Thread: I need arm help

Can anyone recommend some good arm videos? I really feel like my arms are my weakest part of my dancing and I would really like to work on them!

Oh! I will look forward to the replies you get! My arms suck too.

Katia has an oriental arms video with some great ideas for arms and hands. It's one of the first videos I ever purchased. It's very AmCab style. I'm not sure if it's IAMED produced, I think so.
Sara Kent has a video calld Arms and Torso (or something like that) which is a great video with alot of insight on Egyptian style...BUT it's not about arms at all. Just thought I'd mention that because I ordered it a long time ago thinking it was just what I needed for Egyptian arm technique. But it doesn't really go into armwork.

Regards
Priscilla

Originally Posted by stardancer

Can anyone recommend some good arm videos? I really feel like my arms are my weakest part of my dancing and I would really like to work on them!

I've bought Fatiem's Beautiful Arms DVD from IAMED but haven't had a chance to do it. I'll do it sometime this week and post a review, I'm on vacation so no excuses!

Arms = bane of my existence.

There are some great exercises out there, but building strength & technique in the arms will only take you so far. It's the awareness that's killer -- maintaining energy through to the fingertips WHILE dancing.

Here are some tips (I need to take my own advice on these)
- Take a choreo you know well, or a piece you often improv to, and try to keep arm awareness throughout. Videotaping yourself is the best way to judge your progress.

- Got a child? niece, nephew, neighbor? The more obnoxious the better. Show the child what you're trying to overcome (chicken wings? Helicopter hands?) and offer him/her a quarter every time s/he catches you doing it. Then dance your routine in front of said watchful child.

- Air veil. This is my newest arms technique, I'm loving it. Try workin' a pretend silk veil while you do your favorite choreo or improv piece.

- Weights. Not a lot, just a light dumbbell, wrist weight or can of soup in each hand while you drill or while you practice your choreo. Be cautious, though, of any joint discomfort in your elbow or shoulder when working with weight in this way.

- Use classtime to maintain perfect arms & posture. Whether you're the student or teacher, when drilling in class hold yourself to a ridiculous standard of posture & arms.

- Tell your teacher you're working on arms and ask him/her to stay on you.

- Watch your posture as well! Posture and arms go hand in hand, as the ribcage drops down & back so do the arms. Work on lifting the arms from deep in the torso, not from the shoulder, so the ribcage lifts & slides forward at the same time.

I agree with Lauren 100%. I was recently watching a ballet movie where someone was saying- "see how perfect her arms are, supported from the back not the shoulders or arms. this helped me alot. so like Lauren said- from deep in your torso. and remember- make it look delicious and make it feel good to you.

While telling someone to do it from the back makes a lot of sense, it's really hard for people to get what that means.

Lemme try this.

• Stand in dance posture
• lower abs pulled in and up
• lengthening through your spine
• shoulders back and down
• arms extended
• fingers with energy, but not stiff.

From there, pull your shoulder blades together from as if you were trying to get them to touch. Your shoulders will immediately come down another half inch, your chest lifts even another inch, from here is where you will initiate movement.

I have a question! My shoulders are my issue. I can't determine if my shoulders/upper back are too tight (stiff) or if I actually need to strengthen them? Whenever my arms come up to or above shoulder height, my shoulders rise up. This has only started happening in the last two or so years. I do a lot of veilwork, and when I teach, I focus on using shoulderblades/rhomboids(?) to support arms.

But my shoulders always end up around my ears.

Strengthen or stretch?

Originally Posted by elljay

I have a question! My shoulders are my issue. I can't determine if my shoulders/upper back are too tight (stiff) or if I actually need to strengthen them? Whenever my arms come up to or above shoulder height, my shoulders rise up. This has only started happening in the last two or so years. I do a lot of veilwork, and when I teach, I focus on using shoulderblades/rhomboids(?) to support arms.

But my shoulders always end up around my ears.

Strengthen or stretch?

Do you feel any strain? That would be more of a indicator, I think. Them raising to your ears indicates that your movements is in the actual shoulders, instead of in the back, try engaging the lattimius dorsi to support your arms while actively relaxing the shoulders (pulling the shoulder blades in towards each other from the back)

Originally Posted by Lauren_

- Got a child? niece, nephew, neighbor? The more obnoxious the better. Show the child what you're trying to overcome (chicken wings? Helicopter hands?) and offer him/her a quarter every time s/he catches you doing it. Then dance your routine in front of said watchful child.

I love this idea! anyone got a kid I can borrow?..l;,

Originally Posted by elljay

I have a question! My shoulders are my issue. I can't determine if my shoulders/upper back are too tight (stiff) or if I actually need to strengthen them? Whenever my arms come up to or above shoulder height, my shoulders rise up. This has only started happening in the last two or so years. I do a lot of veilwork, and when I teach, I focus on using shoulderblades/rhomboids(?) to support arms.

But my shoulders always end up around my ears.

Strengthen or stretch?

If you are raising your shoulders because it is more comfortable then you may need to work on your thorasic flexibility or positioning your arm in the socket.

When you stand naturally where do your shoulders point? Most people have shoulders slightly forward - if yours are more than about 15 degrees you should work on getting them back. See a good sports physio - very hard to describe over the net (forcing your arms to work behind their "normal" position can cause impingement and eventually damage)

If you lie on your belly, chin on the floor, thumbs together and arms staright, how far can you lift? This is a measure of your thorasic mobility - aiming for at least 150mm (6 inches).

