I read an interesting blog post about injuries on the dance floor. Click here for the full story.
The basic gist of the post was that some people get extremely upset about being injured by others on the dance floor, to the point where it is uncomfortable or disruptive. Here is my advice about avoiding injuries and what to do if you do injure or are injured on the dance floor.
Ladies, if you are wearing heals, please try to not put all your weight on the heel when you step. For balance, speed and safety it is much better to step back with your weight on the toe. That way your weight doesn’t shift back too much which will avoid you losing balance, following too slowly and, most importantly, grinding your heel into someone’s foot. I think this is the most common injury and it rarely comes from men stepping on women. It is always women with crazy painful dance shoes stepping very heavily on your foot…ouch!
Ladies, spot where you are heading towards when being led and take small controlled steps. This will avoid your partner leading you into another couple on the dance floor. When bringing your arms up be very careful of your elbow – it can be a serious weapon.
Gentlemen, consider yourselves the driver of a very expensive car (porshe, ferrari, whatever you like :). You wouldn’t drive this car without carefully seeing where you are heading and what is in front of you. You would look over your shoulder when changing lanes and look carefully around you when parking. Dancing is no different! Look carefully to see where you are taking your partner and divert her if someone dances into the space. Be aware of you surroundings and remember that it is better to be safe than sorry.
Even with care, injuries are inevitable. Should you injure someone on the dance floor, please make eye contact with that person and mouth an apology. If it is a serious injury that has made the person stop dancing, stop yourself and ask if they are ok and apologize.
If you were injured by someone, remember that it was not intentional. I have gotten upset many times over very painful injuries and I had to remind myself that it happens and that I have done the same to others.
Hopefully we can all reduce incidents and keep the dance floor a positive haven!
