Turns and spins - Technique

janaki

New member
Hi all,

I find many of my students dislike turns and spins. They dislike this part of my teaching in think:(:(. They say they get dizzy and go and sit on the side. I try and give tips and tricks on how to avoid feeling dizzy, but this is not helping. Only students that like spins and turns are the ones that have other dancing background.

Instructors, does this happen to you? If so how do you handle it??

Students, how do you handle your spins and turns??

I found a good clip that helps with the terminology and techniques of some turns and spins. I remembered the workshops I did with Randa Kamel and Mo Mo Kadous, they have used some of this terminology and some of these turns and spins in their teaching. Hope this helps some you that are struggling with turns and spins.


Hugs
Janaki
 

Shanazel

Moderator
I've rarely had students sit out spin and turn practice, but occasionally a person with inner ear problems has trouble. Not much I know to do about that. I do teach my students to rewind themselves (spin in the opposite direction) if they get dizzy. I don't know why that seems to help, but it does. I start out with the simpler, slower spins (obviously) and work up the endurance of my students for spinning.

Which turns do you find students pick up easily?
 
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adiemus

New member
When I was a kid learning ballet, we started turns by very slowly turning on the spot and 'spotting' with the head by fixing eyes on a spot and turning with the eyes on it until nearly facing the back, then quickly whipping the head around to fix on that spot again. I think it needs to be built up quite slowly and ensuring that the spotting happens every time. I remember we first of all did it while taking tiny steps, and only two to the left, two to the right, then in later grades would increase speed and number of turns to each side. It was only after I'd been dancing some years that I could do many turns without getting dizzy!! Then in latin dancing, my partners would spin me as many times as they liked without me falling over!!:dance:
 

Hyacinth

New member
I'm with adiemus. It's important to learn to spot & start out slowly so you get the technique correct. Obviously, it doesn't work if you've got a sword on your head, but for everything else, it's the best way to avoid dizziness, stumbles, etc
 

Moon

New member
Hi Janaki,
I really, really suck at spins because I get dizzy so fast (and not just dizzy.. I can really get nauseous and have headache from spinning too much (and too much is not that much, lol)) In my weekly bellydance class, we only did spins once when we were working with veils, and I notice that so far, looking at one of my hands helps me the most, as well as rewinding myself (to a lesser extent). Spotting only makes things worse, the "quickly whipping the head around" is a nightmare.
In my monthly classes we did spinning once with different technique and everyone hated spotting the most (except for some people with ballet background). Our teacher told us we were allowed to do as many (read: little) turns as we preferred so we wouldn't get too dizzy, so I only did 3 or 4 per technique (yes I know, probably not enough, but as this lesson takes several hours, I didn't feel like feeling too sick to follow the rest of the lesson because of some spins).
Because I mostly did turns with veil and my monthly teacher strongly believes the arm movements follow naturally from the rest of the body movement, I don't really have a clue how to hold my arms during turns, which makes it more difficult because I have more trouble keeping my balance that way. I asked Yshka for some help via msn and she gave me some advice, which I'm still figuring out.
It can make me very frustrated, especially during ballroom dance when people are doing a vienna waltz. I tried that once and I felt sick for the rest of the evening. I told my boyfriend I'll never try that stupid dance again, but I know he likes the way it looks so much so now I feel guilty about holding him back :(. Sometimes I just think I'll never get to more than a few turns, because I have a weaker stomach than most people :protest:

By the way, thanks for the advice about starting spotting very s l o w l y. I might try that.
 

Safran

New member
I'm not exactly the master spinner either :think: I don't get dizzy or sick that easy, but I lose all sense of direction. So, I can just spin away and end up hitting a mirror or a wall or another dancer :rolleyes:

I find practicing spotting slow helps. I haven't been too consistent in doing it though :( If there is any spinning involved, I prefer if there is just one piece of spinning, rather than several bits all around the dance. It is just so much easier to gather yourself one and do it properly.
 

Alexandros

New member
So when you are not used to the turns is always very hard to turn without get dizzy!
I remember my ballet teacher when we first start the turns she tald us that we gonna get dizzy and that this is something very normal but as much as you practice is getting better. Something that the clip from youtube doesnt explain but it is easy to see and also belong to the very basic technique of the turns is that first come the head and then the body and we practice that by turning very slow like you walk.
Exept if you do Tanoura(Sufi dance) which is something different im talking about the head!
I hope to find this information usefull.

