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Solo training5 minutes

Practice Cha Cha on your own: 4 exercises for changing sides

By Mary De LucaUpdated

In short
  • You practice changing sides first with a single side step, then with a complete chassé.
  • After shifting your weight onto the right, the left chassé starts with the free left foot.
  • After shifting your weight onto the left, the right chassé starts with the free right foot.
  • You connect both directions first without music and then to the music, without an additional preparatory step each time.

A small adjustment step often feels helpful, but it shifts the connection. When practicing solo, you hear and feel this moment more clearly because you don’t also have to adjust to another person at the same time.

How the practice sequence is structured

  • From a Single Connection to a Sequence

    The four exercises are presented in learning order: first a connection, then the Chassé, the repetition, and the run-through to music.

  • The free starting foot as a benchmark

    Each task lets you determine whether the first side step is possible with the foot that is already free.

  • Can Be Done Without a Partner

    You don't need a hand connection, leading, or a second person for any task; familiar side chassés are assumed.

  • No paid recording

    Nobody paid for the recording; the selection contains only exercises and a final review.

  • Editorial status: October 31, 2026

    The episode describes a technical practice setup, not current course offerings or statistically verified learning outcomes.

A glance in the mirror only helps if you don't keep tilting your head down while doing so.
A glance in the mirror only helps if you don't keep tilting your head down while doing so.

Four tasks and a final self-test

  1. 01

    Send the free foot out to the side

    Without music, both sides, continue through count 4

    • Weight changes
    • starting foot
    • next step on its own

    Start with your weight on your right foot, transfer it to your left on 2, then back to your right on 3. On 4, place your free left foot out to the side and stop, so you can notice the next step on its own. Mirror the sequence with your weight on your left foot, your right foot on 2, your left foot on 3 and your right foot out to the side on 4. If you find yourself taking another step before the side step, repeat only the transition from 3 to 4.

  2. 02

    Complete the full Chassé sequence

    Without music, left and right separately, 2 3 4 & 1

    • Chassé
    • connection
    • ending position

    Build on the familiar side step: weight on the right, left on 2, right on 3, then the left Chassé with left, right, left on 4 & 1, before deliberately stopping. For the other side, start with weight on the left, switch to the right on 2 and to the left on 3, then dance right, left, right; after each sequence, remember which foot you last put your weight on instead of proactively resetting both feet.

  3. 03

    Connect left and right without a pause

    Without music, two chassés, continuously: 2 3 4 & 1

    • Changing sides
    • repetition
    • continuity

    After the left chassé, your weight is on your left foot: Shift it to your right on 2, back to your left on 3, then continue with the right chassé. When it ends, repeat the same sequence in reverse on the right, moving back to the left. Say the whole sequence evenly and listen for an extra foot sound between 1 and 2. Simply touching the floor is not a weight change, but a weight-bearing transitional step changes the sequence.

  4. 04

    Start on both sides with music

    With music, two starting feet, the same connected sequence

    • Music run-through
    • entry
    • side control

    Dance the connected sequence to a Cha cha cha whose beats you can already recognize with confidence. Begin one round with your weight on your right foot and another with your weight on your left, keeping the entry on 2 each time. Keep your arms relaxed at first so you can focus on your starting foot. If one side stalls, go back to the second exercise without music for this connection instead of covering up the mistake by dancing faster or adding an extra step.

  5. 05

    Check the run-through for extra steps

    Self-test, after the four exercises, in both directions

    • Check
    • supporting leg
    • error detection

    This self-test is not a fifth exercise: assess a run-through of the fourth exercise by checking whether the next starting foot is free on 3, the chassé begins immediately on 4, and no weight-bearing step occurs after 1 and before 2. If you can do this only to the left or only to the right, the sequence is not yet available in both directions; identify whether the error lies in the individual transition or the connection, and repeat the relevant exercise with a specific focus instead of restarting the entire sequence at random.

The Extra Step Reveals an Unclear Transition

Looking at the sequence, you can see that you don't need a new figure: The challenge grows simply because there are fewer breaks. A Chassé can work on its own and still connect poorly to the previous weight change. The common extra adjustment step happens when you have already chosen the next direction but still don't know which foot can start it.

Determine the starting foot from the weight-bearing foot on 3, not just from the direction you want to move. If your weight is on the right, your left foot is free for a step to the left. If it's on the left, your right foot can start. Having your feet side by side doesn't automatically mean both are bearing weight. What matters is which leg you're actually standing on.

This way of thinking in terms of end positions also helps with connecting Rumba figures without resetting, even though their step sequence isn't used here. For your solo exercises, keep your focus on the transition: You won't practice turns or partner leading.

If extra arm movements make the side change uncertain again, practicing your arms and legs separately can help. Add the arms only once the foot sequence flows without an adjustment step. That way, you can tell whether the transition itself or the added coordination is causing difficulty.

The concept in three figures

Solo exercises that build on each other
4
Home pages for the music run-through
2
Final self-test
1

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. You need a clear area for a side chasse in both directions. Remove loose rugs and objects from your step path, and keep away from furniture edges. Small steps are enough for these connection exercises, you don't need to travel long distances across the room.

Latin classes for your Cha Cha Cha

In class, you can bring the side change you practiced solo into your partnered Cha Cha Cha.

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Make the switch together

On udansa, you can find dance partners for Cha-Cha and try out in partner dancing the moves you’ve practiced on your own.

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Make the switch together

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