Do you have to be Fit for Tango?

[rui resende]

Do you think for reaching higher levels in Tango dancing you need to be Fit??
or you think it is not necessary?

[Zoopsia59]

Do you think for reaching higher levels in Tango dancing you need to be Fit??
or you think it is not necessary?

I think you have to be pretty fit to do stage or show tango. I don't think you have to be extra fit to achieve higher levels in milonguero.. Its not like those 80 year old milongueros are all that "fit" by any athletic standard.

Other styles fall somewhere in between depending on the style.

But being fit would help more than hurt, so might as well be as fit as possible, eh?...:cool:

[Angel HI]

One should strive to be physically fit...period.

[Ampster]

One should strive to be physically fit...period.

DITTO! :cool:

[el_de_la_esquina_rosada]

No, it is not necessary.
I have been attending several local milongas. There are a couple of severely overweight guys who always have women wanting to dance with them.
They usually do not do much fancy stuff. My friends like these guys because they have good frame, musicality, and they do no throw at them complicated moves unexpectedly. My friends also love the way these guys walk and do the simple stuff.

[Joy In Motion]

I think it depends on what you mean by "higher level." Do you place a greater value on connection, musicality and improvisation/creativity, or do you define a higher level as consisting of displaying greater athleticism through tricks? I find it difficult to believe that someone who does Argentine tango on a very regular basis and really cares about their body (which serious dancers typically do) would not be at least in somewhat decent shape unless it were due to their genetics or some medical condition (or emotional issues).

I think ultimately there is a difference between dancing for personal enjoyment and dancing for the enjoyment of others (i.e., performance). You obviously do not have to be in good shape to dance. Coordination, balance and technique through training, practice, and natural ability have more to do with how good of a dancer you become than your shape or your weight. However, when it comes to performance, aesthetics obviously are important and only the truly great can make their audience overlook that expectation. And there are some physical limitations that affect the performance of tango tricks as well as stamina when someone is overweight.

But Angel HI is right, everyone should care about their health and their self-respect regardless of how far they plan on advancing in the dancing world. And dancing does by its very nature emphasize taking pride in your body - how it moves, feels, and looks. I would imagine that if you didn't care much about your body before, learning to dance would encourage you to take care of yourself physically, mentally and emotionally. I think the discipline and pride that dance encourages can help people with weight or health issues.

[newbie]

Do you think for reaching higher levels in Tango dancing you need to be Fit??
or you think it is not necessary?

I've heard Roberto Tonet, in 12 Tangos - Adios Buenos Aires (ht tp://w w w.imdb.com/title/tt0459733) explain that the woman has to be young and fit. He was himself quite fit for a man of his age.

[Me]

Well, I think we'd all agree that it is no fun to dance with somebody who is wheezing and sweating their way through a dance!

So I guess my answer is, yes. Fit. Or, at least, healthy.

[dchester]

How fit is Chicho?

[newbie]

Quite fit. He has lost a lot of pounds since he's back in Argentina.

[Ampster]

How fit is Chicho?

If you watch all his performances in CITA videos from 2004 to the present, he has shrunken A LOT. So, I surmise that he is progressively getting fit.

[Dave Bailey]

Do you think for reaching higher levels in Tango dancing you need to be Fit??
or you think it is not necessary?
As a leader, I don't think fitness is vital. As a follower, it may be a little more important.

I have noticed that a lot of women in AT are quite slim (I know, slim <> fit), but less so for the men. Or possibly it's the shoes :)

[dchester]

Quite fit. He has lost a lot of pounds since he's back in Argentina. If you watch all his performances in CITA videos from 2004 to the present, he has shrunken A LOT. So, I surmise that he is progressively getting fit.
So, before he lost all the weight and became fit, was he a good dancer?

[Heather2007]

[quote=rui resende;594348]Do you think for reaching higher levels in Tango dancing you need to be Fit??.[quote]

What do you mean by "fit". Fitness comes on many, many levels so it depends from what level you are speaking.

