How to Do Practice Shuffles in Tap Dancing

Tap dancing is full of great basic moves. Shuffles are a part of many dance combinations and even better exercises for warming up. The practice shuffle will get your body moving, your toes tapping and your ankles moving for more advanced steps.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Find something to help with your balance. If you are in a dance studio, use the barre. If you are at home, grab something handy like the edge of a taller table or the back of a chair. In warm up, your focus should be on getting moving, not perfect moves.

2. Center your body and get ready to warm up. You should be standing tall with your stomach tight. One hand should be resting on, not grabbing, the barre for support. Set the weight on your standing leg, the one closest to the barre and prepare to shuffle with the other foot. Your knees should be slightly bent.

3. Start with a shuffle to the front. A basic shuffle pushes out to the front, the middle of the toe tap striking the floor and pulls back, hitting in the same place. You knee should stay positioned above your toes with each step.

4. Create a basic warm-up routine using the shuffles on one foot first. Try four shuffles to the front, then four shuffles to the back. Part of warming up is making sure that both sides are getting the same amount of work, so switch sides at the barre regularly.

5. Make things more difficult by moving away from the barre. Keep your center and your body tall and lifted. Start with one foot, then try shuffling back and forth between your right and your left. Place your arms out from your sides slightly for balance.