There are only 9 weeks left until USDC (United States Dancesport Championships) and our preparation is already in full swing! Last week, which was our week one of USDC preparation, was a packed week! I can’t wait to tell you all about it!
Week One of USDC Preparation: Overview
Simeon and I took time in our practice to video all 10 of our routines (9, not including Viennese Waltz), closely studied them together. With only 10 weeks left, we wanted to make sure that any choreography changes are made NOW. We always hate feeling unprepared for big comps. Therefore, we both wrote down lists of things we didn’t like from our choreography. Then we compared lists and decided on some things we were definitely going to alter.
Next, we discussed with our coaches what our strategy needs to be for the next 10 weeks. We identified a strategy for three different categories: the look, our mental approach, and the physical dancing. As 10-Dancers this is even more difficult for us because we have to do this activity for two styles, not just one! For mental approach, we try to come up with one that works for both styles.
The Look: Week One of USDC Preparation
Costumes
I worked closely with our coaches to come up with the costume design and the colors. When it comes to National Championships and our 10-Dance, I prefer having costumes that at least resemble each other in terms of color. During the rest of the year, we want judges to see us as Latin dancers when we dance Latin and Standard dancers when we dance Standard. But for the 10-Dance, we are neither. We are 10-Dancers, through and through! And I always feel that having costumes that are close to matching in both styles help me mentally achieve that thought.
If you’re confused about the difference between styles in Dancesport, check out this page where I broke it all down!
We chose the fabric colors and ordered everything. I also drew up the designs. I’m lucky in that I’m a fairly good artist, so I can draw my designs. The one I pictured here is an old design. (I don’t want to unveil my new designs just yet!) The fabric for my Standard dress I sent to my amazingly talented dressmaker in Bulgaria, along with the design, and the fabric for my Latin dress I sent to my incredible dressmaker here in Seattle!
My dressmaker here in Seattle moved so fast! I had my first dress fitting on Tuesday, then the second on Friday. I In fact, she’s on schedule to finish my dress by next weekend! I’m so excited!
Fitness and Diet
I started working out again and took the week to prepare my diet plans. However, I decided not to actually start my diet until Week Two, since the craziness of my schedule last week didn’t give me an opportunity to do any meal planning. For workouts last week, I did a weight-lifting workout for my legs, a Tabata workout for my abs, a weight lifting workout for my back, and a pretty hardcore HIIT workout on the elliptical that always kills me.
Mental Approach: Week One of USDC Preparation
The first part of our mental approach is this single keyword: certainty. We want to be 100% certain in everything that we’re doing. That’s why we spent time going through our choreography until we had come up with a solid list of pieces we’re going to attack. We know what our look is going to be, and that helps as well.
We are beginning our practice of visualization. This week, we took time to fully visualize what the ballroom at USDC looks like, from the color of the chairs, to the TV screen in the background. We reminded ourselves that the floor creaks when we walk on it, that the floor is slightly wavy and plays games with your balance. This way, we can mentally place ourselves in the midst of competition while we’re practicing. To read more about the importance of visualization, check out this article from Sports Psychology Today.
Physical Dancing: Week One of USDC Preparation
Our first preparation week was a tough one! First of all, we were both recovering from nasty colds the week before that meant cough drops made a permanent home in our pockets. We were sniffling all week!
Sunday
Today we drove straight out to the studio and got right down to business, practicing a good three hours. Almost immediately we taught a few lessons, then headed home to share a few beers and tacos in the company of great friends. Not exactly diet foods, I know, but a great way to start the week.
Monday
We were up at 6:00am in order to leave for a studio in the North of the Seattle area so we could take lessons with a teacher who was visiting from NYC. We had a great couple of lessons with him, then hopped back in the car to drive down to our studio. After we practiced for another hour and a half or so, we took Casper to the dog park to let him run around before teaching. We both finished teaching earlier than normal, so we changed into our sweats and jumped over to the gym.
Tuesday
Tuesday started out with my first dress fitting for my Latin dress. Then we made a quick stop at the dog park to let Casper get rid of some excess energy before heading to the studio. Today was Latin day, so the studio was bouncing with Samba rhythms and Cha Cha vibes. Teaching wise it was a full day, so unfortunately I didn’t get the chance to head to the gym.
Wednesday
Both of us were teaching a bit later in the day, and neither of us had any early appointments, so we were lucky to be able to sleep in just a bit today. In fact, according to my sleep log, we got the most sleep on Tuesday night! We had a great Latin practice again today, this time focusing on Rumba and Paso Doble, then taught a few lessons after squeezing in a quick Tabata workout. That night, we had dinner with Simeon’s family.
Thursday
Since we had been going for 5 days without a break by now, and wouldn’t have the opportunity for another break for another week, we took a break from practice. Instead we met up with some old students (who no longer dance) for a coffee and to catch up. Over the years, we have gotten to be so close to some of our students and we maintain relationships with many of them even after they have quit dancing! It’s a special treat for us to be able to catch up and talk about life and accomplishments. We love our #dancerslifestyle but sometimes we need to spend time with normal people for a change. 🙂
Then we worked out. Then we taught. Hard. And ran home and went to bed. Because Friday…..
Friday
Crazy day! We were up by 5am so we could rush out to the studio and cram in a practice before lessons with one of the most famous Latin dance teachers in the world! The lessons, by the way, were AMAZING. After the lessons, we hurried back to the studio to practice extra what we had just learned. Friday is always an early day for us, so we were finished teaching by 3:30. We made a quick jump over to the gym, then stopped by the dressmaker’s house on the way home for my second fitting. Once we made it home, I took the extra hours in the day to do some meal prepping for the next week.
Saturday
Another crazy day! This time, we headed out to the airport at 10:00 to pick up our Latin coach. He was flying in from NYC that morning, but since his flight was running late, we hardly had any time to rest. On the way to the studio we paused to get him some food, then started in on our lessons. We had 7 lessons with our coach and he absolutely killed us! But it was 7 lessons well spent. They do so say, a happy dog is a tired dog. Right Casper? 😛
USDC Preparation: Week 2
Keep your eyes open for USDC Preparation: Week 2 to be published on Sunday, July 8! Want to keep updated? Subscribe to our email list!
