First let me say, Welcome to the world of Salsa Dance! But let me warn you, once you start, you won’t be able to stop! I started dancing almost 20 years ago and it definitely change my life! For the better of course.
What should I wear to my first salsa dance class? Well, that is a great question and one that I get every time I book a new student. If this is actually going to be your very first salsa class than I would say that you can wear just about anything you want. Your first class will be more of an introduction to what your future classes will consist of. But if you would like to be a little more ahead of the curve, I would love to help you out with that.
So let me give you some pointers on what to wear to your salsa dance class. The more ready you are to start, the better it is. Salsa is a very physical sport and wearing the right clothes will make the process of learning that much better. Not to mention, you will just look cooler or sexier or whatever adjective you like to use!
We Need To See Your Body Clearly
Your dance instructor needs to be able to see all of your body movements very clearly. He or she will be looking at your foot placement, leg action, and body action. This is especially important in the beginning so that your instructor can correct bad habits early on. Wearing clothes that are not form fitting will just work against the clarity of obvious mistakes. Clothes should fit your body in a way that they move with your body and are not obstructing the view of your body movements.
Lets Get Physical
Salsa dancing is very physical and is very much a sport and you should treat it as such. I always tell my students that if they are not sweating than they are not trying hard enough! Just kidding. Kind of. So you definitely want to keep this in mind when picking out your clothes for your salsa dance class. Not only that, your instructor will take you much more seriously when you come to class looking like you are ready to work hard.
What I Wear Just Inspires My Salsa Dancing
The fact is, when I walk into the studio with normal street clothes on, it just takes away from my mindset of dancing. When I come in with my latin pants on and dance shoes on, I just feel ready to salsa dance. What you wear can almost make or break your salsa lesson. Wearing your “special” salsa dance clothes will just put you in the mood to burn up the floor. Don’t get me wrong, you can dance just fine in street clothes, but wearing your special salsa wear will just give you that extra motivation or inspiration to dance hard.
Wearing The Wrong Clothes
When you wear the wrong clothes for dancing it will inhibit your instructor from teaching you to their fullest capacity. Clothes just become a distraction in your lesson. The instructor needs to feel comfortable to place you in the right positions , see where your foot placement is, see your leg action, and see what your body is doing throughout all the figures of dance they are teaching you. You want your instructor to feel comfortable to be able to physically fix you without worrying they might mess up your clothes.
Don’t Wear These
Baggy Pants or Dresses – Instructor will not be able to see your leg action.
Pants that cover your feet or long dresses – Instructor will not be able to see your foot work.
Tight Skirts or Pants – These can restrict movement. Skirts tend to ride up. Pants that are stretchy are ok.
Baggy Shirts or Blouse – Instructor will not be able to see your body action.
Sweaters or Sweatshirts – Just too dang hot!
Strapless Tops – Always having to pull them up. This drives me crazy!
Dangle Accessories – Earrings, bracelets, watches, and necklaces are all potential scratch or catch hazards.
Tennis Shoes or Rubber Soled Shoes – Can’t turn in these shoes. Your gonna hurt a knee!
Wearing The Right Clothes
Wearing the proper dance clothes to your salsa lesson will just stream line your learning. It will just make the lesson feel much better and you will get much more accomplished. It puts you in the mood to dance and you will dance much harder. Your instructor will not be distracted with your clothing and they will be able to teach you to the fullest extent of their ability. And again, when you have your Special dance clothing on, it will just inspire you much more to dance to the fullest of your ability.
Wear These Clothes
Yoga Pants or Fitted Sweat Pants– need to fit your body.
Fitted Jeans – they need to be flexible and not restrict movement.
Skirts That Are Not Tight – they need to be flexible and not restrict movement. Tight skirts can ride up.
Dresses Above The Knee – not too baggy or poofy. but not too tight either.
Shirts or Blouses That Are Fitted – they need to be flexible and not restrict movement.
Leggings – they need to be flexible and not restrict movement.
Dance Shoes or Dance Sneakers – These are perfect. Very flexible shoes.
Shoes With Leather Sole – You want them to be flexible.
