Why care about stabilitiy and a good axis? 6 reasons:

  1. As a follower: If you have a stable center, you can be led moves you never learned without thinking about it.
    As a leader: If you have a stable center, you can feel the axis of the follower without thinking and start improvising.
  2. It will give you stability and security in your dance.
  3. It is a pre-requisite to learn any advanced figures and moves in Tango. Without, you may be able to fake them – but you will never really learn to do them.
  4. Its really important for a fantastic dance experience.
  5. It will stabilze your back and prevent back problems from computer and office work.
  6. It will in general improve your posture – makeing you look and feel more confident and secure (in normal life).

1. Test: How good is your axis and center stability?

Everyone is partnering up and exercising basic moves (step forward, step backward, side step, rock step) to the music – not more then one step in any direction. Use small steps. Stay in position.

While doing this: One-by-one embrace with the teacher – and be surprised. This will test how well your axis and center stabilitiy is by how you react to moves not anticipated. If your axis and center stabilitiy is good, you will be able to feel and do the move – together with the lead. The teacher will give feedback and advice.

2. Advice: How to improve axis and center stability

Its only muscular, it can be trained – so you have the following options:

a) Do technical exercises outside of class (boring!) like these:

This alone will not make you a good Tango dancer, but will make everything much easier for you.

b) Find a trusted partner from class (or outside) and play / experiment with these exercises:

This alone will not make you a good Tango dancer – because you need to dance with others too (everyone is different), but will make everything much easier for you.

c) Go dancing at least once a week (better twice) outside of lesson / practica. Dance with more experience dancers as much as you can.

Where to go dancing:

Going dancing once a week in addition to classes will make you a good Tango dancer within a two years.

d) a+c or b+c will make you a fantastic Tango dancer within one year.

But one thing is important above everything: Focus on connection & communication. NOT on steps. Steps distract you. They will follow automatically, once connection & communication is established.

3. Breathing excersice: Feel your center (muscles)

This is what good center stability can make you do.

a) One hand on the belly, one hand in the back (below our ribs and above the pelvis: Slowly breathing in and out – trying to breath to were our hands are.

b) Put both hands on your belly – breath in and out deep and qickly.

c) Imagine you are at the beach in bathing outfit and you got more of a belly then you like. Now someone very attraktive comes along and you pull in you belly to look better. Hold it in – while still breathing calmly.

Do these once a day.

4. Basic leaning excerise

Partners lean into each other, the bodies straight but slightly leaning forward, toughing with the hands (but with relaxed hands and arms – important: hold your own!) weight shifting with each other to the music. Give each other feedback.

Be rooted in your feet. Pressure goes into the ground. Feel your center – feel your axis as it shifts from one leg to the other. Make sure it always goes from your foot to the top of your head. Your center connects your legs to your chest. If your center isn’t stable, your are disconnected.

Now move your pelvis slightly back and force to feel and activate your center muscles.

Release by activating those center muscles we explored NOT by pushing against the hande / arms or by sticking your butt out.

You can also do this against a wall.

5. The I-Move for everyone

Stand in closed position, muscle tension in your center, weight on the left foot. Arms streched out foreward.

Step foreward (with the right foot). Shift weight to the right foot, turn upper body to the left (disssociation).

Take a step back with the left foot (pushing from the right foot). Close (NOT shift weigth). Your are standing on your left foot now. Keep the muscle tension in your center.

Step foreward with the right foot (pushing from the left foot). Shift weight to the left foot, turn upper body to the right (disssociation).

Take a step back with the right foot (pushing from the left foot). Close (NOT shift weigth). Your are standing on your right foot now. Keep the muscle tension in your center.

Step foreward with the left foot (pushing from the right foot). Shift weight to the right foot, turn upper body to the left (disssociation).

…. and so on …

6. UI move – holding hands

Starting with the closed position leaders weight on the left foot, muscle tension in your center. Leaders walk (with their right foot) into the third lane to the left and close and stop.

While they shift their weight to the right foot, they turn their upper body to the left, to lead a side step for the follower.

Then the leaders make a back step leading the followers into a forward step on their left side. Close (NOT shift weigth). Your are standing on your left foot now. Keep the muscle tension in your center.

Leader make a step forward, leading the followers into an back step (followers make sure, that the distance is always the same). Stop in closed position. While they shift their weight to the left foot, they turn their upper body to the right, to lead a side step for the follower.

Then the leaders make a back step leading the followers into a forward step on their right side (followers make sure, that the distance is always the saem). Close (NOT shift weigth). Your are standing on your right foot now. Keep the muscle tension in your center.

…. and so on …

see video below

7. UI move – no contact

Same move as above – just without the hands – followers focus on the chest of the partner and try to always keep the same distance. Keep your center active.

8. UI move – open embrace

Same move as above – just in open embrace – followers focus on the movement of chest of the partner and try to always keep the same distance. Keep your center active.

9. UI move – closed embrace

Same move as above – just in cosed embrace – followers make sure to always keep contact with the chest of the partner. Keep your center active.

10. UI move – appilado embrace

Same move as above – just in appilado embrace – followers make sure to always keep contact with the chest of the partner. Keep your center active.

The video

(notice the fluid role change when dancing to the music):