[Tango-L] On Axis, Off Axis

[Jeff Gaynor]

Tom Stermitz wrote:

>I like what Igor pointed out about how easily and smoothly the woman  
>pivots when her axis if vertical. Also, that if she loses core  
>support, the axis caves in and dissipates the energy.
>
>I personally prefer the more vertical posture, as it makes her  
>movements very efficient and my life very easy. I can stop thinking  
>about holding her up, and just channel the music.
>
>Core support or inner-tone makes her much lighter, even if she is  
>leaning. Slumping onto me or bending at the waist makes her feel very  
>heavy and sluggish.
>  
>
Comment from a tango newbie who trains athletes ( martial arts, been 
doing that 27 years): A kink in the spine effectively disconnects you 
from your lower body. The ramifications are that you have to muscle it 
with your upper body since you cannot use your legs plus you can get a 
nasty backache. I see this a lot and spend a lot of time correcting it 
in my students.

Here is your first martial arts lesson people: Stand up straight and 
relax. Why aren't you on the floor? Because you instinctively stacked 
your bones to take the load and when you relaxed, you removed all 
tension except what it took to retain alignment. This is what I mean by 
structure. I like CE because I have excellent structure and can use it 
in a comfortable way for both me and my partner. OE and I don't mix so 
well on this account too -- I've got the ballistic properties of the 
Rock of Gibraltar. This is just a personal preference.

<snip/>

>THREE POINTS OF LEVERAGE.
>
>Pressing into the earth with the feet gives the leader one "point of  
>leverage". He feels that the follower has completed her step, a pre- 
>requisite for taking the next step.
>  
>
 From a mechanical point of view, bent legs act like shock absorbers and 
give a squishy feel. I'm a beginner in tango, but the first thing I 
noticed about the dance is the very good use of structure for 
everything. Doing this will allow the forces to transmit normally and 
let your skeleton handle the load so you don't get tired and you can 
judge what your partner is doing.

>Second point of leverage is the connection or "presence" (yes, a  
>little pressure) on his chest.
>  
>

>Third point of leverage is the internal connection in the lower  
>abdominal muscles, the "dan tien" if you wish. This is achieved by  
>engaging the internal muscles. Helpful language from pilates is "pull  
>your belly-button toward the back bone", but it is really a bit  
>lower. This makes sense if you think about how the lower ab muscles  
>solidify the skeletal framework where the backbone and pelvis meet.  
>Any yoga or martial arts or athlete will be aware of this.
>  
>
You are referring to your transverse abdominal muscles. These are the 
ones right below the navel (guys contract these all the time when a 
pretty girl goes by :o>). A simple and good exercise is a "vacuum": 
contract and hold these muscles for up to 30 seconds. Actually these 
muscles are much more important than most people think:

1. They are the only muscles in the front of the body that attach to the 
back. As such, they are vital for posture.

2. Every time you move a limb, these muscles contract first in order to 
solidify your core (core muscles are NOT just your abs, but everything 
from your nipples to you knees, including your hamstrings). If you are 
not using your transverse abs right in sports, the muscles in your limbs 
will refuse to contract fully because they know they lack leverage. This 
is why strength training is often a bad idea for athletes -- they get 
strong biceps or whatever and bafflingly still can't generate force once 
they are away from a weight machine.

[Public service announcement: If you have back trouble and have problems 
standing upright, try some vacuums -- any position you are comfortable 
in works, sitting, prone etc.. You'll stretch the lower back into its 
normal position and be able to move much more easily. Forget about 
trying to touch your toes or leaning backwards as a stretch. Also, one 
bit of standard wisdom is that people with back trouble should do 
situps. Not a bad idea, but vacuums are now recognized as the right 
exercise.]

>The same three points of leverage apply for the man. Engaging these  
>leverage points and using internal power makes his movements powerful  
>and confident. The inevitable force.
>
>
>  
>
Again, mechanically the reason is that all together you are in a 
position to use your abdominal muscles and route all the forces into the 
ground. This keep leaders from getting a sore back and because it is 
physiologically an extremely good use of body mechanics, makes the 
follower feel like she is on casters. All of it is smooth and effortless.

>>...
>>Finally, all of these principles apply to open embrace as well as  
>>close
>>embrace. In close embrace, the forward force is applied with the  
>>chest,
>>while in open embrace it is applied with the points of contact in the
>>hands/arms.
>>
>>    
>>
Maybe I have it wrong, but the usage of the core in OE is completely 
different from what is described above. For example, if I dance CE with 
a woman with my eyes shut, I can tell what foot she is on with no 
problem. This is a lot harder in OE and it is rare I can pull it off. 
Try it and tell me if you notice a difference. All of this is specific 
to little moi but I'd be interested if others experience this.

Cheers,

Jeff