Wednesday, November 3, 2010

From the desk of Ms B

I'd like to take the opportunity to wish all my Indian friends & students a HAPPY DIWALI. Have a blessed festival of lights.

NOTE : Please remember there will be no classes on 4th November at Tropicana Dance Academy as I'll be taking my mother to hospital for a follow up at UH. Ladies in Advance Freestyle, 10:15am & Intermediate Freestyle, 12noon take note. Our next class will be on the 11th November. Please practice till then. Thank you.


3rd November 2010, Wed. 8pm - Intermediate Line Dance (RCS). 


A couple of ladies were not present today but we welcomes back Katrina who's been missing for a while. The class decided they'd like to learn CUBAN YEAH today which was choreographed by Jennifer Choo. Its a brisk cha cha number based on the popular tune Yeah by Usher and given a delightful latin tweak. Its a 64 count dance based on some basic cha cha patterns. Some of the bars didn't seem to flow very well as they were obviously created for the general line dancer to cope with so I changed a couple of steps in the 3/8 & 5/8 to more authentic international cha cha steps which were 'approved' of by the class. I'm glad to see everyone has learnt enough about the latin genre to 'feel' when something is not quite right. Well done everyone!!!


3rd November 2010, Wed. 10am - Intermediate Reviser Line Dance (RSGC). 


We had a good turn out in class today with all our 'babies' coming back to class after their short holiday. Our new friends, Florence, came in too and gamely tried walking thru all our reviser dances. Good job Florence. Today we revised - SUMMER LOVE, SLOW BURN, SWING FEVER, CANDY MAN, CATHERINE'S PAIN & IT'S LOVE. Everyone had a really good workout and left satisfied. Looking forward to next Monday.


2nd November 2010, Tues. 8:30pm - Beg/Mid Dance Fit (PY). 


We had two brand new students today. I never did get their names but they gave out great positive vibes so I'm really happy to have them with us. As I mentioned before, since we now only have one 'pioneer' still within the group, I opted to go back to the beginning and work out our #1 routine, Coffee.dfld from today. We managed to cover 1/8-4/8 of our routine before we changed over to our #4 routine, Booty Music and worked 1/8-4/8 of that routine. We still worked at 5 sets of our core training but did less as we acclimatised our new students to level. Thanks everyone for putting in effort to today's class. Shirley, don't forget to put your gear in your car next week ya ;) Class remains at the Lucky Garden studio for one more week.


2nd November 2010, Tues. 6:15pm - Beginners Aerobics (KRISS). 


The format of this class has been changed to Aerobics for the next 3 months to offer an option to the staff as several mentioned that they thought it was too hard to 'just join' when it was a Dance Fit class. Thankfully, most of the staff in today's class have been following the Dance Fit class for the past 3 months so their fitness level didn't go into shock at the change of format. However, the newcomers were a little surprised at the intensity of energy required for an aerobic class :D Well we learn something new everyday, yes? Stick to it for the next few months and the benefits will be felt. Good luck all.


NOTE : I've been advised that the Purple Yogis classes will continue to the conducted in the Lucky Garden studio for this week and next week. I hope you've all been advised and look forward to seeing you all tonight.


Tuesday, November 2, 2010

1st November 2010, Mon. 10am - Intermediate Line Dancing (RSGC). 


Can you believe its November already. Wow.....this year has really flown past. Good turn out in class today. Our 'babies' were not with us today but we did have a couple of lovely ladies who came by for a try out - thanks for being with us Joan & Florence. We hope you'll consider joining us. Today we learnt SUMMER LOVE by Patricia Stott danced to the song How Deep Is Your Love by Bee Gees. Its a lovely, simple cha cha styled dance that was easy to handle and appropriate to the song. It also gave us a chance to try our styling that we've been slowly working on for the past 2 years. Several of the ladies managed to put in some at one point or another. Our two visitors managed really easily too and adapted to the simpler variations offered for the spiral turn. Looking forward to dancing this again on Wed.

Saturday, October 30, 2010

From the desk of Ms B

The Supplements That Fight Cancer

The best cancer fighting nutrients come from vitamins and minerals in food, but most of us don't get enough of them. A supplement can offer protection. Just don't take more than the amounts recommended here.

