Pro Tips: Breaking in New Dance Shoes

Whether you're hoping to rock a killer pair of heels for your wedding or you decided to invest in some new dance shoes for your Argentine Tango lessons, shoes can be a nightmare to break in. Proper shoes can make or break a dance, so at Dance FX Studios, we recommend breaking them in (especially wedding shoes) long before you actually need them.

**Note: If you're into Country dance or taking Swing dance lessons, you're probably not going to need to break in strappy heels. However, I suggest practicing in your favorite pair of cowboy boots or going out shoes! Even if you don't need to break in a new pair of shoes, your legs and feet will want to get accustomed to dancing in them :)

Here are some helpful hints for these rough times ahead. Power through, though! A real pair of dance Latin dance shoes will make your Salsa dancing that much easier, I promise!

Vaseline and olive oil

One of the biggest problems new shoes brings are blisters. If you have a pair of strappy heels, rub a little olive oil along the inner lining of the straps before you put them on. This can lesson the friction between the shoe and the delicate skin on the top of your foot. Another option is to apply some vaseline on any part of your foot that will rub against the shoe - under the straps or on the back of your heels. The same concept applies! It won't solve all problems, but it will keep the blisters at bay while the shoes stretch out.

Socks and blow dryers

If your shoes are a little too tight, grab your thickest pair of socks. Wear your thick socks under your shoes and take a blow dryer to them. The heat from the hair dryer can help stretch out difficult shoes.

Ice packs

Here's another nifty way to stretch out a pair of too-tight shoes. Fill two ziplock bags with water and place them in your shoes. Pop them in the freezer over night, and the water expansion will gradually loosen your shoes. Big help!

Liquid bandage and blister covers

If your shoes are still giving you trouble and you get a blister, help the blister heal with some liquid bandaid or a blister cover. No matter how much you break in your shoes, sometimes you just need to break in your feet. They will eventually callous over, causing your feet to be UNSTOPPABLE. Seriously, if you get callouses, no shoe will phase you.

Dance FX Studios has a full time staff of instructors helping people grow through private social dance lessons and group dance classes, so we know a thing or two about dance shoes. But, if you have a shoe tip that we missed, let us know in the comments! If you're in the greater Phoenix area and want to rock your first dance on your wedding day, or just want to get comfortable and confident on the dance floor, come by and see us! We offer Two Step, Tango, and everything in between. Located just off the 60 and the 101, we are easy to access from Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, Phoenix, and Scottsdale. Grab your new shoes and let's get dancing!

5 Practice Ideas to Improve Your Social Dancing

Here at Dance FX Studios in Mesa, Arizona, we highly encourage our students to practice what they have learned in their private dance lessons outside of the studio. But HOW do you practice? Ah, that is a wonderful question that we are happy to help you with! Whether you're trying your hand at Latin dance lessons, Swing, Tango, or Country dancing, here are a few tips for what you should be doing outside of your private lessons or group dance classes to see some great improvements:

1. Practice counting music

Counting music is an incredibly important aspect of dancing. If you aren't a natural at hearing beats of music, private dance lessons with us at Dance FX Studios are a great asset. Your instructor can give you the tools to find the beat in multiple types of music, from the Foxtrot to the Tango. After this, try to count any music you hear. At the gym, while cleaning the house, in an elevator - anywhere there is music playing - try to find the beat! With enough time, assistance and effort, hearing the music in all of your favorite dances becomes second nature.

2. Walk through your footwork

Is that underarm turn giving you a hard time? Go through the steps over and over until you no longer have to think about it. Repetition is the key to success here, so walk through your footwork until it feels natural. Just remember to take nice, small steps while you're dancing up a storm in your kitchen.

3. Shadow dance

It's difficult to practice lead and follow without a partner, but you can get serious benefits from shadow dancing. How does one shadow dance, you ask? Pretend you have a partner in front of you! Hold your dance frame as you would with a partner and pretend you are leading/following them. This trains you to maintain a solid frame while giving you a chance to practice leading techniques on your own.

4. Dance with a comfortable partner

The best way to practice is ultimately with another person. If you have a go-to partner (s.o. or otherwise), practice together in a comfortable environment. This is the time to try out any new moves or techniques you want to work on without feeling intimidated.

5. Dance with a NEW partner

Once you're pretty comfortable with your moves, it's time to dance with a new partner. The true test of your lead or follow is to give it a whirl with someone you don't know. The goal is to be able to dance with anyone, right? So grab a friendly looking stranger at that salsa club and give it a shot.

Ultimately, dancing is not about just getting your footwork down, so the sooner you feel comfortable with those feet, the sooner we can show you all of the cool stuff that you can do with your body. From turns to wraps, you can truly enjoy social dancing once your feet are on auto-pilot and you can focus on leading and following. That's when the fun really begins...


These are all fun, simple ways to improve your dancing faster along with your private dance lessons. Private dance lessons will give you the tools you need to be able to practice at home and enjoy any social dance floor, so if you live in the greater Phoenix area, come check us out! We are located in Mesa, Arizona, near Tempe, Chandler, Scottsdale and Phoenix, just off the 60 and the 101 freeways. If private lessons aren't for you, we also have awesome group dance classes and rockin' Zumba fitness classes throughout the week. Let's get you on that dance floor!