beyond Performance: Vanessa Bossardt, Fitness Entrepreneur
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(by Michel Sarda, courtesy of Bossardt)
It took an ankle injury for Vanessa Bossardt to discover she had an interest in physical therapy, anatomy, and Pilates. Her professional ballet career ended in 2003 at age 24, but that’s when she began her process of developing Balates, a fusion of Pilates and ballet. Bossardt currently teaches Balates at several Pilates studios, fitness centers, and resorts in the Scottsdale, AZ, region and has plans to create a teacher certification program next year.
As a professional dancer, Bossardt performed with the Colorado Ballet, Fort Worth Dallas Ballet and ultimately Ballet Arizona—until a painful bone chip in her ankle required surgery. “It caused nerve damage, forcing me to hang up my ballet shoes,” Bossardt says. “But it sparked my interest in physical therapy, Pilates, and rehabilitative exercise.”
She started brainstorming during her rehabilitation. After surgery, once her ankle had healed enough that she could teach ballet, she decided to pursue certification in Pilates with support from Career Transition For Dancers. She ultimately earned her certification for the mat, chair, reformer, and barrel, and she took courses in anatomy, injury, and special populations.
“I was eager to work with dancers or aspiring dance enthusiasts,” she says. “So I designed a system of exercise and artistry that strengthens, lengthens, and tones the body while also celebrating creative expression.” While performing traditional Pilates exercises, she might add a traditional fifth-position port de bras instead of just reaching toward the ceiling, or an elegant crossing of the wrists. “It honors the exercise as it was originally introduced but adds an artistic and balletic quality,” she says.
This spring, Bossardt and 12 dancers/models filmed an exercise DVD that will be available for purchase in January 2011. “I have been fortunate to keep my passion for dance alive, while pursuing other passions at the same time.”
Originally published in Beyond Performance, a supplement to Dance Magazine and Dance Teacher, September 2010
