Hello everyone!
My first class went very well Tuesday night! We have a large class-about 20-25 ladies-and there were alla ges, shapes, races, and sizes.
Our first class consisted of sort of an orientation of what we will be learning in the 14 week class-she had it laid out very nicely. What I really liked was that instead of just throwing on a cd and teaching us some moves, she is teaching us different aspects of the dance-like in this 14 week beginners class, we will be learning 3 different common Middle Eastern dance rhythms, basic veilwork, and moves that go well with each of the 3 rhythms we are learning. Since I have a lot of videos and use them a lot, I know a lot fof the moves we will be learning-so it is nice to know that I will be learning other things as well.
The first class, and our next-we are learning the "beledi" rhythm and some moves to go with it. She took out a tribal drum and played it for us, and then played a couple of beledi songs while we learned the moves. I thought that this way of teaching will really help you later when trying to choreograph routine of your own, etc. We did some basic warm-ups for bellydancing, and did large hip circles, 3/4 shimmies, and basic Egyptian. Basic Egyptian is actually one of the moves I have a little trouble with-wouldn't you know that would be one of her first to teach! I love 3/4 shimmies though! We also worked on the basic bellydance posture/stance before we learned the moves, and I was so happy-when she told us all what to do and walked around the class-I didn't get corrected! I also found that I was able to hold the basic posture and do 3/4 shimmies and arm warm-ups longer than some of the thinner girls...I will chalk that up to my practicing and weight training. It is good to know that even though I may be heavier, I had more stamina and better posture.
We will be starting "bolero" music and veilwork in weeks 3 and 4 of class. Yay!
Aphil
Hey Rejoicee- good for you! Sounds like you had a lot of fun! I have women of different ages and sizes in my class as well. I think that it is one of the great things about belly dancing -anyone can do it and I don't feel as self concious as I do at the gym.
Aphil- your class sounds great - I love doing veil work. One time my class ( this one time at belly dance camp... ) was doing a free form dance with zills and we all ended up in a cirle facing each other- it was amazing how our energies just played off each other! Very empowering!
I have started doing the Neena and Veena tapes again, I had forgotten how good I felt after doing them
Last edited by mauvaisroux; 02-27-2003 at 06:29 PM.
"this one time at belly dance camp...."
That was just what I needed first thing in the morning.
I may have a vendor opportunity dealing with bellydance! A friend of mine does gorgeous tie-dyeing-and wouldn't you know it, on silk fabric...well, she has made some of the most gorgeous silk bellydance veils I have ever seen. She is making one up for me in greens and teals-and I am taking it to class when it is done-and if my teacher approves, she said I am welcome to offer them to sale in my class, and permission to go to her more advanced classes and troupe and offer them as well-and at the haflas we have twice a year. It is sortof a joint project-she is doing the dyeing, and I will be doing the rolled hem around the edges.
My veil I have now is chiffon, and they are nice, but silk veils are the best.They are so light, and they ripple in the air when you move, almost like they defy gravity-and to get tie-dyed ones at a decent price is almost unheard of. Every website I have seen has them at $60 plus...plain silk veils average at $30 plus...but they are SO dreamy...if anyone wants to see pics of mine or any info on them you can pm me...since we are not allowed to get into that here on 3FC. I can't wait to dance with mine...it is SO gorgeous. It has dark forest green at one edge, and a darker teal at the other edge, and a lighter pale blue in the middle...it is so beautiful. YUM.
We start zills in the next 14 week course-I think it is called "continuing bellydance", and then after that is the intermediate course, and then the advanced/performance type course-and then I guess if you are good enough she can have you join the troupe. You can continue to take the advanced course as long as you like if you are not a troupe member, because you do choreography to different songs, and it is not always the same old setup like in the basics course to teach you in the beginning.
I did my basic dance Veena and Neena tape yesterday...and my 4 year old daughter was hiding back behind me doing it as well-I could see her in the reflection of the glass door in the entertainment center. She actually did well with a few of the moves for being 4! I may have to start teaching her some moves in a year or so...and make her a min-veil-like 2 yards or something like that.
Well, I best get out of here-I need to have breakfast and get my exercise in!
Amy
ps-mauvais-Jason got his stormtrooper armor kit in this week!