And note: being slim does not indicate fitness (in my vocabulary) neither does storing a little bit more fat around the middle indicate unfitness.

Note further: Have just returned from the Osteopath with a verdict of "your spine is unfit as a result of your years of fitness". So again, to compound my view - just because a YouTube Babe can scoop her leg higher than her breastline does not necesasrily indicate any degree of "fitness" - in much the same way (as it has been reported here), a Couch Potato generally has less need of a Chiropracter than, say, a gymnast or a ballet dancer.

[newbie]

So, before he lost all the weight and became fit, was he a good dancer?

Good? He was great. Now he's great and fit.

[bordertangoman]

If you watch all his performances in CITA videos from 2004 to the present, he has shrunken A LOT. So, I surmise that he is progressively getting fit.

I have an instruction VHS video of Chicho before he became bear-sized; but his weight has never affected the lightness of his footwork; so I assume fitness has never been an issue for him.

[dchester]

Good? He was great. Now he's great and fit. Then that would seem to indicate you do not have to be fit, to be a great dancer.

[newbie]

Then that would seem to indicate you do not have to be fit, to be a great dancer.

But then you have to be Chicho.

[rui resende]

I totally agree with newbie, there is just one Chicho, dancers like him apear time to time!!
and covers that ( not so fit) with genius and class

[bordertangoman]

I totally agree with newbie, there is just one Chicho, dancers like him apear time to time!!
and covers that ( not so fit) with genius and class

I totally agree!

[dchester]

I totally agree with newbie, there is just one Chicho, dancers like him apear time to time!!
and covers that ( not so fit) with genius and class
In any case, the question has been answered. To dance at a higher level, Chicho has proved it is not necessary to be fit. In fact, Chicho was not just at a higher level, he danced at the highest level. I certainly believe there are others who can dance at a high level (albeit not as high as Chicho), while not being "fit". It may not be what is typical, but it does happen.

[bordertangoman]

It helps to be fitter than the students you teach ( which it has to be said isn't difficult as we are becoming a nation of web potatoes)

[new-ish]

On youtube, there is a video of Carlos Gavito dancing at La Viruta with Geraldine Rojas. I believe he was in the later stages of cancer at that point in time and the video notes that it was his last performance. So I don't think cardio capacity or physical strength is that important.

My Tango Teacher in Buenos Aires does note that many DJ's do some Tropical, Paso Doble (you have to see it to believe it) and swing for older Milongueros who don't quite have the energy for fast Milonga Tandas.

[Angel HI]

On youtube, there is a video of Carlos Gavito dancing at La Viruta with Geraldine Rojas. I believe he was in the later stages of cancer ..... So I don't think cardio capacity or physical strength is that important.

My Tango Teacher in Buenos Aires does note that many DJ's do some Tropical, Paso Doble (you have to see it to believe it) and swing for older Milongueros who don't quite have the energy for fast Milonga Tandas.

Cardio capacity and physical strength is that important! This is true not only of dance, but of all physical activities. As for Gavito, yes, he was not in good health at that time. The reason it appears that he is not suffering is because he was just that great.

On a lighter side, if one were about to drop dead on the spot, they would look good with Geraldine. :)

[Zoopsia59]

On youtube, there is a video of Carlos Gavito dancing at La Viruta with Geraldine Rojas. I believe he was in the later stages of cancer at that point in time and the video notes that it was his last performance. So I don't think cardio capacity or physical strength is that important..

What a coincidence. I just today had a lesson with someone who danced with him during his illness. (Not GR) One of the things I wanted to work on was that balance of being solidly grounded but creating a lifted (rather than downward) feeling for your partner at the same time. She talked about dancing with Gavito and how she had to really be conscious of helping him by lifting him up, not with her arms or anything but with her body. Any heaviness in her would have been very difficult for him.

It was a great lesson by the way, but I'm still having trouble finding that ability to draw energy up from the floor by being well grounded into it.