Take care
Alexandros:D
 

Reen.Blom

New member
Hi Janaki,
I really, really suck at spins because I get dizzy so fast (and not just dizzy.. I can really get nauseous and have headache from spinning too much (and too much is not that much, lol)) In my weekly bellydance class, we only did spins once when we were working with veils, and I notice that so far, looking at one of my hands helps me the most, as well as rewinding myself (to a lesser extent). Spotting only makes things worse, the "quickly whipping the head around" is a nightmare.
In my monthly classes we did spinning once with different technique and everyone hated spotting the most (except for some people with ballet background). Our teacher told us we were allowed to do as many (read: little) turns as we preferred so we wouldn't get too dizzy, so I only did 3 or 4 per technique (yes I know, probably not enough, but as this lesson takes several hours, I didn't feel like feeling too sick to follow the rest of the lesson because of some spins).
Because I mostly did turns with veil and my monthly teacher strongly believes the arm movements follow naturally from the rest of the body movement, I don't really have a clue how to hold my arms during turns, which makes it more difficult because I have more trouble keeping my balance that way. I asked Yshka for some help via msn and she gave me some advice, which I'm still figuring out.
It can make me very frustrated, especially during ballroom dance when people are doing a vienna waltz. I tried that once and I felt sick for the rest of the evening. I told my boyfriend I'll never try that stupid dance again, but I know he likes the way it looks so much so now I feel guilty about holding him back :(. Sometimes I just think I'll never get to more than a few turns, because I have a weaker stomach than most people :protest:

By the way, thanks for the advice about starting spotting very s l o w l y. I might try that.

Moon dont worry I am just the same!

I absolutely cant spin! I get nauseous just looking at spinning ppl! LOL I really really detest it, I am usually dizzy even before I spin, so I try to avoid it at all costs!

Spotting does not help me much, because of the sudden head turn required! I will take to try it slowly!
 

adiemus

New member
Dooooo start slowly even with the spotting technique - your vestibular system in your ears does get used to it but only if you work up to going fast!
The problem with looking at your hand or something that is moving is that you end up losing where you are in space so when you stop it's hard to stand up straight.
Be patient with spins, and practice slowly spotting (body turns, head turns last to get the head there first, finish with body) until you can find the spot without having to think about it. It will only take a few weeks daily practice before it will come quite easily and much more quickly. The DVD I have of Jenna teaching turns demonstrates this quite nicely.
It's easier practicing spins than it is to practice zills!!!!:lol:
 

Reen.Blom

New member
Dooooo start slowly even with the spotting technique - your vestibular system in your ears does get used to it but only if you work up to going fast!
The problem with looking at your hand or something that is moving is that you end up losing where you are in space so when you stop it's hard to stand up straight.
Be patient with spins, and practice slowly spotting (body turns, head turns last to get the head there first, finish with body) until you can find the spot without having to think about it. It will only take a few weeks daily practice before it will come quite easily and much more quickly. The DVD I have of Jenna teaching turns demonstrates this quite nicely.
It's easier practicing spins than it is to practice zills!!!!:lol:

Thank you for encouragement and nice tips! I will definitly look in spin section Jenna's DVD I have been skipping that one...LOL
 

slinks

New member
I have a middle ear problem, being deaf .. and used to get quite dizzy, training oneself to spot and spin is the only way to overcome the waves of nauseous and dizziness .. I had been turning and spinning from the start of my 9 year dancathon, lol, but when I decided to do double veil, at the start of this year, I definately had to retrain myself so I could spin longer and faster, it didn't take long though about a week ... but the first day I spun to keep those veils up, boy, was I nauseous for a whole day !!!
 

Mya

New member
I've rarely had students sit out spin and turn practice, but occasionally a person with inner ear problems has trouble. Not much I know to do about that. I do teach my students to rewind themselves (spin in the opposite direction) if they get dizzy. I don't know why that seems to help, but it does. I start out with the simpler, slower spins (obviously) and work up the endurance of my students for spinning.

Which turns do you find students pick up easily?

i can't remember the exact explanation but it's something about the fluid in your ear (i think) which affects your balance; when you spin and the fluid moves around in that direction, a counter spin reverses it so it helps to minimise the dizziness. Or at least that's how my instructor explains it.
 
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