T'ain't What Ya Do, It's the Way that Ya Do it

"How can I make myself look good as a dancer?" It's a question I've been getting from students lately. They have gotten themselves to a level where they feel comfortable on the dance floor as a social dancer but they want to improve the quality of their movement. All of us move in a way that is unique to ourselves but there are some things you can do as a dancer to make your movement smoother and more stylish-and more "you".

When your mother told you to stand up straight she was doing you a favor. As dancers, we can only work with the body we've grown into and if we have created bad habits in posture along the way, we'll need to break those first. Pay attention to how you move as you sit, stand and walk. Ideally we should be creating a straight back by engaging our core (the area around the middle of your body, especially the abdominal muscles) dropping our shoulders and pulling our shoulder blades down toward the floor and stacking our neck and head directly over that. As children we did that naturally.

You can do that sitting there now as you read this. If you consciously practice good posture during the day it will stop feeling awkward and start feeling GOOD. Your body will thank you! Get a buddy to remind you when you head back to your old habits.

Stretch! Once we pass our 30's it's a cruel truth that we start to loose our natural strength and flexibility. Take a yoga class, a Pilates class, a dance strengthening class or a ballet class. All of those classes will work on your core too. And, do sit-ups. Yeah I know, I hate them too.

Work on balance (see classes above) You can also do simple balance exercises at home. Stand on one foot with the other foot slightly raised for 10 seconds, then change feet and do the same. Do it 10 times. Do that but bend the standing knee as well. Do that but raise a bent knee even with your hips. Now, do all of that with your eyes closed. You will find that if you engage your core it will be easier and if you are barefoot you will get a good sense of how you distribute your weight. Knowing where you are shifting your weight as you dance makes your dancing look smoother and allows for more precise leading and following.

Work on endurance. When you are in better aerobic shape you will feel less winded and look more energetic as you dance. You'll also be able to dance more dances.

Have someone take video of you when you are dancing. We all hate watching ourselves dancing but try doing this exercise as you watch the video. Look at yourself as just another dancer on the floor. Find two or three things about that dancer that looks good to you (examples might be: they are engaged with their partner, they added some fun footwork at one point, they have a nice bounce in that Charleston) Now find one or two things that could be better (they are pulling themselves toward their partner in the swing out, they look at the floor too much) Those are your dance goals for now. Wait a while and then ask to be videoed again and check on those goals. Change them as you improve.

As you watch the videos you'll start to recognize a certain style or way of moving that comes naturally to you. Look at dancers on YouTube and try to find people who match your style. Watch them and copy them. All art is derivative. If you go to any major art museum you will find students sketching and, if allowed, painting what the Masters before them have created. Just be aware that to be a carbon copy of someone is not the goal. You are learning from them in order to be a better dancer who dances like you.

Stephan and Bethany dance differently than...



Juan and Sharon, who dance differently than...



Kevin and Jo



Variety is the spice of life! By the way, those dancers didn't just jump onto the dance floor right out of the gate looking like that. They worked hard to develop their style and work hard to keep evolving.

Loosen up! When you go out social dancing people are going to watch you and sometimes they will watch you intently and YOU WON'T EVEN KNOW IT! If that fact freaks you out you might as well go back to dancing to Abba in your bedroom. Dance time=playtime...otherwise why would you add an extra chore to your life? Put yourself in a dance bubble with your partner and make them the only other person in the room. Smile more, laugh if something funny happens, cheer your partner on, encourage play in your dancing and you will discover more about your dancing style. As an exercise, join the Ministry of Silly Walks.



Well, you don't have to be that silly if you don't want to, but when you have a distance to walk try to vary how you walk every block. Dance in slow motion, dance like you are underwater, or on fire or weightless. Think of an animal and dance like it might if it stood on two legs. You might just come up with something awesome. Someone came up with the Camel Walk, right? Do it in front of a mirror and try to repent the moves you like the best. Video yourself doing it.


Above all, to thine own self be true-dance like YOU.