[Zoopsia59]

On youtube, there is a video of Carlos Gavito dancing at La Viruta with Geraldine Rojas. I believe he was in the later stages of cancer at that point in time and the video notes that it was his last performance. So I don't think cardio capacity or physical strength is that important..

Assuming I am watching the video you are refering to, at the risk of being thrown off Dance Forums, and being banned in perpetuity from all tango events worldwide, I have to say (looking around for quick exits and lowering my voice)

I don't like Geraldine in this video
(scooting further away for safety)

No really, at least in the early part of the video, the amount of arch she has in her lower back to keep her legs vertical while pressing forward with her lifted chest looks more than just awkward... it looks PAINFUL. It makes me wince sometimes. And no, I'm not just talking about the volcada like moves.

She's not the only famous follower I've seen do this, and I have yet to see anyone make it look good. (IMHO) Its just not a style I like, I guess, but its also a posture I would NEVER recommend to a student unless they are just very strong and flexible. (and thin)

Many of us have enough trouble using our abs and protecting our backs without doing this sort of over-arching. You have to have strong abs, and USE them, to dance this way without developing back problems. (And it also tends to make the butt look bigger, and the belly flab more pronounced, which frankly, few of us need help doing.)

There. I said it. I guess I'll just go hang out in the doghouse with Angel now (for his comments on Jennifer Bratt)

[dchester]

There. I said it. I guess I'll just go hang out in the doghouse with Angel now (for his comments on Jennifer Bratt)
I checked with my beagle. He says he can accommodate you, but Angel will have to find a new place to hang out.

:o

[Ampster]

She's not the only famous follower I've seen do this, and I have yet to see anyone make it look good. (IMHO) Its just not a style I like, I guess, but its also a posture I would NEVER recommend to a student unless they are just very strong and flexible. (and thin)

Many of us have enough trouble using our abs and protecting our backs without doing this sort of over-arching. You have to have strong abs, and USE them, to dance this way without developing back problems. (And it also tends to make the butt look bigger, and the belly flab more pronounced, which frankly, few of us need help doing.)

There. I said it. I guess I'll just go hang out in the doghouse with Angel now (for his comments on Jennifer Bratt)

I have to side with you on this one. I know, and have danced with several "well known" follows who do this, and teach this (Don't get me wrong. I do like watching a woman's beautiful backside), but, it does look awkward, and in the long run, is not good for your back/posture.

[Steve Pastor]

In general I agree that this is not a good posture. I've become less of an absolutist, however, since learning more about canyengue. I now give myself more license, especially in the "bent knee" and twisted hips area. (My butt is big enough without sticking it out, thank you.)
We would only know if these "follows", or women, as I like to think of them, have this in mind...


This posture of canyengue--a word directly of Kongo origin, like milonga and malambo--is one of its most African features. Dancers are stone-faced, the knees flexed, rear extended, as couples meet in a leaning embrace derived from European couple dancing. Tango moves like quebradas (a hip twist), cortes ("breaks") and sentadas (the woman seated on the man's thigh), which Thompson relates to the bumping of bellies, hips or rears called "bumbakana," have Kongo ancestry.

http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A31481 (http://www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A31481)
a review/inerview with the author of Tango: An Art History of Love (Pantheon, 2005)

[Me]

It was a great lesson by the way, but I'm still having trouble finding that ability to draw energy up from the floor by being well grounded into it.


It is hard. I think we all struggle with this. Just this week I was working on this and was annoyed with myself to discover how much I had let myself go...

I've found thinking 'grounded' makes me think too much of bending my knees and getting into the floor when, in actuality, it has much more to do with ankle flexibility and maintaining floor contact with the inside edges of my feet.

[Zoopsia59]

I've found thinking 'grounded' makes me think too much of bending my knees and getting into the floor when, in actuality, it has much more to do with ankle flexibility and maintaining floor contact with the inside edges of my feet.

