Avoiding Awkwardness in Dancing

Last week in the dancing studio, I had overheard a few different people mention how awkward they felt while dancing and that it didn’t feel natural to them. Well, rest assured my friends, I’m here to tell you its normal for it to feel unnatural especially when you are first starting to learn something new.

I remember when I first started dancing for the first time, I felt so uncoordinated, unsure of myself, stiff, and awkward. As I kept dancing more and put in the practice, I got better in time. There are times right now when I’m training and learning new things that I experience feelings and thoughts of awkwardness all over again. But as I continually strive to get better, these feelings are becoming less and less common for me.

As you begin, it’s important to remember to be confident in yourself. Even if you don’t feel like you are, feel confident in not only what your doing, but what you’re thinking as well. If you have questions, it’s okay to ask your instructor. It’s important to have a positive attitude. Don’t overthink. People tend to dance better when they are not in their head too much. So, just let loose and enjoy the rhythm.

Before you start dancing, stretch and do a light warm up to get your blood circulating and your muscles warmed up. Both are super important and stretching will help you to avoid feeling stiff. It also helps when you learn a routine choreography. The routine will give you something specific to practice while also enforcing muscle memory. Practice makes perfect, so the more you practice the better you become. Just like anything else. Just know it takes time. Try not to get frustrated or overwhelmed with yourself. Breathe, relax and enjoy yourself.

Here are a few helpful tips to try at home to improve your frame and posture: If you get a hoola hoop and frame your arms around it while placing it in front of you, you can practice your frame while doing box steps. Another thing you can do is get a broom stick and align it to your spine while doing basic steps. This will help you with your posture. A lot of times people make the mistake of not having their head back far enough so that it’s in-line with the rest of your body. The broomstick will help insure that you accomplish this.

You can relate dancing to sports. When you’re just learning a new sport there are many layers involved and you wouldn’t be able to accomplish them all overnight. Dance is the same way. All professional dancers went through the similar experience when they first started as well. So, don’t be too hard on yourself, the awkward feeling of dancing is just a phase that will pass.

Article by Jacqui