This is interesting, I was just looking at the schedule from my local community education courses and there's a bellydancing class less than a mile from me! I am going to sign up and have some fun. it's only $24 for 1 1/2 hour lessons once a week for 8 weeks. Another way to try videos is to check them out from your local library. I've found several that way and should have them in a couple of days. It's great to find another kind of dance that doesn't require a partner. 10 years ago I got into line dancing (remember "Achy Breaky Heart"?), competitions and the whole bit but haven't done any other dancing since then, feeling too fat for ballet or some such. Bellydancing sounds just the ticket
Hello!
Welcome KimmyKat! Since you mentioned videos at the library-I do have a suggestion to newbies doing videos-do NOT rent or buy "Bellydancing for Fun and Fitness" by Janine Rabbitt! I have this video, and have also read a lot of reviews on it. Janine is a very sweet lady who really loves bellydance, but she has bad form-feet too far apart, bad posture-slouching, and her arm movements are VERY stiff-not flowing. If you already know how to bellydance, you can pick out a few good points in this vidoe, such as basic zills playing and veil-but for a beginner I am afraid that someone might copy her movements and posture-which are terrible.
I have lost 3 pounds this past week!
I have been doing my regular workout schedule-2 days of strength training, 1 day of Pilates, 2 days of yoga, and 2 days of bellydancing-one at home, and one in class-BUT-I have added about 10-15 minutes of "freestyle" bellydance on my non-dance days...I just play some Middle Eastern or drum music for about 3 songs-and just practice movements from class and shimmies, etc. to the music. It is really burning the butter!
As sensual and free as I feel when I dance...this is a fabulous exercise-let's not forget that!
Aphil
Hi!
My second class on Tuesday night went well...we still used to beledi rhythm, practiced some more on our basic Egyptian move, and added in the 3/4 shimmy-in both tribal style and cabaret/egyptian style. We also started working on some basic choo-choos to the side, and camels/basic Arabic...ugh. Mauvais-I can totally understand your "unlove" for the camels...The feet I can get...it is getting the little undulation in there WHILE I am doing the feet.
This next week we are starting veilwork...with a bolero rhythm. Yippee...I can't wait. I have a great black chiffon veil with silver metallic stripes, and a great silk veil with green/teal tie dye...which do I want to try first?!! I can't decide!
I did the Veena and Neena fitness Basic Moves today for practice-it is the easiest of all my videos...I wanted to take it a bit easy today, as I have MAJOR cramps.
I found another great site for some costumes and accessories...it is www.dahlal.com. They have an awesome selection of hip scarves, zils, swords, etc. and they have some awesome full performance costumes-from more demure dance dresses that cover more, to the fancy beaded bra tops and matching accessories...they even have a section of plus sized costumes. Even if you never plan on performing, it is nice to take a look through them and drool.
Aphil
I peeked in a while back when this thread was just starting and became very interested in Bellydance videos. Today I was in Target to buy my Miss Meringe cookies and decided to look at videos. I picked up the 'Bellydance Fitness for Beginners: Basic Moves' by Veena and Neena. I am looking forward to trying it. I love doing my Walk Away the Pounds tapes but I also want a little variety and I think the tape is just what I need :-)! Thanks for starting this thread. DM
Hi all, I just read some of the posts on this forum and decided to go online to one of the websites and order the neena veena basic tape to try. You all make it sound great!
I also did a search and found classes with the community like someone above mentioned that are 8 weeks, under a mile away from me for 20 bucks! The only problem is they start Monday and I'm afraid the class is already full...but I will call MOnday.
I too need some variety. I usually walk outside, and just started the WATP video (2 miles). It'd be nice to do this class on Monday nites tho, and all of you seem to like the videos.
I usually post on Fresh Start but will be checking in here from time to time too.
Hello everyone!
Welcome all of the newbies! I am glad that this thread is starting to get such interest! I truly think that the Basic Moves tape by Veena and Neena is the perfect introsuction to bellydance for quite a few reasons...it isn't TOO difficult, it teaches a few basic dance moves, and the rest is exercises that strenghten the muscles used in bellydance, and it teaches isolations/single movements that will help you learn how to control your body movement in ways you are not used to.
Bellydance is a dance of control, and sometimes it may feel akward to move your chest or hips in a way that you do not normally-with the isolated moves in this video, it is getting you used to moving this way-so when you advance in videos, or start a class-you understand the moves more and already are used to the feeling of that type of movement.
My class starts veilwork on Tuesday, and I am really excited about it!
Aphil
I have the Neena and Veena videos too, although they are more fitness tapes than dance, I really enjoy the workout.
