If you want to get better at shimmying, you gotta practice them! This simple-looking, natural-seeming move can actually be surprisingly technical and difficult to learn, which is why many belly dance teachers recommend that students make their shimmy practice into an almost daily routine!
If you're finding yourself meeting this suggestion with the common "But I don't have time!" response, get ready to have your excuse declared completely null and void! You don't need to set aside hours for your shimmy practice. All you need are a couple of minutes shimmying every day or every few days to see your shimmy power, muscle control, speed and coordination reach new heights! And if you really, truly are not able to dedicate those 3-5 minutes regularly, I guarantee that you can still fit that shimmy practice in if you learn the art of shimmy multi-tasking, or shimmy-tasking! Shimmy-tasking is the act of layering your shimmies with mindless daily activities you already have to do anyway, to guarantee the shimmying will get done no matter what. This not only helps you achieve better and more controlled shimmies, but is also bound to make your necessary chores much more fun and exciting! So are you ready to dish the excuses? Let's go! 1. Shimmy While Doing Dishes Got no dishwasher and a big ol' pile of dishes waiting in the sink? Turn on some music and shimmy while you wash them! You will feel that time suddenly fly by and won't even think about how much you just wish you had a dishwasher! If you do have a dishwasher, you can skip this one, or if you are more advanced, use it as a challenge to practice your shimmy level changes when you load and unload the machine... just don't be dropping and breaking any of your china! 2. Shimmy While Brushing Your Teeth No one can hide from this one! You gotta brush your teeth every day, so here is your perfect opportunity to get your shimmy on, multiple times on the same day. You don't even need to put on music, just shimmy to the rhythm of the bristles scrubbing them fangs! 3. Shimmy in the Shower Just make sure your shower floor is not too slippery, and you're good to go! We wouldn't want you falling over and hurting yourself so keep your shimmies soft on this one. 4. Shimmy While Folding the Laundry Is there a more boring chore than folding clothes? Now you have a reason to look forward to it. Get that music going and shimmy away! It might take you a bit longer to finish, but it will feel like time well spent. 5. Shimmy When You Wait for the Bus/Train/Anything This act of public shimmying should be reserved for the cold days when you are wearing a long jacket and can shimmy inconspicuously underneath it without anyone noticing. Bonus: it will help keep you warm! 6. Shimmy While Grocery Shopping I have heard many a belly dancer say the grocery store aisles are their favorite place to get some extra shimmy practice in. This is a great opportunity to practice walking and other traveling shimmies, but as another act of public shimmying, reserve it for those days when you are wearing a long jacket so as not to attract unwanted attention from onlookers. 7. Shimmy While Cooking If you've got that recipe down on autopilot, add music and shimmies to your food prep or cooking process! But don't do it while you're chopping or peeling or handling something dangerous, because that would just be a recipe for disaster! 8. Shimmy While You Scroll How many hours a day do you spend scrolling through social media? You might as well put some of that time to good use by getting up from your chair or couch and shimmying while you get caught up on all your friends' updates and stories! 9. Shimmy on That Boring Call Got a friend, family member or colleague who just won't stop yappin' on the phone? Next time they start going on and on about nothing without giving you a chance to speak, mute yourself and get a shimmy going. If you're really pro at it and able to shimmy while maintaining your normal voice and breathing pattern, you can even do it while you have that conversation! 10. Shimmy When You Lay in Bed Notice how your technique morphs completely when you no longer have that connection, exchange and feedback between your feet and the floor, and when your body is in a horizontal position instead of vertical. Which totally different muscles are you now having to rely on? Do this right before you sleep or right after you wake up to make your shimmy practice the first and/or last thing you do in your day! We could keep this list going forever and ever ("Shimmy While Filing Your Nails!" "Shimmy While You Watch TV!") but I think you get the point! Add a shimmy to anything you do often and on autopilot, and watch your technique, control and comfort with this move completely skyrocket! If you have a favorite shimmy-tasking activity that wasn't listed here, share it in the comments! So, what are you waiting for? Get up and start shimmy-tasking!
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This month I am challenging my belly dance students to shimmy for 5+ minutes at a time, 5+ days a week for 5+ weeks, and I'd like to invite belly dancers everywhere to join us!
A shimmy is simply the fast shaking of one's hips. However, there is more to this move than it appears! It must be controlled and sustained enough for other moves to be layered on top of it, and there are many different techniques that achieve different visual results. It really is so much more than just aimless shaking, and the best way to learn proper belly dance shimmy techniques is to take a local belly dance class or a remote online class if you can't find any classes near you! If you are having trouble with shimmies, don't worry... you are not alone! The shimmy is one of those moves that can take months or even years for beginner belly dancers to grow completely comfortable into, and for most people there is no way to perfect it unless it is practiced frequently and for extended amounts of time. Even intermediate and advanced dancers can have trouble with this move, if it isn't practiced enough. And since it is one of the most prevalent and important moves in most styles of belly dance, there is just no way of getting around it... We all lead busy lives and it can be difficult to find the time to practice, but anyone can spare 5 minutes a day 5 times a week for something they want to get better at! Thus, the 5/5/5 shimmy challenge was born ;) You can be as laid-back or as serious as you'd like with this challenge. You can set aside the time and dedicate it fully to practicing your shimmy techniques in front of the mirror, or you can do it as part of your warm-up before you train on another physical activity, or if you're really short on free time you can just shimmy for 5 minutes while you shower, do the dishes, or cook. You might end up doing it every day of the week, or you might only get around to it once or twice a week, but the point is to get that practice in as opposed to doing absolutely nothing :) Feel free to share your practice/progress by tagging us on Facebook or hashtagging Instagram (#SharqiDance #shimmychallenge), or just let us know how you're doing in the comments section below! So, will you join our Shimmy Challenge? |
AuthorYamê is a Brazilian-American View Posts By CategoryIf you'd like to read more articles by Yamê or SharqiDance's guest authors, please view our blog map here.
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