Belly Dancing Choo Choo Shimmy: Basic Practice

Video Transcript

"Let's practice what we call a choo choo. This is a type of shimmy that we're going to be doing on relevee. So just like with your hip bump or your hip lift side to side, you're going to be pulling the hip bone up vertically into your ribcage, except we're going to be up on relevee. So since we're doing a little bit slower right now you can put one foot slightly in front of the other which will give you a little bit more balance so you don't fall over practicing it. You can always use a chair or the wall or something to help balance if you need to. Put a little bit of softness in your knees so that you can balance yourself well. So we're first going to pull one hip up into the ribcage, and then we're going to shift to the other side. So left, and right, left and right. Make sure you keep your belly button pulled in and your chest lifted. And make sure those ankles are pressed in toward each other and the insides of your legs are pressed in toward each other. That will help you balance more and give you a nice line and then we're going to speed it up a little bit. So doing it standing's a little bit harder, but you can do it if you practice. And practice with both feet in front so that you get a feel for leading with each foot. Practice that in the mirror and make sure that everything stays nice in line and even."