Re: FT's true timing - Q-S-Q

> Well, you two can differ in your opinions on this issue as you like (I
> have found that the truth is generally somewhere in the middle) but
> there is no question that foot strength is a critical component of
> dance.
:
It depends what dance you are talking about.
I'd separate three cases;
(1) Purely social, for leisure pastime: no foot strength required at all.
(2) Seriously competitive or performing:  no doubt, you will need all what
you've got.
(3) Anything in between: say, you want to dance socially, but you want to
look good, in addition to feeling good.
   Here, the point is to utilize properly what you've got.
IMO the problem is not the amount of strength, but failure to apply it
timely.
You must push off the support foot, rather than tumble off it.
You must cushion the arrival onto the moving foot, rather than plop down
onto it.
And so on.
Unless you want two-yard strides, usually you can do with what strength
you've got, if you don't forget to use it.

> I am wondering if one can get this foot strength by dancing
> alone or if additional independent strength conditioning is used by
> the top pros.
:
You better ask  top pros themselves.
My humble memories tell me two things.

(1) There is such thing as "compensation": your body executes commands of
your btrains using whatever resources it has.
A move with, say, strong ankle is done differently than the same move with
weak ankle.
And repeating something complicated over and over will not necessarily make
your ankle stronger. It can make' e.g., your knee stronger, since it gets
most workout..
Ask any sportsman what exercises they do.

(2) My old teacker used used to have us do folk dancing for warm-up, kind of
polka, krakowiak, gallop, etc. When asked why wouldn't we do something more
"useful", like Samba or Chacha, he used to say: "I don't care how you dance
Polka, but I don't want to see you dancing Chacha on cotton legs."

;mikkalai
''''