Beef It Up

A revolutionary Atlanta based dance made popular by the music group, Charlie Boy Gang. Much like the 'Twist', this is a dance done in crowds or small clusters. Each person can "beef it up" individually in separate directions as long as the beat is kept. It's almost like a two-step. One foot slightly comes off the ground after the other while swaying side-to-side on the upbeat. Sometimes the knees are bent while swaying to add a subtle bounce. Participants have liberty to do almost anything with the arms as long as the movement is fluent. The dance looks more authentic when simulating manual labor such as mowing a lawn, digging with a shovel, or bringing both knuckles close together slightly below the chest in a rotational motion. Advanced participants often incorporate a brisk stomp on the downbeat. The trick to this dance is to loosen the hell up. Try not to think about it. Remember you're dancing between the beat. It will naturally come to you if you get the feet movements down first. Funking it out occurs when the dance progresses to a very advanced level. The dancer is in the zone at this point. It's clear the participant is relaxed and happy, and that's the point of dancing.