How can i practise my timing, sharpness and being quick in general in Cha Cha?

dansa

dansa

New Member
Hi Guys...

One of my biggiest problems is that im not "quick" enough in Cha Cha.. I can dance all the other dances good, but when it comes to cha cha, i have big difficulties of keeping timing and doing every move correctly and fast, sharp etc... It ends up like me stressing trough the hole routine so that i dont come off timing, but instead it looks like im running late somewhere and do the steps properly...

So i just wanted to pop by a question here to see if anyone had the same problem maybe and how it got solved? Obviously its all about practesing, but sometimes i feel that no matter how many times i dance my cha cha routine, this problem of mine dosent resolve.. What can i do?

Thanks for help
 
Practice slower.

No, really.

Speed comes as a side effect of building muscle memory. When people start a fast dance, like quickstep or Viennese waltz, or a complex dance, like cha cha or samba, the music feels way to fast to do the steps, let alone the technique. The key is to use the same techniques used in martial arts, an area where speed is also important: practice it slow enough to get in every step and do all your technique. Do this over and over and over again, both solo and with a partner. After about 300 repetitions you'll start building a high-path muscle memory (an automatic action you can call upon at will) and after about 10,000 repetitions you'll start building a low path muscle memory (an automatic action that activates instinctively). Then start going faster.
 
agree...if you don't know exactly where you should be on each count...landed...it will all look blended when you do it fast...do it slow and nail each pose...where your foot is, where your head is, where your arm is...then when you do it faster, do not sacrifice the snap into each of those positions....
 
That's what all the pros keep telling me. Doesn't change fact that I really want to slow all these songs down that I'm looking at for posibilities on my chacha. :P
 
I wonder if you are trying to do too much "technically" at the expense of rhythm? Obviously, you need both, but rhythm would probably make you lose the competition faster than some small problems in technique.
 
Speed comes from creating resistance in your body through rotation. You wind up into maximum resistance and then release to rotate into the next position. In faster dances like chacha, you have to shorten those maximum points so that there is less rotation to create the same amount of resistance. This will keep you actions shorter, thus making you dance "faster", and not spend as much time on the creation of this action, instead spending more timing going to the next step.
 
I find sometimes that if I don't finish a step (usually the settling action), I don't have enough speed. My brain tells me I don't have enough time, but in reality, finishing the step enables me to be faster on the next one.
 
Experienced the same problem awhile ago. Coache(s) instructed me to slowwwwww down. Practice to, oh say, Bolero music or really really slow chacha (i.e., country western cha cha - there are quite a few songs out there). The drill was to build control of the footwork, body position of the foot/frame/ and yes....winding up and letting go at the last minute. Dancing the CC very slow was incredibly difficult...after awhile everything clicked and the muscle memory kicked in as we progressed through faster CC music. It takes time but it was really worth every frustrating practice in the long run.
 
Nik said:
Speed comes from creating resistance in your body through rotation. You wind up into maximum resistance and then release to rotate into the next position. In faster dances like chacha, you have to shorten those maximum points so that there is less rotation to create the same amount of resistance. This will keep you actions shorter, thus making you dance "faster", and not spend as much time on the creation of this action, instead spending more timing going to the next step.
Click to expand...


Very good point, Nik. I think sometimes people become so focused on the straight legs in Cha Cha, that they are not able to achieve the speed through rotation.
 
Nik had a god point. I'd like to add to it.
Basically, use your body to create momentum for your steps, instead of just step, step.
Like for example, on a new yorker: Start turning your upper body first, way before the lower body, thats the rotation of upper body... that way the legs will follow SOO much quicker underneath!
 
Could someone comment on the quicker settling and body action that happens in cha-cha versus the rumba, would love to hear some thoughts on this?
 
I'd love to know too...right now all I am getting is a stern admonition not to brush and to keep a pressline on the the 5ths instead of a straight leg...other than that...it just seems like ya have to get from A-C faster...period...
 
Dansa, sweetie, the concept of resistance to build speed is something you'll need to visualize. It's a difficult concept to grasp reading it on paper... Sigh, video chat would be so great right now! :)
 
Use your "right brain" (as opposed to your left). Like Bella said, visualize, and then dance it.

Then refine, refine, refine using the inventory of information your left brain has gathered.
 
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