Vitamin D

Studies suggest that getting enough D may cut your risk of breast cancer by as much as 50%. People who combine D with calcium can cut the danger of developing other kinds of cancer by up to 60% when compared with those who take only calcium.
How much to take : 1,000 IU a day, say experts, who call the current AI, 200 to 400 IU, woefully low.

Calcium


In a study from the American Cancer Society, people who took a calcium supplement were 30% less likely to develop colon cancer then those who didn't.
How much to take : 1,000 mg if you're age 50 or younger; 1,200 if older.

Folic Acid


Studies have found that folic acid may reduce the risk of breast cancer by 45%. Some studies also link adequate folic acid with a decreased risk of colon cancer. What's more, a glass or two of  wine a day raises breast cancer risk by 30%, but enough folic acid wipes that out.
How much to take : A multivitamin provides the necessary 400 mcg a day.

Extracted from Prevention.com

30th October 2010, Sat. 3pm - Silver Latin & Social Ballroom (RSGC). 


No class this week as I'm heading up to Awana, Genting Highlands for the Pink Ribbon R2R breast cancer survivors wellness camp. See you all next week. Practice, practice, practice.


28th October 2010, Thurs. 12noon - Intermediate Freestyle (TGCC). 


We missed Jenny and I Vee today but it was good to see Angela back in the pink of health. We started class with a run thru of our Beginners social Cha Cha routine. The ladies were still caught out here and there with the steps but i'm confident it will eventually fall into place. We then moved on to SWAVAGANZA and started by running thru the routine with the slow version and then the fast. I thought the ladies the unique intro that goes with the song and everyone had a lot of fun with feeling sexy with it. Once we got that we moved on to the first of eleven highlights of the dance. We finished off the session by running thru our requested dance DIRTY POP and adding another bar to the dance. Good luck with all the practices, please remember everything we've learnt today ;)


28th October 2010, Thurs. 10:15am - Advance Freestyle (TGCC). 


A small-ish turn out today as we had a senior member away on holiday, another away on a refresher course and yet another away for work. Nevertheless, we had a very fruitful class which i enjoyed. We spent time running thru our LATIN LOVER, HIJAU & SEXY SIGNORINA as our warm up and worked on the kinks in the routines. We then went on to dance it thru as a medley a couple of times and ended by working on the patterning of HIJAU. It looks really pretty up to where we stopped and those who were absent need to speak to your classmates to update you on your part of the patterns.


27th October 2010, Wed. 10am - Intermediate Reviser Line Dance (RSGC). 


We missed Corina today but we managed to really work on our last 3 dances - SLOW BURN, SWING FEVER & ITS LOVE. We took our time, worked thru the variations for both 'groups' and really managed to nail it by the end of class. One of our members, Margaret, came by class despite having sprained her ankle the night before and it took quite a few stern 'NO's' to make sure she didn't get up and dance. In the end she had to leave class as she found it too hard to contain herself :) Get well soon Margaret.


27th October 2010, Wed. 8pm - Intermediate Line Dance (RCS). 


I had to cancel this class today as my sinus' condition, which was bad in the morning, got considerably worst as the day progressed. Sorry everyone, but the forced rest did make me feel better. See you all next week, 3rd Nov.


26th October 2010, Tues. 8:30pm - Higher Beginners Dance Fit (PY). 


We received the sad news that the studio space (not Purple Yogis) would be closing as the hand over of the premises did not happen as expected. So though classes would still be managed by Purple Yogis, the physical studio would no longer be available. The search for new studio space for the existing classes is now on and students will be kept informed before the next scheduled class. After some discussion, we go on with class. We continued with MANEATER.dfld and worked 1/8 - 6/8 throughly before we moved on to our core exercises which have moved on to the preparation for the intermediate level. Poor Shirley, who had been missing a couple of weeks, was in shock as she suddenly felt like she'd missed a lot :D. A word of warning ladies, the stretch section will also be 'upgrading' next week as we move on up!


26th October 2010, Tues. 6:15pm - Mid Beginner Dance Fit (KRISS). 


This was possibly the last Dance Fit lesson for this group so I decided against continuing with COPACABANA.dfld and instead we really worked COFFEE.dfld and HONEY HONEY.dfld in 10's, 5's and 1's. It was a great cardio workout. We then pushed on to our arm exercises as this group is yet to be coordinated enough to use their upper bodies during dance. We had a thorough work out and everyone showed signs of fatigue :D We then went on to do our 3 levels of basic core work before we finished with a lovely stretch. A brief discussion after class revealed that the class might become an Aerobic session starting next month, stay in touch with Irene for updates on that.


