Fun in fitness? Salsa dance basic moves

The Salsa Origins blog post introduced you to salsa dance as an exciting way to lose weight, have fun and live positively. Shahrouz and I lost weight primarily through Latin dance and salsa in particular.  Today let’s explore salsa dance further.

Basic movements

The basic steps of salsa involve three weight changes (or steps) in each four-beat measure. The beat where one does not step usually contains a pause. Different styles of salsa are often differentiated by the timing of the step (On beat on one or off beat on 2). After six weight changes in eight beats, the basic step cycle is complete.

As a salsa dancer changes weight in the legs the upper body remains level and steady. The hips end up moving quite a bit — which is the famously known as the “Cuban hip movement.”  This movement engages the core of the body ― hips and stomach ― and strengthens and tones the abs, thighs, gluts and legs.

Connection to the music

Finding the beat is an important aspect to gaining the connection in the dance. The music is the central feature that connects the partners in dancing.  The beat of the music provides the tempo that coordinates the movements of the dance partners.

Dance can become a wonderful, almost out of body experience. Sometimes you may go dancing and not feel motivated to dance; however, when you hear the music and begin dancing, you lose yourself in the moment and you can’t understand what happened to the time.

To learn how Shahrouz and Jeanel lost weight, had more fun and began living more positively, download the Salsa Sexy book. Download it for free! Liked this article?  Please share with your friends.

Liked this article? Please share with your friends and “like” us on our Facebook page. Don’t forget to check out our calendar of events, weight loss calculator, 3D body mass index, food calorie counter, and exercise calorie calculator.