Monday 19 November 2007

Ow

I spent about the last forty-five minutes of my regular class today rotating on the ball of my right foot.

Ow.

We were doing colgadas and I more or less got it - not easy, but very exciting when it works.

I got the going off-axis, I got the going back on-axis, I was a bit puzzled about swinging the axis around and didn't quite get it but started to feel how it might go, and I didn't entirely get what I should have done with my free leg, although I think the answer to that suggested itself on the train home. On the way home I always scribble down a summary of what we did, what I thought was interesting or important, and whatever problems and solutions I encountered, so I can look back when I forget things. Just writing it down - explaining it to the notebook - helps me understand and make connections anyway.

I'm looking forward to next week's class when I can try again. With luck, my right foot will have stopped hurting.

2 comments:

tangobaby said...

Ow is right. Poor feet. They can never totally get used to this sort of treatment no matter how much you dance. Sometimes I think teachers forget we can't repeat something like that over and over again for an hour without incurring some pain.

At least the endorphins you get from dancing help mask the discomfort for a while. Do you have some good practice shoes for these workshops?

msHedgehog said...

They do forget sometimes. Thousands of ochos are nearly as bad!

I only have three pairs of dancing shoes, but they're all good quality. I also always use the little silicone ball-of-foot pads that are sold as "party feet".

For this particular class I wore the shoes I dance best in, which are actually designed for salsa. They have good grip and I knew I'd need it. I usually wear my old pair of Werner Kerns (my first - nearly ten months old) because they have closed toes, but they've lost their grip and need re-soling, and the only cobbler I'd trust with them is a pain to get to. My other pair are Darcos and I only wear them for social dancing.

I could get some dance flats, but I'm not really sure I want to. It matters to me whether I'm wearing a heel or not - it affects what I learn to do with my hips, so I'd rather my dance and practice shoes were the same.