Back on topic, I have found following good dancers (or even watching them closely) for a decent length of time really useful. That way you can see the transitions as well - both their arms and weight - and how they play with arms in the music. (I don't mean waving them about, but a little movement here or change of level there)

Originally Posted by kina

While telling someone to do it from the back makes a lot of sense, it's really hard for people to get what that means.

Lemme try this.

• Stand in dance posture
• lower abs pulled in and up
• lengthening through your spine
• shoulders back and down
• arms extended
• fingers with energy, but not stiff.

From there, pull your shoulder blades together from as if you were trying to get them to touch. Your shoulders will immediately come down another half inch, your chest lifts even another inch, from here is where you will initiate movement.

I've always had trouble with arms too, and this was very helpful Kina! Thanks!

I don't know what to do with my arms either. I'm going to FANTASIA in December and have booked a workshop called beautiful arms. Hopefully that will help alot and thanks to you all for the above advice.

I do like Anusa's (?) dancers' arms..good for general arm exercise too.

I think arms are often neglected in dance classes. "Let them get the hips right first" seems to be the thought.

I put a lot of emphasis on arm awarenes. Because technique is one thing, but being AWARE of your arms while you dance is another thing. So I always remind my students of their arms, no matter what we are doing.
You take a shimmy workshop from me? Watch out, I am going to teach you shimmies AND arm positions

MEISSOUN

I'm still working very hard on mine too, but have been following Hadia's advice and am beginning to notice some improvement.

Number one - eliminate hand turns and don't default your arms in an "out to the side" pose. (It's fine to put them there when your moves dicate them to be, but they should not be there for long or often).

Number two - DO let your elbows follow your ribcage.

That only emphasized for me that my ribcage wasn't involved enough in my dancing. I've found that focusing more on it has improved my arms a lot. If you are only moving your hips, it's only natural that you won't know what to do with your arms. If that happens, I am trying to use them to emphasize what I'm doing with my hips. Like, if you do a hip push, then your hands can both be by that hip and show a little rebound action from that push.

Whatever your preference, they do - as Lauren said, have to originate from within your torso and good posture... Other advice I've heard and stuck with me was Nath Keo - don't drop your elbows... both Dani and Hadia on avoiding helicopter hands and my first teacher who recommended relaxed "Barbie" hands.

Instructional videos are always a good help, but I think the best tool available is to videotape yourself and critique your dancing (with or without a dance peer's help).

It's Aruna's.

Originally Posted by lizajuk

I do like Anusa's (?) dancers' arms..good for general arm exercise too.

Originally Posted by rakgirl

I agree with Lauren 100%. I was recently watching a ballet movie where someone was saying- "see how perfect her arms are, supported from the back not the shoulders or arms.

'Centre Stage'!!! I love that movie. So much that I think I know every word. ,r:;

I actually found some cross-training in tribal fusion via DVDs and the odd workshop helped my arms in my raqs sharqi dancing--I think learning the hyper stylized tribal fusion arms helped me gain that feeling of engagement all the way out to the fingertips and also build up stamina and strength.

It helps me to:
-visualize my arms starting from my spine in my upper back
-being aware of where I point my elbow-usually rotated to the back and elevated
-moving arms through thick liquid (Suzanna DelVecchio I think said this)
-allowing my wrists to float
-visualize energy comming out of my finger tips
-know the function of the arms (frame, accent, part of body line, ect.)
-keep the palms down- unless you really mean it
-soft curve to the elbow for soft look
-making sure to not hyperextend the elbow when doing a powerful straight arm
-watching my hands when I want people to look at my hands, watching the audience when I want them to look at all of me (paraphrase of Bert B.)

Originally Posted by elljay

I have a question! My shoulders are my issue. I can't determine if my shoulders/upper back are too tight (stiff) or if I actually need to strengthen them? Whenever my arms come up to or above shoulder height, my shoulders rise up. This has only started happening in the last two or so years. I do a lot of veilwork, and when I teach, I focus on using shoulderblades/rhomboids(?) to support arms.

But my shoulders always end up around my ears.

Strengthen or stretch?

Hi, Elijay. This sounds like something that's happening in the shoulder joint itself rather than the supporting muscles. (caveat- I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV. I'm just guessing.)

Try this for me. Draw the top of your armbone slightly *back* in the shoulder socket (very small movement). Then externally rotate the arm (so your palm faces forward, thumb away from the body, but the rotation happens at the shoulder, not the hand). Again, a small movement, a comfortable rotation not an extreme one.

With your arm in this position, can you raise the arm without also raising the shoulder? It's normal for the shoulder to raise when the arm is internally rotated (palm back, thumb facing inward toward your leg). I wonder if you've gotten in the habit of holding the arm this way? I think it's considered unsafe for your rotator cuff to do it this way, but it happens (especially with veil).

:) Everyone is having arm issues lately!

Check out my post "Help me my arms SUCK"...there were some GREAT suggestions on that. http://www.bhuz.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4165
:)

we start every class with arms.perhaps a hold over from my years in ballet, and porta bras..(sp, big time.)
it seems to help alot, i sell many arm dvd's.
z