25th October 2010, Mon. 10am - Intermediate Line Dance (RSGC). 


Good turn out today with several ladies making a come back after their week long holiday. Welcome home :) We learnt SLOW BURN to the song FIRE today which we first did several years ago and remained a favorite with the ladies. It wasn't too hard to bring the memories back and this time, as in the past few months, we were able to focus more on the technique of executing the nice steps and everyone enjoyed this favorite much more then the first time. Great dancing to day ladies.


From the desk of Ms B

Apologies for not keeping up to date, again. Things just seem to be piling up one after another. Some positive and some negative. Here are the reports for this week.

Thursday, October 28, 2010

12th October 2010, Tues. 6:15pm - Mid Beginner Dance Fit (KITT). 


We relearnt 1/6-3/6 of Copacabana since we had a new face in our group and this young lady picked it all up fairly easily. Because she seemed to be managing well I decided to push the class a bit by working our Honey Honey routine as well. We got thru our core training fairly smoothly too. Everyone is slowly but surely getting stronger by the lesson. I'm really please with their progress.

11th October 2010, Mon. 10am - Intermediate Line Dance (RSGC). 


We had a very small class today cos several were away for a holiday in China. So it was decided that we would go for breakfast and have some long denied 'fellowship'. I had a great time and even my allergies felt better. Thank you ladies. Love you all.


9th October 2010, Sat. 3pm - Intermediate/Silver Social Dancing (RSGC). 


We didn't have everyone with us today but we still managed a good class. It didn't start off too good as everyone was close to blank after our long forced break  However, after many many rounds of our Foxtrot there was some light bulbs coming on We also ran thru our Bronze Cha Cha as I intend to add on some silver patterns in our next lesson.


Cha Cha Routine with Silver additions :

Set 1

Basic Cha Cha
Fan
Change of hip
Alemana
3 x hand to hand
3 cha cha's
Spot turn

8th October 2010, Fri. 10am - Intermediate Reviser Line Dance (RSGC). 


This is the first of our replacement classes for the 4 days that the club used the hall last month. We used the lesson to catch up with all the dances we had completed before the shut down. We REVISED : Catherine's Pain (A Puro Dolor), Candy Man, Kool Celebration (Celebration) & It's Love (Everything).


7th October 2010, Thurs. 12noon - Intermediate Freestyle (TGCC). 


We started the class by running thru our Beginners Cha Cha routine which the ladies are still struggling to remember but they're getting there. I didn't have the music for the next dance that I had promised so working on the fact that we'd just completed cha cha, I taught them my dance Swayvaganza which is done to Sway by PCD. They picked it up really quick but I think a lot more thought is needed over the week to understand how to produce the moves smoothly. Good luck darlings.

7th October 2010, Thurs. 10am - Advance Freestyle (TGCC). 


We continued to work on the Rumba in our Latin medley and have decided to work with the song Hijau. I'm pleased the ladies have decided to take on the challenge to work with such a slow tempo. We warmed up with our Latin Lover and it still takes quite a few rounds before they can produce it smoothly. We cooled down with Painting and I was happy to see muscle memory still in play for this lovely dance.


Added steps :


Swivel R knee across L [2], turn 1/4 R & step f/wd [3], turn 1/2 R & step to side [4], hold [1]

Step RF to L diag. [2], turn 1/2 R & step LF back [3], step back RF [4], hold [1]

Swivel L hip [2], sit w L knee open [3], stretch RH up [4,1]

360 spiral R [2], sweep RF back [3], kneel on R knee [4] reach arms f/wd [1]

Rotate body & arms 360 L [2,3,4,1]

Stand on LF & turn L to face 12:00 [2], cross RF over L [3], step LF to side [4], drag RF close [1]

6th October 2010, Wed. 8pm - Intermediate Line Dance (RCS). 


NO class tonight. The club is using the hall for a function. See you next week.


6th October 2010, Wed. 10am - Intermediate Reviser Line Dance (RSGC). 


