How to Dance Salsa - Turns & Spins

All right guys .

Welcome to another fast fun and easy salsa lesson for you .

Now , this is one of my favorites .

I have a lot of guys that they're really nervous when they're dancing and they don't know that many moves .

So if you want a lot of moves , this is going to just blow you away with how many moves you can know and encounter on the watch .

You know , look at the time around here in five minutes .

I'm going to teach you more lessons than you've ever had more moves than you've ever seen in 2030 different lessons you can take with a professional .

OK ?

And the whole concept is when you go to a professional and you learn a lesson , they usually try to teach you how to be incredible .

They try to teach you where they are and you don't want to be where they are .

You just want to look decent on the dance floor .

I found there's three different types of dancers .

Those look horrible , those that blend in with everybody else on the dance floor and then those that stick out because they're so so good and most people that are watching this tutorial , you should be watching this .

If you just don't want to look horrible , you want to blend in with everybody else .

Ok .

So the ladies out there , you need to understand that it's ok for the guy to be sloppy .

He needs to build his confidence .

He needs to just understand that it's ok to try things and it's ok to just get out there and have fun .

And guys you need to understand that you don't have to be perfect that when you're doing this , you want to think that progression , not perfection and don't worry it exactly where your feet are going , exactly where your hands are going .

So we aren't focusing on our feet at all .

Here , we're just focusing on our arms and when you're doing salsa , you might learn the normal basic and you go quick , quick , slow , quit , quick , slow and you might have one turn up your sleeve .

This guy right here , you might even have a cross body lead in there .

OK ?

And that's about it .

That's about it for somebody that's taken maybe 12 lessons , maybe you've taken five group classes , something like that .

But if you see all these crazy turns and crazy moves that people have that are professionals or the ones that have been taking more lessons and you want to have the same thing that they have .

So here's your lesson for that .

We're going to learn how to do different traffic signals with our hands and we're going to learn that you don't have to know what to do with a girl .

So Keanna , your job is to make me look good .

Ok ?

So even though I'm the professional , you want to teach the ladies that it's your job to make the guy look good .

It's my job to make you look good .

Your jobs make me look good .

But if you're with a brand new guy and he doesn't know what he's doing , then you want to show him and be confident .

And when I just raise my arm here you spin for me .

So don't make me have to like spin you the exact way .

Don't make me have to like rock step while I'm spinning you .

I just want to know when I lift here , she's going to look cute .

The normal turn that we do is where she goes out to the side and a completely different turn is where I take the hand across this way .

OK ?

So those two alone are very basic moves that you always want to do .

You go out to this side , you go back to that side .

Now , we actually aren't going to grip each other at all .

I hold my hands up and it's like I have a magic wand in my hand .

So I grab you put your magic wand in your hand guys and then you put that magic wand and you place it against her .

You can feel that right ?

Cool .

So you feel that energy now , I just say spin over there , spin over here , spin twice , just go go , you know , and that's my magic wand .

I just , I go , I want you to spin here .

I want you to spin there and you do it .

So , and that's what's cool about dancing .

You see a top pro and the top pro says I want you to spin there .

I want you to spin here .

I'm gonna walk over here while you're spinning .

I'm gonna walk over there while you're spinning .

You know , and it's her job to figure out where to go why to go there .

Make sure she doesn't fall down because I don't want to have to worry about all that .

Now , that's what you see with my left hand .

We also have the same thing with my right hand .

I can lift the right hand .

She spins again .

I go over here , she spins again , spins and if I keep it up there , she just keeps spinning .

It's her job to figure that out .

So , like I said , this is for people that you don't want to look horrible on the dance floor .

You want to look like you at least know something .

If you already have had lessons before , this isn't really for you .

This is for the people that um you just see 20 different spins out there and you want to try it out on your own and this is like your license to try .

It's not your license to perfect your license to try .

Ok .

So these are the ways that we're going to do that .

We're going to lift the left hand , she's going to spin it that on .

Then I'm going to take the left hand and throw it across the body and she does an inside spin .

Ok .

So ladies , what you need to know is there's the elbow has two different directions .

The elbow can go out wide , that's called an outside spin .

The elbow can come across your body that's called an inside spin when it goes out wide , go with it and it comes in , go with it .

So you take your nose and the nose follows the elbow .

So take the nose exactly where the elbow is and that'll really um give you a lot of strength in it .

Ok ?

So now if at this hand , you follow the nose with the elbow and you could do a pretty good spin there .

You'll find a lot of ladies , they'll try to look at the guy and she'll just look at me and it throws her spin off .

You'll learn that in professional dancing , you'll learn how to spot .

But right now I want your eyes and your nose to follow the elbow .

Ok ?

So from the top , let's try that one more time , we have the left hand going out , left hand going in .

I noticed guys I'm not doing anything fancy with my hand .

We also have the right hand , right hand out , right hand in .

Ok , then we have both hands together , both hands that way .

Both hands this way .

Cool .

Um , so then we have all the same thing , but now I'm gonna spend the same time she spends right hand out right hand back the other way .

Cool .

So you can get a lot of cool moves just by raising your hands in different directions that alone .

I don't know .

I've given you um , I think that was eight moves .

Now , let's do it on the right arm .

We go out , we go back .

Cool .

And um , and I'm doing it sloppy on purpose just to build your confidence to show you how easy this is for anybody to do .

