How To Salsa Dance: The Cumbia Step

Step 1: You will need

Pair of soft-soled shoes

Step 2: Basic Footwork

To start you place your feet together with equal weight on both. Start with your left foot and place it behind your right foot, angled about forty-five degrees towards the right foot with your weight on the toes of your left foot. This toe to heal position is also often called the "fifth position." Now transfer your weight to the toes of your right foot and then place your left foot to the side of the right foot, on the same line as it's original position but a little farther away from the right foot than originally. You will now do the same move with your right foot. Dance instructors like to call this out as, "Left foot - back, replace (the weight), side. Right foot - back, replace, side."

Step 3: Natural Opposities

The leader (usually male) will start off with his left foot. The follower (usually female) will do the natural opposite, so she will start with her right foot.