Started with a really small class today but they ladies came in over time. We're still catching up after our forced closure by the club last week. We spent the lesson relearning IT'S LOVE by Bronya B. This is 112 step dance so it does take a while. Its a Foxtrot and lovely & smooth. Some of the ladies had trouble with the turns so simpler changes of directions were offered and everyone managed by the end of the lesson.


5th October 2010, Tues. 8:30pm - Mid Beginners Dance Fit (PY). 


Slow start today and a small turn out but given the size of the studio it proved very comfortable. We started to learn song #5 Sister Kate by Ditty Bops. Its a lilt rhythm and very lively. We just about managed to learn 1/8-2/8 after a few extra rounds. Mos t of them managed it with the extra time but we're still far from getting the rhythm. Nevertheless, we continued with a great work out with song #2-4 which we worked in 10's before dancing it thru. I tweaked the core work today and there were some grunts but everyone did great. I finished off the session with a couple of one to one stretches and everyone seemed happy. I know they'll all get a great sleep tonight

5th October 2010, Tues. 6:15pm - Beginners Dance Fit (KITT).


It was a decent turn out today and we saw the return of two ladies who've been away for quite a while. Glad to have you back girls  It was a fantastic class today with lots of effort put into it by everyone. They've finish dance #1 & 2 now and we put them together for a really good workout today. We started off with 10's, followed up with 5's and then danced it right thru. There was much huffing and puffing but they completed it. They even managed a full 3 level core session and a short stretch. I'm very proud of them. Some are already noticing changes in their bodies - woo hoo !!!!!!


Thursday, September 30, 2010

From the desk of Ms B

STOP WATCHING & START MOVING

Love 'Dancing with the Stars', 'So You Think You Can Dance' or 'Step Up & Dance'?

Then get motivated to find your groove. You don't need a pro to show you how to dance off up to 500 calories an hour, whether you're a natural born boogier or a shy, hug-the-sidelines type. Regardless of the dancing style you choose (disco, salsa, ballet, freestyle etc.), shaking your booty to the beat lifts your spirits even more than other forms of exercise do. And it's easy to get started, no rhythm required.

The average weight loss after 6-9 hour-long dance workouts over 3 weeks is - 7 lbs.

- Extracted from Prevention, Sept. 2010 -

30th September 2010, Thurs. 12noon - Intermediate FIL (TGCC)


The ladies trickled in but all showed up today and we had the return of an old friend - Mandy Koo. It was good to have her back in class with us. We finished off our steps for the beginners social cha cha that we've been learning for the past few weeks. I'm just getting everyone to polish it up and style it so we look good dancing on our own. 


Remember our routine - 


2 x basic chasse, 

3 x n/york, 1 x spot turn, 

2 x basic chasse, 

4 x shoulder2shoulder, 

3 x basic cha cha, 

2 x 1/2 turn cha, 

1 x basic cha cha.

30th September 2010, Thurs. 10:30am - Advance Freestyle (TGCC)


A late start to class today, my fault, but we got going as soon as I set up. Started off by warming up with our Latin Lover routine. Still fine tuning this one so we're going slow. Wish we had 6 more feet dept in the studio :D We then went on to start our rumba section using The Masquerade by The Carpenters. As expected, its taking everyone some time to 'get' the hip/hold on '1' but also as expected, this group is working hard at it and is not likely to give up anytime soon. We then tried connecting the dots between all 3 of the songs and it turned out fairly good. We continue with Masquerade next week.


Rumba (so far) :

2 x forward rumba walks (Jo & Colleen) - 2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1
1 x back basic (LF) - 2,3,4,1
1 x f/wd basic (RF) - 2,3,4,1
3 x hand to hand - 2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1
1 x new york - 2,3,4,1
1 x spot turn - 2,3,4,1
2 x cross check steps - 2,3,4,1,2,3,4,1
1/2 back[2], 1/2 spin[3], step back[4], hold[1]
hip sway[2,3], step back[4], hold[1]
change of hip - 2,3,4,1
fan - 2,3,4,1
2 x cucaracha (second one with 1/4 turn R, close) - 2,3,4,1
hitch R knee[2], open R knee[3], push leg back[4], hold[1]

Happy practicing :D

29th September 2010, Wed. 8:30pm - Intermediate Line Dance (RCS). 


