Partner dancing might require good musicality and the right kind of attitude and even some acting skills to be done well, but it is most definitely a physical activity. This means that if you want to be a good couples dancer, then you need to have the right level of physicality. Without it, you are simply wasting your time trying to dance better. However, the good news is that anyone can, with the right kind of exercise, improve their physicality so that they are much better dancers and much more able to improve their dance ability. This article will cover areas you can work on so that you can become a better student of couples dancing.
Strength
This is a bit different to what you might at first think. Dance doesn’t really work the big muscle groups when compared to other types of exercise so lifting some weights will be unlikely to help. However, it does work the muscles associated with balance and with fluid movement. I will talk more about the need for fluid movement later so for now I will focus on the muscles used for balancing. You will notice this when you’re in a pose that you find hard to hold, but when you’re out of it you don’t really feel a burn.
If you experience this in dance, then you do not need to go lift more weights. If you do lift weights, then make sure that they are free weights so that you are working your balancing muscles. If you want to improve your strength for couples dancing, then try lifts on to your toes or one legged squats. The first exercise will increase the strength within your feet to help you hold various positions. The second will build up those balance muscles around your legs and hips so that you have the strength needed to hold various dance poses or move through them smoothly.
Flexibility
Flexibility
Partner dancing actually is unlikely to require a lot of flexibility. However, if you are flexible, then your body will move a bit easier, and you will find dance just the little bit easier to master. The legs and hips are obvious places to start. Can you touch your toes? Do your hips allow your legs to move freely in front and behind each other?
However, some of us will have troubles with good arm styling because our arms are a bit stiff. Try pulling each arm in front and across your chest with the other by the elbow and then behind your head before your next dance class to see if you feel any better.
Aerobic fitness
Many assume that partner dancing will be great cardiac exercise. It’s not bad, but it’s far from the greatest. If you’re hoping that dancing is going to really burn those calories, then I will am about to disappoint you.if you are going to engage in such dances, then you do need to work on your aerobic fitness. So give some thought to improving this fitness for better partner dancing ability, but don’t expect to see hug improvement.
Movement
A body can be strong and it can be flexible. But does yours move in a naturally graceful way that allows for good partner dance movement? You have probably noticed how dance teachers and other experienced dancers have this natural grace when they dance and even when they don’t. This has come from years of dance practice. The good news for you is that you can get this faster with dedicated exercises. Typically, the issue is with the hips and core. It’s not just a strength issue, it is a movement issue. Sometimes your hips or your core simply do not react the way they are meant to when you move. This is typically a result of our sedentary life style. We humans just don’t move around in the diverse ways that we used to, and we don’t get the right exercise.
To remedy this, lunges and abb exercises can help. Try doing some lunges to the front, to the side and twisting around and behind. This will get your hips working better. For the abbs: can you feel them tighten when you lean back or do you feel pain in your lower back? If it is in the back, then you abbs aren’t reacting how they should. Try some abb classes at you gym. Simple sit up are not enough, you abbs need to learn to turn on, not just be strong.
If you’re like me and find the gym (and other types of exercise) boring, then try some activity that works these parts of the body more intensely. Things like rock climbing or martial arts.
Men versus women
I am yet to work out why, but for some reason a lack of fitness seems to affect men in partner dancing a lot more than it does women. We all need some level of fitness to dance well, but men just seem to need it more. So if you’re a man and feel that you’re body just isn’t doing what you want it to do, then really give some of the above a try. If you’re a man or a woman and you think some specific physical development might help your couples dancing, then try the above. However you might find that you need to source some specific information on dedicated exercises that can’t be explained easily here. Not to worry, it is available. The e-book Dance Better Now has many exercises that you can engage in to become a much couples dancer.
Clint Steele
