Learn to Salsa with Two Left Feet Singapore

How do you know if you're giving too much or too little tension to your partner?

Carol says:

If the girl gives too much tension:
1. The guy may feel the girl is too heavy to lead.
2. It may results the girl back-leading the guy. The guy can get pretty annoyed at the girl for taking control.
3. It may also resulting her off balance at the dance floor.
4. And who know the girl may twist or broke the guy's finger. Oops!

If the girl gives too little hand tension:
1. The girl as a follower, may not able to feel the guy s lead, react and execute the moves in time.
2. It will also implies poor hand grip. The guy may not able to pull the girl to safety in the event of possible collision.

All above vice versa.

Mary says:

Actually I still don't know till this day. But I suppose it's something that comes naturally the more one dances. But there're two important points to note, which I personally think is connected to giving the right tension:

1) Weight - Tension comes naturally when both partners give some weight. So do your part.

2) Different guys dance with different amounts of tension. Just make sure you give back similar kind of tension. If he's soft, then be softer, if he gives lots of weight (or sometimes even a little on the rough side), make sure you give more tension and cling on for your life!!

Extremes are definite no-nos (too soft or too hard) and as I've said, the only way to find the right amount of tension is to experiment with all the different dancers!

Kelvin (Yee) says:

I realize that many different people have different tension, so how much or little tension to apply varies from dance to dance, depending on what size your partner is off and how much he/she is giving you..

From a guy's point of view, I know I have not given enough tension when :-
i) I pull and she does not move
ii) during an open break, I don't give enough support, and she almost fall backwards

Too much tension? Well, ask the gal or look at her face to see if she has a 'shocked' look whenever you try to applied tension.......hehehe.

For the gals, I guess when you apply too little tension......you will react slower to the guys lead 'coz there is much slack in the arms' connection.

I guess this is something to think about constantly and work on, plus adjusting with different partners. Till today, I have not danced a dance not thinking about the tension. It is the next most important thing to me after rhythm.

So people....hang in there, don't give up trying to get a good perspective of what tension is. It is abstract and not easy to explain in words nor instruction. But it takes a lot of humility to ask for feedback over and over again from different people, and taking comments with an opening mind, plus patience to achieve.

But having something to work on is good news. 'Coz if u have nothing to work on, probably you are the no. 1 dancer or u have given up learning. That will be the day my interest for salsa dies off---when I stop learning. I am saying this 'coz' many people give up trying to correct or strengthen this part of their dancing, 'coz it is too abstract for most. I find it abstract too. Very few are naturals. Only recently, I have met one. She is in level 1 only....hehehe. Guess guess.

Just hang in there. This is one tough part of the dance to handle. But it is very fun once you get it.

Wendy says:

Tension is what keeps you connected. As a lady dancer, the amount of tension given to my partner depends on how much my partner gives me. I'll match the amount of tension that is given to me at any particular point. This is very important. as dancers we have to learn how to vary our tension to our partners. This is the key to being a good follower, besides knowing your footwork and being on time.

When you start to feel that you are being yanked from one side of the room to the other, that means your partner is too strong for the amount of tension you're giving. You should then increase the amount of tension given.

And when you feel that you are partner is struggling to push you over to the other side, if you're falling backwards or if your partner is skidding, that means you're giving too much tension and you're very heavy to dance with. Most importantly, a lady dancer must learn how to apply and release tension appropriately. Only apply tension when tension is being app lied on you. Action resulting in reaction theory.

Jean (Goh)says:

The only way to know is:
Step 1. Dance with a good leader/follower
Step 2. After the dance, ask him/her

Tension is very important in salsa.

As a follower, if you have:
- Too much tension: You'll feel heavy and be very hard to lead.
- Too little tension: Your partner will have a hard time connecting with you. You'll also be very hard to lead.

As a general guideline:
If you're dancing with a good leader, and you're constantly missing out on his lead, you may have too little tension. If the leader does only simple moves on you, or dances only slower songs with you, it may be a sign that you have too much tension. You may be too heavy to lead for fast songs or more complex moves.

As a leader, if you have:
- Too much tension: Some lighter dancers might find you too "strong". They'll get very tired from trying to balance your strength.
- Too little tension: Your partner may have a hard time feeling and thus following your lead.

As a general guideline:
If you're dancing with a good follower, and she keeps missing out on your lead, you may have too little tension. If she's constantly thrown off balance while turning, or if she travels very far from you, you may have too much tension.

At the end of the day, what is too much or too little depends on who you're dancing with. As dancers, we should learn to be adaptable and try to balance the tension that our partner is giving.

In my ideal scenario:

- Followers should be light enough that the leader does not have to use too much force to lead her into a move, and yet, she must have enough tension to be able to be led.

- Leaders should always maintain some tension in their lead. In this way, the slightest change in tension will signify a lead into a move. With constant tension, the leader will not have to apply as much strength to signify a change in the lead. And at all times, leaders should only use as much strength as necessary to lead a follower into a move; no more, no less.