We have 2 newcomers in our class - Keats & Maggie. Welcome ladies! They have gamely joined us and are working hard to keep up with the learning pace of the class. I think they'll do just fine given time. Today we learnt 7/9-9/9 of DA DOO RUN RUN by Roy Verdonk & Wil Bos. Its a phrased, light rock n roll piece and is made up of basic lilt steps and was enjoyable. However as it is quite a long dance I've opted to use 1/9-4/9 for Part B instead of teaching the second part. It fitted really well and was easy for everyone to manage. NOTE : There's no class next week, 6th Oct., as the hall is being used for a function.


Da Doo Run Run                                   

Choreographers           : Roy Verdonk & Wil Bos (May 2010)

Level                            : Intermediate

Dance                           : 2 walls Phrased – A A B A B B B

Counts                         : Part A – 72 counts, Part B – 32 counts

Music                           : Da Doo Run Run – Shaun Cassidy

Intro                             : 32 counts, start on vocals


Part A

Kick Ball Step R (x2), Rock R Forward, Recover L, ½ Turn Shuffle R.
1&2         Kick right forward, Step on ball of right next to left, Step left forward
3&4         Kick right forward, Step on ball of right next to left, Step left forward
5-6       Rock right forward, Recover on left
7&8         ¼ turn right step right to right side, Close left next to right, ¼ turn right 
                step right forward (6.00)

Rock L Forward, Recover R, Coaster Step L, Rock R Forward, Recover L, ¼ Turn R Shuffle R.
1-2          Rock left forward, Recover on right
3&4         Step back on left, Close right next to left, Step left forward
5-6          Rock right forward, Recover on left
7&8         ¼ turn right step right to right side, Close left next to right, Step right to 
                right side (9:00)

Cross L over R, Monterey ½ Turn R, Rock L over R, Recover R, Side Shuffle L
1-2          Cross left over right, Point right to right
3-4          ½ turn right on ball of left  and close right next to left, point left  to left
5-6          Cross Rock left over right, Recover on right.
7&8         Step left to left side, Close right next to left, Step left to left side (3.00)

 Kick R forward, Kick R to Right, Sailor R, Kick L forward, Kick L to Left, Sailor L with ¼ turn Left

1-2          Kick right forward, Kick right to right side

3&4         Cross right behind left, Step left to left side, Step right to right side

5-6          Kick left forward, Kick left to left side
7&8         On ball of right ¼ turn left and cross left behind right, Step right to right 
                side, Step left to left side    (12.00)

Ball R, Step L, Hold, Cross Rock R, Recover L, Side Shuffle R, Cross Rock L, Recover R
&1-2       Step on ball of right next to left, Step left to left side, Hold
3-4          Cross Rock right over left, Recover on left
5&6         Step right to right side, Close left next to right, Step right to right side
7-8          Cross Rock left over right, Recover  on right (12.00)

Ball L, Cross R, Hold, Rock L to Left Side, Recover R, Cross Shuffle L, ¼ Turn L, ¼ Turn L
&1-2       Step on ball of left next to right, Cross right over left, Hold
3-4          Rock left to left side, Recover on right
5&6         Cross left over right, Step right to right side, Cross left over right
7-8          ¼ turn left step back on right, ¼ turn left step left to left side (6.00)

Ball R, Step L, Hold, Rock R over L, Recover L, Side Shuffle ¼ turn R, ½ Turn Shuffle R
&1-2       Step on ball of right next to left, Step left to left side, Hold
3-4          Cross Rock right over left, Recover on left
5&6         Step right to right side, Close left next to right, ¼ turn right step right forward
7&8         ¼ turn right step left to left side, Close right next to left, ¼ turn right step 
                 back on  left (3.00)

¼ Turn Right step R, Cross L over R, Step R to Right side, Touch L, Ball L, Cross R, Step L, Behind Side Cross
1-2          ¼ right step right to right side, Cross left over right
3-4          Step right to right side, Touch left toes to left diagonal
&5-6       Step left next to right, Cross right over left, Step left to left side
7&8         Cross right behind left, Step left to left side, Cross right over left (6.00)

Rock L, Recover R, Cross L Behind R, R to Right Side, Step Forward L, Pivot Turn L (x2)
1-2          Rock left to left side, Recover on right
3&4         Cross left behind right, Step right to right side, Step left  forward
5-6          Step forward on right, ½ turn left take weight on left
7-8          Step forward on right, ½ turn left take weight on left (6.00)