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I thought I had my spins under control, but now have doubts. I was taught that you step out with your right foot as it propels you around, but have recently been told, keep your feet close, this has really helped with the speed of my spins. I have had a long time habit of planting my left foot firmly and use it as a pivot point, (from my ballroom dancing days). Confession I always dance with some kind of foot covering, but thats another post. The friction would be unbelievable without shoes. Which leads me to ask "do you lift that left foot as you spin?" Even if it's ever so slightly? I've looked at clips of the pros spinning but can't make out exactly whats going on apart from the right foot doing most of the work.
So the question is do you lift both feet?
I didn't really get any definitive answers last time I posted this.
So I recorded myself, using various spin methods and picked the one that looked best. I did have fast spins in mind...but am interested in all tempos. I get all the other guidelines, staying low, spotting @1 o'clock, holding your core etc.
Would love to hear how the greats do it.
thanks so much
So the question is do you lift both feet?
I didn't really get any definitive answers last time I posted this.
So I recorded myself, using various spin methods and picked the one that looked best. I did have fast spins in mind...but am interested in all tempos. I get all the other guidelines, staying low, spotting @1 o'clock, holding your core etc.
Would love to hear how the greats do it.
thanks so much
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Fri, May 8, 2009 - 9:09 AMOh...the last time I tried to help, I got my spins bass-ackwards...with the pivot, the left foot stays in place and your right foot moves you around...and the paddle turn is where you move both feet...L/R/L/R, etc...
During the pivot, your L foot really doesn't leave the ground...but during other turns, it has to, just a bit, in order to fascillate the turn...
It is best to keep the feet as close together as possible, as this is what helps with the speed of your turns...the further out you place your foot, the slower your turn is going to be...
That is all...
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Fri, May 8, 2009 - 9:18 AMI'm by no means a 'great', but I think my spins are decent (or at least a lot better than they used to be). I found they improved a lot when I started keeping my feet mostly flat and more grounded; my right foot propels me but stays directly under me the whole time, and the left heel just lifts up a little to move position. I don't find the friction terrible and I dance barefoot all the time. -
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Fri, May 8, 2009 - 6:14 PMMaral dear, come now... your spins are better than decent...
:)
::hugs::
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Fri, May 8, 2009 - 2:25 PMFootUndeez help with the friction. I love my zebra print ones!
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Fri, May 8, 2009 - 10:32 PMmy left foot does stay planted, and just shifts in place as I spin. I almost always wear shoes when I dance, so I don't have the friction problem there.
ATS spins are propelled by the right foot, and you're right, you wouldn't want to step out too far with the right foot, as that would pull you off your center and make your turns less stable. Your right foot should be touching the ground at roughly 1:00 and 7:00, so you're stepping your right foot on a diagonal.
Spotting is your best friend when it comes to spinning, and it takes some time to get the hang of it. You do want to spot at about 1:00, then drag your vision to 12:00, if that makes sense. Also, make sure that when you start your spins, you spot the second you set up to go into spins.
Also, good dance posture, shoulders back and down, and head level will all help keep you stable in your spins.
Hope this helps! -
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Fri, May 8, 2009 - 10:49 PMSometimes I feel like I'm never going to get consistently good at spins. I will agree with the comment here about spotting right off the bat....if I don't do that, I'm all over the place from the get go. And the foot being closer in to your body......weight being over the left foot, this keeps you centered. I have to think of these things everytime though. I wonder if there will ever be a time when I can just do them, beautifully, successfully without having to think so much. -
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Fri, May 8, 2009 - 11:33 PMLeana, I never thought I'd get spins. It wasn't 'til I'd been dancing 6 years, in the troupe for a year, and working on San Francisco Beledi, that I finally got comfortable with spins. -
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Tue, May 12, 2009 - 10:46 PMThat gives me hope! Thanks Ms. Crankypants! I've only switched to Tribal 1 1/2 years ago and though I've made it to Advanced level, I am always working on perfecting things. Spins are part of that. I'm hoping that one day i just 'do' them and I'm comfortable! Thanks! I'll keep working on it and not be so hard on myself in the process! -
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Wed, May 13, 2009 - 5:13 AMHun, I think we are ALL hard on ourselves when it comes to our dance...we want to be perfect and regardless of how good we REALLY are, we always see ourselves as not nearly good enough...
Personally, I always feel like my hands are awkward and just don't look very graceful...I made that comment in class while we were doing some solo improv for kind of a 'homework' assignment and everyone pretty much had a look of bafflement on their faces...told me, not in so many words, that I was crazy...my hands looked just fine...just goes to show that we are always our own worst critics...
Just keep it up and one of these days, you'll be the queen of spins!
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Sun, May 10, 2009 - 10:33 AMWendy's note about the posture seems to be one of the biggest parts of it for me: I purposely *super* lift (like max. lift) my chest/ribs, draw the shoulder blades down my back, and keep my head directly centered b/w my shoulders, and that keeps me on center.
If your chest drops, or head starts tilting, it creates "drag" in the momentum of the spin, and your upper body will pull you off your center...
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Mon, May 11, 2009 - 5:47 PMThank you so much!
well seems I am doing all that is mentioned.
Some seem to have their heels quite low to the ground, is there any preference, up on toes, flat footed, foot low but heel not touching...?
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Mon, May 11, 2009 - 10:57 PMI tend to *slightly* lift my left heel, and pivot on the ball, going flat footed as I place the right foot. Some people spin on their heels. It really varies.
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Re: What are your feet doing when you spin?
Wed, May 13, 2009 - 9:43 AMI think you should just play with different foot positions to figure out what works well for you. I've found I like to do fast spins pivoting on the ball of my foot, but I prefer to do slow turns (like reverse turn, propeller, etc.) pivoting on the heel.
Just watch out for your knees with any and all turns! It's super easy to torque your knees if you aren't allowing the foot to pivot freely. If you're spinning on a sticky floor (like carpet), you be better off wearing dance shoes of some sort.
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