Step History & Evolution

Complexity and Speed

While it is impossible to say which came first, complexity or speed, one can safely say that over the last decade, step has gradually evolved from a vertical lifting activity, to more of a horizontal movement activity.

With the direction of developing complex combinations and variations, instructors began to incorporate a wider variety of movement patterns into their step training classes, including more floor movements, dance elements and rhythm variations.

Many of the floor and dance variations incorporated are performed without actually lifting the body weight onto the step platform - grapevines, walk arounds, mambos, sambas, chasses, pas de bourre's, shuffle or chasse turns, stomps, chugs, curls over and back, just to name a few. And with rhythm variations, patterns evolved that may lift the body weight up, but may stay up for a few counts before returning to the floor, or they are done in odd counts and sometimes even cross phrased.

This gradual departure from up, up, down, down, provided interest and challenge for both instructors as well as long-time step enthusiasts. But along with this evolution in complexity, there was a pronounced decrease in intensity without the steady lifting of body weight every 4 counts.

Going from a traveling L steps, where the body weight is consistently lifted, to grapevines on the floor can feel somewhat like slugging through mud at regular step tempos, particularly if repetitions of the non-lifting or irregular movements are performed in order to build and break down combinations.

With the decrease in step height and the incorporation of these complexity variations, the workout's tempo gradually adjusted to better work with these non-lifting and irregular patterns.

So in effect, after adapting to higher step height at slower speeds, followed by the general reduction of step height, the addition of floor based movements and irregular counts, it felt as if speed had to increase not only to maintain the workout's intensity, but also to provide increased challenge for fitter participants.

The Evolution of "Groucho Stepping"

As mentioned previously, with lowered step height and increasing speed, step technique began to modify. This evolved technique is often described as "Groucho Stepping", likened to the trademark walk of the great comic, Groucho Marx.

To help maintain intensity, stride distance gradually increased and participants began to step further away from the platform. And in order to react quickly to the increased tempo, a lowered stance was adopted - similar to a "ready" position used in reactive sports like tennis. This modification along with the faster tempo, keeps you more on the balls of your feet and along with the increased stride, does not allow for full landing of the heel.

With this evolution of step variety, the good news is that there may be a potential for less repetitive stress on the knees with the decrease in step height and constant lifting of the body weight, especially when combined with the more varied movement in direction. Unfortunately, this good news may be offset by the increased speed and the constant flexion required of the "ready" position, which has the potential to cause a different kind of stress to knees. And the other trade off, not-so-good news is there may be an increased potential for overuse of the lower extremities, such as achilles tendonitis and plantar faciaitis, with the inability to land the ball of the foot with this change in step technique.

The Step Speed Issue

If one has, over time, gradually progressed and adapted to these changes in tempo and technique, the shift in these stresses may not be apparent. Long term instructors who have introduced these new demands have done so progressively over time, and they are usually quick to defend up tempo step speeds by virtue of the fact that their "advanced" students can handle it.

These high speed adapters represent half the people who write to us and say "everyone is doing it", and ask " why do the guidelines not change accordingly?" The other half are those who feel step speed has gotten out of hand, and they are looking for validation that maintaining proper step speed is the "right" thing to do.

So what is "right" and why do the guidelines remain unchanged?

The answers are still to come, but first, there's one more aspect of complexity to address - the evolution of "tapless" choreography.

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Tapless or Tap-Free Choreography

The Speed Issue - Will it Ever Be Resolved?