Rond de jambe a Terre literally means ‘circle of the leg on the ground.’
A straight working leg moves in an arc while the toes lightly touch the floor.
What is the Purpose of a Rond De Jambe a Terre?
Rond de jambe a terre is usually done at the bar, and the exercise is used as a warm up for the hip joints while further challenging the development of control of turnout.
The circular motion of the leg is a building block to more complicated steps such as fouette turns or pas de basque.
How to get the most out of Rond De Jambe a Terre
In order to get the most out of your Rond de Jambe a terre you need to take note of the following:
- Keep your hips level at all times and really work that turnout.
- Keep your hips square to the front of the room.
- Think of lengthening our working leg and lifting off of it.
- Keep your moving foot well pointed and follow a clean path that is the same every time you go around.
- Start by doing a quarter rond de jambe from the front to the side, Then from the side to the back, before putting the two together. This is the way the girl in the video below does it.
- Lengthen the leg out from the hip and reach your toes out as far as possible.
