Thursday TRICK: the Dying Spin

April 12, 2012 · by amy~* · in , , ,

Today I’m trying something a little bit different. I know we’re always working on perfecting and learning things on our wishlists, and really nailing those nemesis tricks, but I spend a pretty good amount of time trying to come up with new stuff. I was also thinking it could be fun to try to share some of those “new to me” moves, and pepper in tutorials for new tricks, transitions, or moves that I haven’t seen before.

So, today is a tutorial for a move that I’m calling the “dying spin”…. which is sort of a morbid name really, but I feel like it looks like you’re theatrically collapsing to the ground so… hence the name. I never said I was good at making up names! At any rate. It’s really more of a transition down to the ground. I did this on accident in a freestyle a little while back (this video, at about 0:35 in), and I was asked for more info on it. Hopefully this tutorial helps!

When you do it, make sure to engage through the inside arm, and you should definitely be comfortable with one-handed spins before you try it! The most important thing is to make sure that your hips face away from the pole for as long as possible, as you pivot on your feet. Really lean out and away as much as you can. You want to think of your hips creating an arc, or a C shape, as they travel around the pole. Without further ado, here it is (and click here to see it direct on YouTube):

I hope you like this! I have a lot of fun doing it and my students have all gotten it really quickly. It looks a little bit more complicated than it is. Don’t be afraid to try this with a little momentum, you need a little bit of speed to get turned all the way around.

Happy spinnnnnning!


Tomorrow’s post: Giveaway Winner…