Alittle more about shoes
Ladies you can definitely wear your regular shoes. I usually recommend a flat shoe that is not open in the back or they may fall off of you while dancing. Same goes for high heeled shoes. You want to make sure the shoe is closed in the back and not open. Also want to make sure the shoe has straps to keep your foot securely in the shoe. If you are going to wear heels make sure the heel is no more than 3 inches. It is difficult to dance in heels and any higher than that will definitely throw off your balance. Keep in mind that most regular shoes are not flexible at all and will totally hinder your dancing. I think it is ok to wear your regular shoes for the first few lessons that you take, but you should definitely plan on getting some legit dance shoes as soon as you can. Regular shoes are no comparison to a dance shoe. Guys, that goes the same for you. If you plan on wearing your regular shoes stay away from any rubber soled heels. You will not be able to turn in your shoes very well and you actually risk hurting your knees. Try to wear leather soled shoes. These will work much better.
The Perfect shoes
If you plan on continuing your dance education then you definitely need to break down and get yourself some real dance shoes made for the movements you will be doing. Ladies if you are wanting to wear heels then it would be in your best interest to get some dance heels. The shoes have a suede bottom on them allowing you to turn very easily with no problem. The nice thing is they allow you to turn and at the same time they also will grip the floor very nicely. There is a very large selection of high heeled dance shoes that you could get. The other option of shoe you could get is a dance sneaker. These shoes are great because they are not high heels and most definitely a little easier on your feet. Especially if you are dancing a lot. They look like a sneaker and feel like a sneaker. They are very comfortable! Guys, you can wear these dance sneakers as well. But if you want to get fancy you can get yourself a pair of men’s Latin shoes. Eventually, this is just something you are going to do. Once you get into it enough, you are going to want the right shoes for the job.
Dance till you sweat
So yes , chances are you will be sweating in your dance lessons. This is something you want to keep in mind when thinking about what you are going to wear. Some colors and materials tend to show how much sweating you are actually doing. I don’t know about you but for me I like to keep the visual evidence to a minimum! Darker colors are usually the best to resolve this issue. They don’t show the sweating quite as much. Just something to keep in mind. Another think you could think about is actually bringing a towel with you to your dance classes. Its always nice to have it handy just in case the sweating gets a little excessive.
It gets Hot Sometimes
Depending on how hard you are dancing, sometimes you can get really hot. It a good idea to think ahead on this and perhaps think about light layers to wear. This way when you start to get hot you can peel away the layers. But just make sure that each layer you wear to dance is form fitting and not baggy.
Too sexy or too revealing
I figured I would throw this one in here because sometimes this conversation comes up among instructors. Honestly, most instructors are not bothered by this. The fact is, salsa is a very sexy dance and most everyone wants to look sexy and feel sexy while they are dancing. So to me, if feeling sexy gives you a little more confidence while on the dance floor then I think you should wear whatever makes you feel that way. My only concern is that if you wear something to revealing you always run the risk of maybe revealing more accidentally. Salsa, along with being very physical can a lot of times be very much a contact sport and sometimes clothes can get pulled on or manipulated somehow. So this is something you may want to think about. You just want to make sure your clothing is very securely fitted to your body so that nothing is accidentally revealed. But in all honestly, its extremely rare for something like that to happen.
Conclusion
So if this is your first salsa lesson you are taking you can wear just about anything. Your first lesson will be an introduction to what your future lessons will cover. So, you really can’t go wrong here. As far as future lessons you need to keep in mind that the instructor needs to be able to see your foot work, leg action, and body action. Make sure you dress for a very physical sport and this will allow your instructor to teach you to their full potential. Wear clothes that inspire you to dance. You will be dancing like crazy so you might as well look the part. Wearing the wrong clothes suited for salsa dance can inhibit your instructor and can even be distracting. Wearing the right kind of clothes can streamline your lesson and even motivate you to dance even harder. Shoes are so important. This is one of the main things to wear if not the most important. Do yourself a favor and get yourself some real dance shoes. They will make a world of difference in your dancing and you will feel so much lighter on your feet. Its good to wear darker clothes so that if you sweat it is not as noticeable. Bring a towel. Its much better than using your shirt! Dress in light layers that you can peel away as you get hotter and make sure that they are all fitted layers. Last but not least, dress in clothes that make you feel sexy and confident. Everyone wants to feel sexy when they are dancing and if they do they usually dance better! So go out and get prepared for your first salsa dance lesson. And remember, its going to take some work. Just make sure you dress the part and make sure that you have a ton of fun! Good luck on your salsa journey and I will see you on the dance floor!