Another way we can do this is by holding on .

I'm going to take this hand and just hold it down on my side and do all the same moves .

I go out , I keep on holding it and when I say hold it , I don't grip with my thumb .

I'm just there that magic ones down there .

Then I come here .

So that's a new move .

How about this one ?

How about we go out and then come on all the way around .

Step over here , come back to normal here , there you go .

And for the lady you want to step a lot , you want to step , step , step , step , step .

So keep stepping stepping , stepping , stepping , stepping , then keep on going .

Cool .

OK .

So what am I doing with my hands ?

I don't want to teach you the exact technique .

I want to show you that you're allowed to move your hands in a circle .

You're allowed to unwind .

You're allowed to wind over here , wind over there anywhere you wind , the lady needs to learn .

It's like a game you play with her .

It's her job to figure out how do I wind up in that and not fall over ?

You don't need to have perfect technique to teach that to her .

So her job , she's going to move her feet and don't get your feet all garbled up as I just move my hands wherever I want .

I go over here , I go up here and around and I go again .

I keep both of her hands in one .

Ok ?

And another thing I don't want the ladies to do , don't drop your hands whenever I'm doing anything .

So if I have your hands up here and I raise your hands , they stay there until I pull them down .

So they're up there and they both stay up there .

And then when I pull them down , that's when they come down because I have the magic wand .

The guy has that magic wand .

Cool .

OK .

So we do that again .

We're over on this side and then I can let go with one hand and I can let go of that magic wand , but I still have that other magic wand .

And I say I'm out there , come back to me , out there , come back to me and I grab , I switch my magic wand .

Now I'm saying go out that way and don't grip onto me and just light .

There you go .

I can come back .

I switched the magic wand .

I think the magic wands over her head .

Any of that is allowed in the dance .

Now , that's what it looks like .

Really sloppy , really slow .

I'm going to show you how to pull that into actual salsa dancing .

And this is Kone's first time .

She never has done this .

So if you're asking like , well , she's professional or no , she's not .

She's done other dancing before , but she's very new to salsa .

So we're going to just do the salsa basic , quick , quick , slow , quit , quick , slow elbows in .

OK .

Any time you want guys , preferably when she's stepping backwards , you break that magic wand up and have her do in motion .

OK ?

So magic wand and then I come back and I just do basics again .

Cool .

So I bring the other magic wand up and then I do basics .

So that basic is your go to motion .

You can do a cross body lead to switch it up to just get it on the other side and I'm going to do a few more magic ones and I stop my feet .

Notice how my feet do nothing at all .

Whenever I'm doing my magic one stuff .

When we're first learning how to dance , we don't want our brain to go to our hands and our feet .

At the same time , it's too much to think about .

Ok .

Now I'm gonna have this hand down low while I take the left hand up high .

Oh , and I go around and again it's her job to move her feet .

She moves her feet a ton and you have to move way more than that .

She's trying to spin on 1 ft .

Spinning doesn't exist in salsa .

We never , ever , not even one split second .

Do we spin in dancing ?

We always step , think of marching in the dance .

So ladies remember your job , your job , stand up tall .

March on your feet .

Don't dance on your feet , march on your feet and don't grip the guy .

OK ?

And then that's a lot , it's only three rules , but it's a lot to actually make happen .

And the guy's job , if she does start gripping , you go ahead and grip my hands and yes , if she starts gripping you and that's her .

Shake her off , shake her off and remind her we don't grip here .

This is a magic wand .

OK ?

And , and you have to maintain your confidence .

The main thing I see with the guys we have to remind ourselves I'm good and she's gonna listen to this very gentle light motion here .

I don't have to yank her through it .

I have to tell her , look , this right here .

This is a turn .

You don't have to do that .

You just say , oh you're gonna go that way .

You're gonna go this way and she'll feel it and she'll like it .

She'll enjoy it and she'll want to come back and dance with me more .

OK .

So let's just brush up all we have , we have the left hand as the guy I can lift it outside .

I can lift it inside the right hand , lift it inside , lift it outside .

I can hold on to the right hand while I lift the left side out , left side in , both can go around , both can go back .

And I can also play with a yo yo , the yo yo is where she was in here and I play with my yo , yo and I play with my yo yo .

Cool .

So those are a lot of moves , like I said , within 10 minutes , you can get just as much in my salsa lesson as you can in 30 40 private lessons with another instructor because their ego gets to them .

They try to try to teach you what a professional looks like .

I'm not worrying about your feet at all .

I'm mainly doing just salsa basics and that throws some turns in one more time now that she feels a little bit better .

The ladies , you're going to march on your feet , stand up tall and don't grip me .

OK ?

And if you get to feel like I don't know what the guy's doing , then march a ton and come back and look at me in the eyes .

OK ?

But don't stand there and spin and definitely no matter what you do , don't grip me .

I will let go of you .

Grip me .

Cool .

OK .

So here we go , quick , quick , slow , quick , quick , slow , quick , quick , slow , quick , quick , slow , quick , quick , slow .

And you're just seeing all those motions that I showed you guys .

We're here a yo yo .

And you can do the moves from any part of this .

You don't have to come back to that of basic to do motions .

Cool .

So those are about 30 maybe 50 different spins that you guys can do together with your partner .

Pass this on your own , just get confident , moving your feet around , doing basics and putting your arms all over the place .

Great job .