Tango Shoes Heels

CHRISA ASSIS OF BAUTANZ.COM

Tango Shoes Heels…

Own the milonga in your next pair of heels

Hello everyone!

My name is Chrisa Assis, founder and teacher of Bautanz - Constructing
Dance and this is my very first article for Tangorium. I hope you will enjoy it
as much as I did writing it!
When Serkan Yilmaz, whom I thank truly for this opportunity, asked me to write an
article about Tango fashion, the first thought that came to mind was, Tango
shoes!

Ok! Confession time so we can get to know each other bit better… Shoes and
specifically heels are my fetich! I find it extremely hard to resist buying them, I will
not resist looking and trying them on and of course I already have too many..!
So this blog post is about heels and how you can feel strong and confident on the
dance floor wearing them. Heels and generally shoes are super important, not
only in Tango but in our everyday life.
Shoes protect our feet from the environment. They shouldn't though, at the same
time, restrict the foot from properly moving, and perceiving the environment.
Heels are they that evil?
There are 2 matters that we would need to address before going into the dos and
don’t(s).

1. Stilettos, biomechanically speaking, are not a healthy choice. They force the
foot in specific position and require a certain body alignment and distribution
weight that has in many cases caused serious injuries. It also restricts the
efficiency of the human gait since we can’t use our whole foot as it was built
for us to walk.

CHRISA ASSIS OF BAUTANZ.COM

1- Following the above, the alternative wouldn’t be to wear flats and dance on
our toes, because this only makes matters worse. As we have our foot and
body in the same position as in stilettos but we have no heel to rely on.
So with these two items in mind, let’s see what we can do to make our dances
more enjoyable in those beautiful stilettos.
1. Let’s start with the most important element, height!
In Tango we wear heels, they don't have to be stilettos though and they don't
have to be high. So it is a good idea to start with a lower heel, possibly even a
wider heel instead of stilettos and then gradually build your way to the height
and style you prefer. There are so many brands now with beautiful lower heel
shoes that you can match with almost any outfit to meet the “social”
expectations of any milonga and still feel good dancing in them.
2. Further to the point above, it you should consider, not only your experience
but also your body structure. The smaller your feet are the more dangerous a
really high heel would be as a big portion of the weight will fall over the
metatarsals and the toes. So choose wisely..!
3. Lastly on this theme on height, flats will need not be on much service to you
for yet another reason. In most milongas, attendees expect to see you wear
Tango shoes identifying you are there to dance. When you are attending a
milonga, you need to look that you are part of the party... If you are showing
up in “all- stars" and then you are wondering why nobody is asking you to
dance... It is partly because they think you are not there to dance. Now I know
plenty of YouTube videos where great Tango stars are dancing in “all-stars”, so
if you are going to a milonga where everyone knows you then I guess you will
still get your dances no matter what you wear.
4. Overall body alignment. Considering the above we need to be very much
aware of how we align our main body masses, hips, torso and head over our
feet. On heels we are already more forward that standing flat and we need to
take that into account so we don’t over-extend the spine, hips and knees or
shift the weight even more forward and put our toes in danger. As Milena
Plebs said to us in a workshop: The heel is there for a reason, use it!
5. Choose your shoes wisely! Good quality, Tango shoes that provide the right
amount of support, protection and flexibility, can help you balance out some of
the risk caused by wearing stilettos.
6. Last but not least though ultra personal… make sure they look amazing! Make
sure you love them!

CHRISA ASSIS OF BAUTANZ.COM

2- Make your experience in your Tango heels as
beautiful as the shoes themselves
I am sure that after the above list, you are probably thinking of all the shoes you
might have bought either because;
1. Of how they looked or
2. Because of their price point
Then as you will hear me saying in the video, the shoes arrived and it took
approximately 2 years for you to actually feel good dancing in them either
because they are too high or because they are just not a good make.
In the video following you will find a few tips on how to choose the right pair, in
terms of quality, size and height. Tips on how to align yourselves over heels
without hurting your back and lastly a fitness sequence to get those legs a bit
stronger, because the stronger they are the better you can handle heels.

Heels...Own them don't just wear them!
Have fun!

Chrisa Assis (bautanz.com)