Actually the teacher I mentioned would tell you it has nothing to do with your feet either. (although she would agree that your free foot should be maintaining contact with the floor unless you are doing a move that deliberately raises it)

I had been thinking that being soft in the knees and ankles made you better grounded. But then she did this.. thing... magic... she stood WAY up on tippy toe (and she has those feet... you know, the feet we followers all wish we had!) and locked her knees and said "Push me over". So I gave a little push on her breastbone and pushed her right over. THEN she stood that way again.. looked exactly the same to me... and said "Now push me over"

The woman was a frig** WALL!

I said "What is this tango voodoo you are doing??!?!"

(And no, she wasn't just pushing back against me to keep from falling over... There's a difference to the way pushing a wall feels vs pushing something that is actively pushing back)

It all had to do with her core and abs and pressing down while lifting and getting the hips rotated just so and all kinds of internal muscle stuff in the lower belly and groin area and relaxing just right and frankly, I still think it was just some kind of weird Jedi trick!

The first thing I thought of was those martial arts masters of myth and legend who are so grounded into the earth and its energy that not only they can't be pushed over, they can't be lifted OFF the earth either. But whenver I've seen that or heard of it, the person is PLANTED. Knees bent, everything obviously pushing DOWN. She was UP!

I'm still working my mind and body around the stuff she worked on with me, but I'll post more about it as I start to apply it successfully.

I think I'm gonna need to use the Force.

[Angel HI]

I guess I'll just go hang out in the doghouse with Angel now (for his comments on Jennifer Bratt)

:doh: GEEZ !! Don't you people forget anything!?

Assuming I am watching the video you are....I don't like Geraldine in this video (scooting further away for safety)

It is no secret that I am a huge Geraldine fan, but..... A DJ who fancied humself as a teacher (though he is much better now), once posted a video of Geraldine, and touted that 'this" (that which he was pretending to know by osmosis, was the true tango. What was disgusting was that she and her partner were the only ones in the BsAs milonga who were flitting and flying around the floor in teh same inappropriate manner that we all have been chastized for when we were beginners. So even the greats are not right 100% of the time.

I checked with my beagle. He says he can accommodate you, but Angel will have to find a new place to hang out.

:o

No need. Given that "angels" have to answer to a ...Higher Authority"..., my one room doghoouse has grown into a Taj Mahal type thingy. Heck, I rent space to everyone else. Your beagle, too, if necessary. :rocker:

[Angel HI]

Actually the teacher I mentioned would tell you it has nothing to do with your feet either. (although she would agree that your free foot should be maintaining contact with the floor unless you are doing a move that deliberately raises it).

I understand what Me is talking about. She is referring to being grounded in motion rather than standing. The ability to move through the feet --placing, w/o rolling -- being light, but simultaneously grounded, 'is' why all of the greats have those great looking feet.

I still think it was just some kind of weird Jedi trick!

Actually, you have a background in other dance, yes? If one has studied Alexander Jazz (the seperation of energy centers and creating postures), what the teacher was doing makes perfect sense. We learned how to do it in jazz. Proved to be "tremendously" helpful in AT.

The first thing I thought of was those martial arts masters

There's a thread floating somewhere in the archives about this.

Knees bent, everything obviously pushing DOWN. She was UP!

Not pushing down...centered.

I think I'm gonna need to use the Force.

Even Angels need the Force on this one. :notworth:

[tangoking]

IMO, fitness is absolutely essential to dancing. By fit I mean good endurance, muscle strength, flexibility, and low body fat..

Note further: Have just returned from the Osteopath with a verdict of "your spine is unfit as a result of your years of fitness". So again, to compound my view - just because a YouTube Babe can scoop her leg higher than her breastline does not necesasrily indicate any degree of "fitness" - in much the same way (as it has been reported here), a Couch Potato generally has less need of a Chiropracter than, say, a gymnast or a ballet dancer.
Not sure who said this, but, "It's better to wear out than to rust."

[spot]

Note further: Have just returned from the Osteopath with a verdict of "your spine is unfit as a result of your years of fitness". So again, to compound my view - just because a YouTube Babe can scoop her leg higher than her breastline does not necesasrily indicate any degree of "fitness" - in much the same way (as it has been reported here), a Couch Potato generally has less need of a Chiropracter than, say, a gymnast or a ballet dancer.

