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This is one of my absolute favorite belly dance moves – The Single Hip Ommi. This intermediate-level belly dance moves is so snaky and sultry… and you can really play with this and spice it up to make it your own. In this tutorial I am going to teach you the single hip ommi – a variation of the upward ommi that takes this foundational move and bumps it up a notch in complexity and pizzaz. In order to correctly perform this movement, you’ll want to be familiar with unweighted hip lift and drops as well as the basic upward ommi. You can learn both of those here:

The Unweighted Hip Lift and Drop 

The Upward and Downward Ommis 

Once you finish the tutorial be sure to post below and let me know what YOU would like to learn next! Your suggestions could be my next YouTube video!

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Ready to learn more of the “must have” belly dance movements?

Dive deep into the beautiful art of belly dance with this FREE 7-day programs designed to get you moving with confidence and grace today! FREE 7-DAY JUMPSTART

The art of belly dance is full of unique and challenging muscle isolations, and the belly roll is one of the most sought-after of them all!

While the belly roll is a movement that perplexes many dancers, I have a way of teaching it that gives you more than one way to approach the challenge, greatly increasing your chance of success.

In just four steps (two of which you probably already have mastered) I will show you how to create a graceful and muscular belly roll that you can showcase in your dance and layer with other belly dance movements.

Watch to the end of the video for two little tricks that will make the more challenging parts of this movement more accessible… these are total game-changers, so be sure to check them out!

While you work through this movement, I’d like to invite you to release any judgment you have about how it looks or feels as you play with it. For many of us, the abdominal area can be a source of shyness, embarrassment and even negativity (Yes, even those of us who belly dance!) When I show this movement to little kids, they take to it like ducks to water, as they haven’t yet developed any insecurities around this part of their bodies and are much more willing to goof around and see what happens.

Today (and every day), I invite you to goof around too. You need a belly to belly dance, and this is a great way to give your fabulous belly the spotlight it deserves! 💖

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Ready to learn more of the “must have” belly dance movements? Dive deep into the beautiful art of belly dance with this FREE 7-day programs designed to get you moving with confidence and grace today!

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/jumpstart

Of all the folklore we encounter in belly dance, Saidi is one of the most common (and one of my favorites)!

In this tutorial I am going to walk you through a bit of what makes this style so much fun, including its earthy energy and opportunity for sass and attitude.

Spend a little time with me today and you’ll walk away with a better understanding of this style and a fab new combination you can use in your practice or performance!

Yallah! Let’s go!

Music used in this tutorial is Luxor Baladna by Upper Egypt Ensemble

Do you feel a a bit nervous when you pick up your finger cymbals because you’re not sure WHAT you should be playing? You are not alone!

I am approached by dancers all the time who feel a bit lost when they find themselves with zills on their hands, music in the air and the expectation that they are supposed to just starting playing something. It can be a little scary, especially if you are under the impression that you could possibly make the “wrong” choice.

I’m here to tell you that you have a lot more options than you might think, and that short of playing something that is not in tempo with the music or doing something non-committal and sloppy, there aren’t too many choices that I would characterize as “incorrect.”

In this video we are going to explore 3 basic ways you can choose to play your zills. There are definitely more ways to be explored, but these three will get you started confidently playing your finger cymbals the next time the music begins to play.

Are you ready to dive in deeper so you can put together fabulous zill patterns of your own? Check out my signature course – Acapella Finger Cymbal Foundations – an online course that will have you composing and playing your own fabulous zill riffs like a pro in no time!

Join me here now: http://SahiraBellyDances.com/Acapella

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A huge thank you to the amazing Miss Thea for the music in this video. You can pick up her album at her BandCamp here: https://missthea.bandcamp.com

Welcome to another video in the “Top 10 Moves That Every Belly Dancer Must Know” series!

In this video we are exploring one of belly dance’s most quintessential movements so you can learn to belly dance gracefully and confidently, knowing that you are creating and executing the movements safely and beautifully.

Today we are exploring the Forward Undulation. A gorgeously gooey movement, the undulation is a snaky movement of the spine from the chest down to the pelvis.

I will take you through the foundational isolations you need to create this movement and explain the muscles you’ll use to drive them. Then we will put those isolations together to create this gorgeous movement, drill it with some layers and variations and then dance it with music.

So are you ready to belly dance?

Let’s do it!

If you like this movement tutorial you are going to LOVE the FREE 7-Day Belly Dance Jumpstart – 7 days of belly dance tutorials designed to help discover health, movement, joy and creativity while learning a few of the most important belly dance movements! Join the fun here:

http://SahiraBellyDances.com/jumpstart

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A huge THANK YOU to the fabulous Miss Thea for the use of her music in this video. You can get her fabulous music for yourself here on Band Camp: https://missthea.bandcamp.com

I am a firm believer that Belly Dance is for EVERY BODY.

No matter your age, background, body type or gender identity, this beautiful dance form can help you find health, creativity and grace.

Through my 24 years of dance I have experienced many changes in my body, and I am blessed to teach this dance every single week to people of all ages, sizes and backgrounds. I can confidently say that no matter who you are, this dance can be a beautiful part of your life.

In this video I am going to share with you several ideas that I use on a regular basis to help navigate changes in my body and concepts that have helped my students (who range in age from 10-79) always feel confident, safe and beautiful as they dance.

Learn these concepts and then I’ll teach you a simple and lovely combination showcasing several ways you can adjust it to work for you, no matter what season of life you are in right now.

Happy dancing, beautiful dancer!

Get an exclusive free belly dance tutorial from me right now here.

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You can now get you very own Sahira t-shirt or tank on my website!

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Special thanks for the fabulous Miss Thea for the music used in this video. Support her on Bandcamp here

In this tutorial, we are going to dive deep into one of the more nuanced and lesser used shimmies in the bellydance vocabulary.

This is the Moroccan Shimmy… It is part of the triplet shimmy family, but has a slightly different accent that sets it apart and makes it even more delicious and slightly more challenging to perform well.

I will take you step-by-step through this beautiful shimmy, focusing on the weight shifts and muscle contractions needed to create a strong and juicy movement.

Once you have a solid foundation for this movement, we will take it to the next level and dance it with music.

Wondering how the triplet shimmy differs? Check it out here. The more shimmy textures you have in your dance vocabulary, the better!

Learn the Triplet Shimmy 

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Now that you’ve had a taste of some of the fabulous variations and textures the belly dance shimmy world has to offer you are ready to join me for my Sensational Shimmy Intensive and online course where you will learn how to confidently and gracefully dance 19 of the best bellydance shimmies and variations.

As a thank you for joining me here I’ve included a discount code for 20% off the course when you watch to the end of the video!

Get your shimmy on!
http://SahiraBellyDances.com/Shimmy

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Special thanks for the fabulous Miss Thea for the music used in this video. Support her on Bandcamp here: https://missthea.bandcamp.com/track/voxybeat

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Get your very own “Zillin’ Like a Villain” gear here: http://SahiraBellyDances.com/Zillin