You said it Aphil! the key word is control But when you do get that control - darn it feels good
Speaking of which we were practicing the "camel" move in my class this week as well as chest undulations and belly rolls - I will have abs of steel by the end of this! I went out on Saturday afternoon to buy a cropped top so I could actually see where my muscles (or where they are supposed to be ) are supposed to be moving. I usually wear a t-shirt at class but found that I couldn't quite get the moves down and thought that actually being able to see my belly and rib cage might help me figure out the movements better.
You will love the veil work, it feels amazing! It is one of my favorite parts of dancing.
Did the Basic Moves this morning. I like it, it works several parts of my body. It will take a long time before I am very good at bellydancing but thats OK with me.
Its kind of funny, I was following along with the tape, doing what I could and then they are going to the floor and I thought 'What type of bellydancing do you do on the floor?' but it was already time to doing the stretching at the end, the time went so fast.
I plan on switching between this tape and my 2 mile Walk Away the Pounds tape. DM
Hello everyone!
I made it to the 30 pound loss mark this morning! Wow...30 pounds of me totally gone now!
Mauvaisroux-didn't you say a while back that you had a leopard print hip scarf? I have come across something rather FABULOUS-I think there is a possibility you may be interested in it. pm me and I'll tell you about it.
I have the same "unwillingness" as of yet to wear a choli in class, but rather than wear a t-shirt, I wear a dance leotard with some low rise stretchy athletic pants over it. They are kindof like leggings, but lower on the hip and the legs flare a bit. The top is so that my tummy is covered and it holds it in a bit, but tight enough so that the teacher can see my ribcage and I can see myself in the mirror a little better. It helps. Check out any online dance supply place for a basic one, or maybe one of those stretchy type tank tops.
Aphil
Congratulations on the 30 lbs Aphil! that is amazing!
I don't know why I feel so self conscious about wearing a crop top in class, there are women there bigger than me who do. I guess it is because I am just used to hiding in my clothes to cover the bits I am not happy with and old habits die hard. But I bought that top and now I am gonna wear it!
What is a "choli"?
DaisyMaisy- sometimes in my class we go down on one knee on the floor or kneel on both knees and shimmee our sholders back down to the floor until the back of our heads touch the floor but that's all I have done regarding floor work.
A choli is a half top, usually form fitting at least around the ribcage (so it won't come up when you move) for bellydance. If you go to some online bellydance shops it will usually describe these half tops as a "choli." There are different styles, some are stretchy like stretch velvet or cotton/lycra that you can pull on over your head, and others like for the popular tribal style costume, have a completely open back-you put your arms through and it ties around your neck and in the back like a string bikini.
We did veilwork in class last night-basic veil moves and then "barrel rolls" with partners and two veils. They are really pretty when executed correctly. We also worked on figure-8 hips, and reviewed moves taught in earlier classes-and did a little bit of choreography with the veil moves and other moves that we had learned earlier.
I came home from class and showed my 4 year old daughter my veil moves-she LOVED it.
My teacher is having me help with making her troupe costumes-she is wanting a wrap closure choli, with 3/4 length sleeves, and a sheer chiffon flounce at the end of the sleeves, and a straight stretch velvet skirt with slits on either side right above the knee-plus a hip scarf-all in jewel tones like wine, navy, forest green, etc.
Oh BTW-another pound down now-31 gone!
Aphil
Hi everyone, I have enjoyed reading the posts so far. I will be taking my first bellydancing class ever this coming Tuesday and I'm so excited about it! I was intrigued to find out that there are a LOT of bellydancing fanatics here in Utah, there is even a national festival here in August! I just wanted to say *hi* for now, happy dancing...
I love 3/4 shimmies though! We also worked on the basic bellydance posture/stance before we learned the moves, and I was so happy-when she told us all what to do and walked around the class-I didn't get corrected! 
I also found that I was able to hold the basic posture and do 3/4 shimmies and arm warm-ups longer than some of the thinner girls...I will chalk that up to my practicing and weight training. It is good to know that even though I may be heavier, I had more stamina and better posture. 
and I don't feel as self concious as I do at the gym.
Can't wait to try this myself!
) are supposed to be moving. I usually wear a t-shirt at class but found that I couldn't quite get the moves down and thought that actually being able to see my belly and rib cage might help me figure out the movements better.
that is amazing!
I don't know why I feel so self conscious about wearing a crop top in class, there are women there bigger than me who do. 
I guess it is because I am just used to hiding in my clothes to cover the bits I am not happy with and old habits die hard. But I bought that top and now I am gonna wear it! 