But let's compare that to diabetes, obesity, heart disease, osteprosis and depression that is due to the couch potato lifestyle.

Plus which, you get to dance.

[Heather2007]

IMO, fitness is absolutely essential to dancing. By fit I mean good endurance, muscle strength, flexibility, and low body fat..."

So fat people can't dance right? A bit like saying white men can't jump. WRONG! And what part of dancing in a milonga would a follower (or leader) need to be flexible have good endurance (eh?) or have muscle "strength"? Good posture, good balance, good technique and good attitude, definitely. Oh and of course, my old favourite china: A good sense of rhythm. Which most - nay, the good majority of men is lacking. Fat or thin.

Not sure who said this, but, "It's better to wear out than to rust."

Better to "wear out" than "rust"? Hmm - trust me. There really is no making light of a dwindling spinal column. (Result of which is due to a high level of keeping fit). :sad:

[Heather2007]

But let's compare that to diabetes, obesity, heart disease, osteprosis and depression that is due to the couch potato lifestyle.

Plus which, you get to dance.

Diabetes - scoffing heaps of complex carbs/sugary things in front of the TV yes - ALSO - hereditary and yes, (gasp) some skinny active people have it too. Our GB Gold Medalist Coxless Four Rowman at the Sydney Olympics - Steve Redgrave - suffers from diabetes.

Obesity - a sedentary/couch spud lifestyle yes - but don't rule out when ever you clock eyes on a fat person it could be as a result of thyroid problems or steroids taken for an autoimmune disease - rheumatoic arthritis or worse, weight gained as a result treatment for cancer.

Heart Disease - Three years ago I had a heart attack (Englanders: whilst watching X-Factor - go figure) and baffled all doctors as they "couldn't see why the left venticral suddenly stopped the flow of blood". And get this - ha, ha, ha - whaaaattt??? Could have happened as a result of my "fitness" that is too much cardio on the heart muscle. The heart, noted the cardiologist, is like a computer is only programed to do so much...

Osteoporosis is NOT!!! due to a sedentary lifestyle (Although weight-bearing exerices helps strengthens and maintains the density of the bones). Occuring more in women at the outset of menopause - the drop in estrogen levels and pregnant mothers if their calcium levels are low. Men get it too. And thin ones.

Depression often times leads to that "can't get out of bed/off the sofa/stuff my face/can't leave the house feeling, however, it is not as a result of. (And some even get over it by killing themselves). So don't be light on the issue of depression. It is a serious thing laying in wait for any of us. Be he fat or thin.

[spot]

Diabetes - scoffing heaps of complex carbs/sugary things in front of the TV yes - ALSO - hereditary and yes, (gasp) some skinny active people have it too. Our GB Gold Medalist Coxless Four Rowman at the Sydney Olympics - Steve Redgrave - suffers from diabetes.

Obesity - a sedentary/couch spud lifestyle yes - but don't rule out when ever you clock eyes on a fat person it could be as a result of thyroid problems or steroids taken for an autoimmune disease - rheumatoic arthritis or worse, weight gained as a result treatment for cancer.

Heart Disease - Three years ago I had a heart attack (Englanders: whilst watching X-Factor - go figure) and baffled all doctors as they "couldn't see why the left venticral suddenly stopped the flow of blood". And get this - ha, ha, ha - whaaaattt??? Could have happened as a result of my "fitness" that is too much cardio on the heart muscle. The heart, noted the cardiologist, is like a computer is only programed to do so much...

Osteoporosis is NOT!!! due to a sedentary lifestyle (Although weight-bearing exerices helps strengthens and maintains the density of the bones). Occuring more in women at the outset of menopause - the drop in estrogen levels and pregnant mothers if their calcium levels are low. Men get it too. And thin ones.

