what to do....

[ballroomdancertoo]

Im rambling on here because i just came back from a "mock" competition and men in their 70s + won because they we just better dancers. I thought I had enough training to get something going but all I did was forget everything. I never competed in any competition before but it was a wake up call for practicing with intent to win something. I hardly do social dances because i thought it wasnt needed because i have to perfect my balance and timing i guess the ole adage takes two to tango is appropriate. anyway, sorry for the rambling.

 

[Smooth Dancer]

IMHO one can lose a competition not because the winners are "better" dancers in all ways, but because you have a few glaring deficiencies that get you eliminated right off the bat.

Don't get bummed. Take some videos and study them with your instructor. Fix the obvious flaws first.

 

[llamasarefuzzy]

Mmm yup. Videos are the hardest to watch but so so helpful. I usually look less awesome on the video than I did in my mind, and it is helpful to compare the two images so I can pick out what to work on next

 

[Bailamosdance]

Practice practice practice

 

[fascination]

and that is just a mock competition...when you get to a real one, there are about a thousand other ways to get your soul crushed

 

[hereKittyKitty]

Im rambling on here because i just came back from a "mock" competition and men in their 70s + won because they we just better dancers. I thought I had enough training to get something going but all I did was forget everything. I never competed in any competition before but it was a wake up call for practicing with intent to win something. I hardly do social dances because i thought it wasnt needed because i have to perfect my balance and timing i guess the ole adage takes two to tango is appropriate. anyway, sorry for the rambling.

Its sometimes easier in the short term to feel bad about our competition experiences. But actually, its tougher in the long term to feel bad. Its not only bad for you mentally but also physically and can have a negative impact on your dancing. Here is one of my favorite quotes- "see it for what it is and not worse than it is"
A.What was it? A mock competition. B.Did you do okay? Maybe not so hot results wise, but you survived. C.Is there something of benefit that you can take away from the situation? Absolutely. 1. You got a chance to see how you would do in a competition without doing the real thing. 2. Now you have a better idea of what you need to work on. 3. Motivation

 

[Hedwaite]

"I hardly do social dances because i thought it wasnt needed because i have to perfect my balance and timing"

Please, please don't drink the Kool-Aid that says "you don't need for social dancing what you need for competition". That's the WORST mistake. Social dancing on a floor with other couples is the cheapest, best practice for competing. Floorcraft is a completely lost art among competitors who only focus on the perfection of their routines. When you social dance, autopilot isn't something that gets used nearly as often. You're always having to think and adjust. That means you have to consider your balance and timing so that you can lead something the follow doesn't know is coming up.

 

[Bailamosdance]

actually social dance has very little to do with competitive floor craft. And it is certainly not a lost art, at least amongst those who succeed in competition.

This has been discussed a lot in these inter webs and tubes. If you need to perfect your balance and timing, you need practice in a dance studio amongst folks who are dancing competitively or at least at your competitive level. Otherwise, you will be greatly surprised when you are amongst folks who move much the same as you do in a competition, but have a competitive advantage over you because they have trained to understand movement and timing of the comp floor. Dodging social santas and (for example) american style viennese waltzers when you are doing international prepares you for ... nothing like you will get on the floor...

 

[debmc]

My impression has been that social dancing and competitive dancing each have their own skill sets. Each can help the other to a certain degree , but in the end, best to focus on your individual goal.
As far as how to succeed at competition....welcome to a world of simultaneous exhilaration and frustration. The competitors who do the best have a few things in common: they work with a good pro , they practice, they are fit, they take coaching, and they learn how to manage the mental game...I.e. they set their own goals, and while placements may matter, they keep expectations in check and instead compete only against an earlier version of themselves.

 

[ballroomdancertoo]

great words of wisdom, experiences. and encouragement. thanks everyone, no other forum has these great people who can help those that need it.

 

[latingal]

ballroomdancertoo, we all go through these experiences, even the best of us went through something similar at some time or another on our road to dance enlightenment.

Hang in there and figure out what it is you want to achieve and chart out a way to get to it. Champions are champions because they have figured out how to take "failure" and learn from and use it to their advantage! Best of luck!!

 

[middy]

Maybe some nerves also got in the way, which is perfectly normal! It gets easier and better each time.

Did you at least have fun? That's essential

 

[ballroomdancertoo]

actually, it was a "wake up call and if you want to dance competitively, you better take all the lumps and the accolades (if any) in stride instead of defeat, i cant learn any more" attitude. yeah, i went the next day and practiced until my body said stop. i wish i had the perfect body to dance in blackpool!!!!

 

[Janson]

You say you 'forgot everything' - that indicates it's not your fundamental dance technique that let you down, and it just takes practice to really make it muscle memory and get used to competitions enough that you're calm and can do your best.
I've certainly found that plenty of more senior dancers are excellent at ballroom, and have simply been doing it so many years more than me that I can't compete. Don't be discouraged, just see it as motivation to do better and better next time.

 

[cornutt]

actually, it was a "wake up call and if you want to dance competitively, you better take all the lumps and the accolades (if any) in stride instead of defeat, i cant learn any more" attitude. yeah, i went the next day and practiced until my body said stop. i wish i had the perfect body to dance in blackpool!!!!

I remember the first larger comp I went to, where I noticed that I kept placing behind another male am. Once I noticed that he was beating me consistently, I made it a point to look at the program and find heats that he was in that I wasn't, and watch him in those heats. And I recall thinking to myself, "He's better than I am." I made a few notes of things that I thought he did particularly well, and made it a point over the next several weeks to ask my instructor about them. It was the first big step in my competition journey.