I JUST RETURNED FROM A SMALL WEEKEND COMP. AND ONE OF THE TOP FEMALE AMATUER LATIN/RHYTHM DANCERS IN THE NATION WAS THERE PERFORMING. SHE AND MANY OTHER TOP WOMEN HAVE A DANCE STYLE THAT ALMOST LOOKS AS IF THE KNEE IS BENDING SLIGHTLY BACKWARDS. IT'S A VERY EXTENDED LEG & TOE. IT'S USUALLY DANCED WHEN STOPPING (WITH HIP OUT) OR TAKING THAT FORWARD STEP FROM A PAUSE.
IS THERE ANYWAY TO LEARN THIS STYLING OR IS THIS A NATURAL POSITION FOR THESE WOMEN? COULD IT BE BALLET TRAINING? - EXTENTION OF EXTREME POINTED TOE? IS THERE AN EXERCISE TO HELP ACHIEVE THIS?
HOPEFULLY I HAVE DESCRIBED THIS STYLING SO THAT SOMEONE WILL UNDERSTAND AND BE ALBE TO ANSWER.

Glad to help.

By the way, the idea of working your heel forward also works well as you transfer weight to the forward foot on a forward walk, forward break or back break.

Places to apply this idea (as lady):

Step 2 and 4 of Rumba basic.
Step 1 and 4 of New Yorker.
Step 2 and 5 of Hand to Hand.
Step 2 and 5 of Spot Turns.
All 6 steps of forward walks.
Steps 4 and especially 5 of hockey stick.
Step 5 of Alemana.

etc.

Hope this helps.

Sincerely,
Jonathan Atkinson

Jonathan-
Thank you for the ballet exercise. I have been practicing and can feel the tone from hip to toe. I hope to apply some of this leg technique and show much improvement at my next comp. in October.
Thanks again.

A little ballet couldn't hurt, either. Or at least, borrowing the basic exercise known as "Tendu" from ballet is a nice little warm-up thing that you can use to get the blood going in your feet while also teaching yourself how to point and turn-out.
Begin in first position with feet turned out, and as Vanessa mentioned, try to achieve this as much through the legs as possible. The heels should be touching together, but the toes will be pointed apart, perhaps somewhere around 90 degrees (or slightly less) for us common non-ballet-trained folk.

Point your right foot forward, with the toe maintaining contact with the floor. The heel will release from the floor. As the foot moves forward, try to increase your turnout (or at least prevent a decrease) by working the heel forward more than the toe. Also, prevent the "sickled" position of the foot by keeping floor contact as much as you can with the inside edge of the big toe, rather than the outside edge of the pinky toe.

Once the foot is fully pointed, you can begin to pull it back again to first position. As it pulls back, again work towards increasing the turnout by feeling like you pull *back* on your toe, more so than you do with the heel.

Repeat the forward point three more times, and then begin the same process, this time pointing the foot sideways. Keep the same things in mind as you point sideways. Heel forward as you point, toe backwards as you pull it in again. Inside edge of big toe, etc etc.

Again, three more times, and then point backwards, all the same. That's a total of four points in each direction, and then you can begin with the other foot.

Here's another good idea: Do this to music, say at about 130 BPM (Cha Cha speed or so). Each point should take 16 beats: 8 to point, and 8 to return to 1st position. After doing a full set of 12 points on each side, repeat the exercise, this time doubling your speed. Each point this time will take 8 beats (4 out, 4 in). Repeat again with 4 beats, then with 2. And if you can do it, try with 1 beat (1/2 beat out, 1/2 beat in).

That should take a whole song to finish. And after that, you'll feet should be nice and limber.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,
Jonathan Atkinson

Very smart of you to listen to your body (or in this case, your knees)!

Your leg line will be very clean if you work on simply straightening -- just doing that consistently is a big accomplishment.

Articulating the foot and ankle is definitely very important. Yes, this is essentially "pointing the toe," but I don't like to use that term because the whole foot is involved. Turnout is also a key part of this. Turnout really begins at the hip and continues down, though it's most clearly visible in your feet. When you're working on articulating your feet, you should also work on everting them (rather than allowing the foot to "sickle" or point inward). I always try to think of lengthening through the inside edge of my foot (all the way from my ankle bone to the tip of the big toe) to maintain eversion.

If you're not already familiar with these concepts, you should definitely have a qualified instructor guide you through them. And if your teacher is not familiar with these ideas (which are essential to Latin), then that's a clear indicator that you need a new teacher

Vanessa

Vanessa -
Thank you for answering. I too find the leg/toe extention beautiful. That's why I wanted to know more. And thanks for the warning about the knee damage. I have been trying to stretch and strengthen my leg and foot muscles - but after carefully and slowly locking my knee and letting it curve backward ever so slightly - my knee has been sore. I just don't think my knees will take the strain, no matter how much I stretch and strength I have and I certainly don't want to cause any damage. I think I'll have to concentrate more on straighting of the leg and pointing the toe.
Thanks again.

The leg and foot line that you're describing is pretty common and highly desirable for female Latin dancers. The look of the knee "bending slightly backward" comes from straightening the leg as much as possible -- some ladies are able to achieve a line that goes slightly *beyond* straight (called hyperextension). Here I should note that it can be very dangerous for your knees if you try to force that kind of line! Simply work on keeping your leg straight initially, and don't force your knee past the point of comfort. Some people seem to naturally have a lot of flexibility in the knee joint; others develop it over time. In any case, if you force to the point of discomfort and keep the knee rigidly locked backward, you risk serious damage.

The rest of line comes from articulating the foot and ankle (pointing the toe and then some!), and from turnout in the hip/leg/foot. Those concepts are definitely balletic, though you can learn them without previous ballet experience.

When you watch the best Latin ladies, you will continually see these concepts at work in their legs and feet. To my eyes, it's absolutely beautiful stuff (which is why I strive so hard to bring it to my own dancing)!

Vanessa