Depression often times leads to that "can't get out of bed/off the sofa/stuff my face/can't leave the house feeling, however, it is not as a result of. (And some even get over it by killing themselves). So don't be light on the issue of depression. It is a serious thing laying in wait for any of us. Be he fat or thin.

You are absolutely right.

But you're also very wrong.

I hope that clarifies my view on the subject.

[bastet]

Actually the teacher I mentioned would tell you it has nothing to do with your feet either. (although she would agree that your free foot should be maintaining contact with the floor unless you are doing a move that deliberately raises it)

I had been thinking that being soft in the knees and ankles made you better grounded. But then she did this.. thing... magic... she stood WAY up on tippy toe (and she has those feet... you know, the feet we followers all wish we had!) and locked her knees and said "Push me over". So I gave a little push on her breastbone and pushed her right over. THEN she stood that way again.. looked exactly the same to me... and said "Now push me over"

The woman was a frig** WALL!

I said "What is this tango voodoo you are doing??!?!"

(And no, she wasn't just pushing back against me to keep from falling over... There's a difference to the way pushing a wall feels vs pushing something that is actively pushing back)

It all had to do with her core and abs and pressing down while lifting and getting the hips rotated just so and all kinds of internal muscle stuff in the lower belly and groin area and relaxing just right and frankly, I still think it was just some kind of weird Jedi trick!

The first thing I thought of was those martial arts masters of myth and legend who are so grounded into the earth and its energy that not only they can't be pushed over, they can't be lifted OFF the earth either. But whenver I've seen that or heard of it, the person is PLANTED. Knees bent, everything obviously pushing DOWN. She was UP!

I'm still working my mind and body around the stuff she worked on with me, but I'll post more about it as I start to apply it successfully.

I think I'm gonna need to use the Force.

so interesting...recently had a very similar lesson for both lead and follower...

[Heather2007]

I hope that clarifies my view on the subject.

Actually it doesn't = but heh, Vive Le Difference eh?

(but word of advice, don't go around saying people can't dance if they're fat - it may, a weeny bit - offend. And, and, and when next you're in town - let's have a dance. First you lead me, then I lead you - something fast, something slow, something dramatic and something milonga and compare fitness levels) :-)

[spot]

Actually it doesn't = but heh, Vive Le Difference eh?

(but word of advice, don't go around saying people can't dance - it must may, a weeny bit - offend. And when next you're in town - let's have a dance. First you lead me, then I lead you - something fast, something slow, something dramatic and something milonga) :-)
I think you might be confusing my points with someone else's.

I'm stuck between doing a detailed carefully constructed dissection of the causative/reactive variation of sedentary behaviour or making another oblique quip.

Or maybe a series of smilies.

[spot]

Actually it doesn't = but heh, Vive Le Difference eh?

(but word of advice, don't go around saying people can't dance if they're fat - it may, a weeny bit - offend. And, and, and when next you're in town - let's have a dance. First you lead me, then I lead you - something fast, something slow, something dramatic and something milonga and compare fitness levels) :-)

More than happy to compare fitness levels.

Unfortunately I do have a bad habit of forgetting to breathe whenever I'm dancing with an especially intoxicating lady. I hope you'll bear that in mind.

[Heather2007]

More than happy to compare fitness levels.

Unfortunately I do have a bad habit of forgetting to breathe whenever I'm dancing with an especially intoxicating lady. I hope you'll bear that in mind.

Ha, ha, ha. It'll be passsssshhhhhionate. If you decide to do that whole River Tango thing tomorrow I'll be the one with the short hair (chemo-cut stylie) black poloneck, black knee length jeans, bling earrings, black eyemakeup and bright red stilettos and with a look that says: if you don't step back, I'll kill you. Come and grab/interrupt me for a dance

[Heather2007]

......... passsssshhhhhionatata

http://www.thamesfestival.org/cn/whatson/listings.php?event_id=76 (http://www.thamesfestival.org/cn/whatson/listings.php?event_id=76)

[dchester]

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I came across the video above, and then thought of this thread.

[Captain Jep]

Nice vid, DC.

