Reasons to give up Tango

[opendoor]

Interesting Read:

Buy Some Tango Burnout Insurance

Tango for psychological wellbeing. The blog explores dance as a primal part of our humanity, as seen by children dancing naturally. Have we forgotten?

tango-therapist.blogspot.com

 

[AlexTangoFuego]

I may have posted this before in the thread, but here is Clay Nelson and Beth Anne's survey "Why I Quit Tango" - full survey results and comments expanded and exported to a pdf. Hopefully there's not a paywall on Scribd. If you encounter one, let me know and I'll send you the pdf.
Oh well, they won't let me post the link, so I'm attaching the file...

 

[AlexTangoFuego]

Oops, I just posted it a few comments back...sorry...

 

[TangoYfutbol]

My girlfriend would get too jealous.

 

[opendoor]

My girlfriend would get too jealous.

And actually you haven't been around any more

 

[opendoor]

How do you currently assess the situation? Are there more newbies or more departures?

 

[Tango Newbie]

Being a 'beginner' (3 years now), my SO has been dancing for several years. While she's slim and fit, has great skills, and dances very well, but after dancing for just 2 hours (even with a few rests) she's starting to show the signs that it is beginning to take it's toll on her feet (depending on the shoes she wears) and one of her hips.

The hip pain is probably the more prevalent of the two, which could last a few days.
So from my observation, at some point I could see her scaling-back (at first), then maybe giving it up altogether if things worsen.

Aside from those, another common complaint is how she feels she's "aging-out" due to the leaders favoring the younger followers over the other followers. Even so, this wouldn't necessarily be the main reason for her to quit, and I suspect many other ladies have similar experiences.

 

[pianistamediano]

... she's starting to show the signs that it is beginning to take it's toll on her feet (depending on the shoes she wears) and one of her hips.

You've brought up an excellent topic; there is an overt emphasis on dance technique, but proper body conditioning and care is only tangentially mentioned by a few teachers and dancers.

 

[JournalInTime]

You've brought up an excellent topic; there is an overt emphasis on dance technique, but proper body conditioning and care is only tangentially mentioned by a few teachers and dancers.

Yes!

My coach's mission in life right now – and therefore mine and my partner's – is "sustainable tango": Dancing in a way that respects the body and one's partner's body so that everybody can dance until some horrible health problem ends their dancing or their life. This imposes no limits on vocabulary, speed, or amplitude. It imposes limits on how "lazy" technique can get – though of course you can get lazier with easier, slower, or smaller vocabulary. Many times, our "tango" lessons are really lessons in body dynamics, if not thinly veiled Pilates training.

It helps that my coach is a yoga and Pilates instructor with several walls full of certifications. My partner also sees her as a Pilates coach specifically to condition her body for dance. But that trickles into our coaching even when the meter running is "Tango Coaching" and not "Pilates Coaching." It's the same price per hour either way.

Moreover, all three of us (me, my partner, my coach) see the same chiropractor, who is also a tanguero. His work with us is specifically tango-oriented. Adjustments are secondary to movement counselling and custom exercises. Every session with him seems to end with him emailing me instructional videos on how to move properly and exercise specific body parts.

 

[ArbeeNYC]

Aside from those, another common complaint is how she feels she's "aging-out" due to the leaders favoring the younger followers over the other followers.

From your posts I would think she's rather young for that. Besides, if she dances well, leaders will seek her out. Young doesn't always translate into good.

 

[Brummbaer]

(depending on the shoes she wears)

Ah, the shoes...

Comfort is more important than looks

I sympathise. My wife has a problematic hip (from a broken femur at the hip joint, now bolted together). Most of the time it's ok, but too many pivots on a poor surface can take a toll. And shoes/heels make a big difference.

Got to make it 'sustainable'.

 

[opendoor]

...Comfort is more important than looks

Unfortunately not, my girlfriend can no longer walk or dance in high heels. This led to a total break with tango. She totally identifies with the stylized sujet of the sexy dancer that the best people want to dance with. If not this way, then not at all. I can't understand that, because after my accidents and knee surgeries, staying in the community was more important to me than participation on the dance floor.

 

[Miradamiranda]

Gee, I step away from dance forums for a week and come back and find as usual, the topic du jour is very relevant to my own dance life…
Oh the aches and pains… And the thoughts sneaking up about whether my body will hold up for dancing till I’m ‘approaching decrepitude’… Normally I tell myself I need to dance more, not less, when it hurts. If something hurts somewhere, the feel-good hormones on the dance floor either takes the pain away or at least makes you forget. Normally. But last night, a shoulder that got pulled out of whack from non-dance related stuff was putting a break on my experience. But surprisingly mostly when I was not dancing. Then you get stiff and cool off the muscles. One observation, however, it’s amazing how different every embrace feels when minute shifts in my left arm’s position can make the experience go from barely tolerable to completely pain free.

Nevertheless, I had two absolute dream tandas with one of my absolutely top 3 partners in the world, someone I hadn’t run into much the last year and a half. I’m still on a high from these dances, and it felt good that he expressed his delight also. Nothing hurt and energy levels were optimal while dancing with him, but the tanda before and the one after, although decent tandas, were a different story.

Btw, my chiropractor back in the US approves of doing deep full-dissociation ochos. Here in Germany where I am now, I haven’t found anything similar to a good chiropractor like I’m used to.

 

[AlexTangoFuego]

I posted this a couple of years ago (to no reaction) - "Clay Nelson and Beth Anne's Why I Quit Tango Survey Results" - others mentioned this same survey back on page 1. I went to the trouble to expand the entire survey and include all of the comments. 51 pages in total. Definitely interesting. Useful? For community building? Who knows. I updated this version to correct some text formatting issues.

 

[opendoor]

Yes quite helpful! Thanks for sharing @AlexTangoFuego .

-I'm missing some sociometric infos: part of the world, percentage of singles, percentage of caring professions.

-I'm also interested in the selection of dances in question 5. Some of them aren't available in isolation at all, but only in packs of ten at ballroom schools. And was the country and folk dance clientele identical?

-When I asked around, I found that many women over 37 migrate from the salsa scene when they can no longer withstand the pressure of youth. The reasons given to me for leaving the ballroom scene were the high costs and the focus on the competitions.

I know, my questions concern entering, not leaving. But perhaps you can add some informations, too?