House Intermediate - WEEK TWO
About
RECAP
FIRST SEGMENT - JORDAN
Main Focuses:
The "Pulse"
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Within your bodies compression while grooving, what is actually moving? Think of the classic examples: sneezing or blowing out birthday candles. When your torso compresses, how does your pelvis tuck in or out; how about your head or shoulders; what are your knees doing? Think to the 2-step we drilled to help with this (see video),
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With that in mind, what does the pulse do to our weight, or inversely, what does the weight do to our pulse? Notice the shifting weight from the ball of your foot, to your heel and every point in between.
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Notably, when the pelvis rocks back: heel. When forward: ball of foot. When familiar, this will aid the articulation within your foot and the detail within your transitions.
The Chase: Added Layers
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The Chase should being to feel much more comfortable within our bodies -- let's change that! Apply the ball/heel detail, keeping in mind weight transfers. Ensure to not stay stationary -- travel! When traveling, whichever direction you go, just commit.
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Take note: the influence from the emphasis on articulating your feet should be noticeable in your pelvis. Don't stiffen up those hips!
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Next, add the 2 & 5 direction change, without losing detail or flow. For clarity-sake, make your direction shifts as clean as a changing stop light. Once familiar, we can take the sharp, square-like shifts to smoothen or round them out.
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Take this idea and explore. It doesn't need to be on 2 & 5. Listen to your music, hear the rhythms and see what comes together (or doesn't).
Slides
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Imagine you're wiping dirt off the bottom your shoe (on a matt): heel touches first, moving up to your toes. As one leg comes in, the other prepares to step forward (like walking). Now add a body roll and we're on the right track!
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As you roll through your body (head-to-toe), what happens when the weight lands in your pelvis and how does that affect your foot's slide? As weight moves from the pelvis, you should feel a gentle "lift" or "flick" sensation as it reach your foot.
What happens when we emphasize the heel/toe strike? We have The Gallop step. What happens when it is added to The Chase? It becomes smooth and wave-like, setting us up for The Loose Legs.
SECOND SEGMENT - KYLE
Main Focuses:
Heel Toe Variations (Level 1 - 4)
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Focus on keeping your knees bent, weight on the ball of your supporting foot while the opposite foot connects through the Heel Toe variations.
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Allowing your hips to rock back as your upper body rocks forward to create a balanced center of gravity to help with your transitions and flow.
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Let your upper body help by leaning toward your supporting let to allow your working foot to have more freedom in executing its transitions between the heel and the toe.
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Keeping your bounce throughout will allow room for your feet to transition easier between steps.
Farmer/Stomp Variations (Level 1 - 4)
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Focus on maintaining a grounded position while having your knees slightly bent, hips slightly back and upper body slightly forward.
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While dropping down with your feet apart, allow yourself to sink down as you land to then spring out of the step to control a smoother transition between steps.
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As you land for the heel and toe pivot, let your body still sink down while doing the step and springing out of the step once completing the last turn out to continue to the other side.
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During your half turns from side to side, hook your foot behind your knee while keeping your legs fairly close together to maintain better control and a great center of balance.