I find this sort of thread mystifying. Why would you need to be fit for tango? Granted, you cant be a complete couch potato, but it's not exactly a (physically) energetic dance, is it? Apart perhaps from fast milonga...

Performing - well that's a different thing. Generally we expect any performer (dance or otherwise) to be reasonably thin. However, I love that tango is more forgiving than most as performers start to age. Tango dancers arent expected to stay slim their whole lives and/or get face lifts. Thank God!

When people who dont dance tango ask this question I say "You dont have to be physically fit, but you have to be mentally fit." Cos that's where it's tiring...

[Lui]

To reach a higher level in any tango style, you have to dance. Once you dance daily several hours, you’ll become fit, but not necessary slim.

[Angel HI]

One should be fit, or want to be fit, regardless.

[Heather2007]

One should be fit, or want to be fit, regardless.

Quite! As well as healthy.

[CatherineEvans]

In my opinion, being fit has more advantages in dancing.

[kieronneedscake]

In my opinion, being fit has more advantages in dancing.

Outrunning the tango police for one.

[Steve Pastor]

Hi, Catherine.

Can anyone think of any advantages to not being fit?

[larrynla]

The answer: No.

As for Gustavo Naveira and his wife Olga Besio, shortly after this video he got rid of her. Now he dances with a skinny, younger, and more decorative model. Here he is with Giselle Anne.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKZWUDJGYaw


Larry de Los Angeles
http://ShapechangerTales.com

[dchester]

Can anyone think of any advantages to not being fit? Well, with the extra time you save by not having to go to the gym, running or whatever, you get to spend more time with your friends and family or dancing tango and doing things you actually enjoy.

http://www.patriotsplanet.com/BB/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Lilly_of_the_valley]

The answer: No.

As for Gustavo Naveira and his wife Olga Besio, shortly after this video he got rid of her. Now he dances with a skinny, younger, and more decorative model. Here he is with Giselle Anne.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKZWUDJGYaw


Larry de Los Angeles
http://ShapechangerTales.com

Shortly after this video?
Please.
This video was taken in 2008. Gustavo and Olga has not been dancing together since much earlier. And him changing partners had very little (if anything at all) to do with body fitness.

[Lui]

It appears to me that most Argentine couples regroup during the years. Look at Chico Frumboli, Roberto Herrera, Geraldine Rojas, ... I don't assume that fitness is the main reason for this.

[Lui]

Once I meed an older gentlemen with a wooden leg at the confiteria ideal - not a pirate peg, but nevertheless an artificial one. He was giving the ladies quit a good time. In fact I might have missed his handicapped, if he had not told my girlfriend about it after they had danced. According to her, it was a wonderful dance. This encounter proves to me that you don’t need to be an athlete to be fit for social dancing.

If you want a physical challenge start stage tango.At the milonga however, the ladies seem to be at least the same way enchanted by an seasoned older milonguero as by a trained 20 year old stage performer – considering the dance experience only.

Maybe some ladies want to share their experiences?

[Peaches]

I don't much notice a disadvantage to not being fit, except being a bit out of breath after a particularly energetic milonga. Part of that is that I often forget to breathe, or don't breathe naturally. Another part of that is probably because I smoke.

As for the guys, I notice if a guy is seriously out of breath, which I've run into a couple of times; there's just this little part of my brain which is hoping he doesn't die on the dance floor. Apart from that, there are two conditions that make it very difficult for me to follow. One is if the guy is particularly pot-bellied and short. In that case, the weight is less of an issue than the height, but with the two combined it can be difficult to find a comfortable embrace. (Not to mention difficult to follow when his center is about at my belly-button.) The other condition is if the guy is very tall and very thin. Again, the weight is less of an issue than the height, but the two together make it difficult to really find and feel his body.

(I don't much care for dancing with extremely thin/small-boned gents my own height either. But that's less of a dancing/connection thing and more a feeling like I'm going to break him. I'm not a very small girl.)

[MizzTissa]

I think you might want to be "conditioned" to do the tango, moreso than fit...