When doing rock steps in either of these dances, is it proper for the heel of the foot to acually come int contact with the ground with full body weight on it for the "and" portion of the count?

I still have this question: does 'rock step' mean any step backward which is followed by a forward? So far I heard it to be used with connection to jive and swing but not to chacha, rumba. Is the stationary samba walk has a rock step in it then?

The dance terminology in Hungary is a mix of English and Hungarian phrases. The name of some steps got translated, others have not. Sometimes it is very confusing. I heard one story related to this. A top Hungarian couple was taking lessons abroad and they asked the teacher to show them the step called 'Hunter'. The teacher had no clue of course! The solution was sg with 'chase' in it which got translated to Hungarian as hunter among the teachers.

My second question is about the jive again. The opinions seemed to differ on whether the heel should touch the floor or not on the rock step. Could someone check it in the book? I know it is a shame that I still not have a copy. (An online version would be nice.) I had no problem putting my heel down and extending the leg fully while maintaining a strong forward projection by sending only the left hip back. I cannot tell how much weight I put on the moving leg. I would rather describe it this way: I push the floor away with my foot by rolling from toes to flat position on the left while rolling to toes on the right.

Matyas

My heel touches the floor when I do a rock step in Jive but, as you say, it is with the weight a little forward.

The original question was about rocks in Rumba and Cha Cha. Actually, I am confused now as to what step was originally meant!

I wouldn't put my heel down on the Rock in Jive. Or at least, not with weight. I might let it lower to a certain degree, perhaps, but generally my weight is held forward.

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Jonathan

For International, you should definitely put the heel down on the back foot since you cannot straighten the leg without doing so.

I believe that one must always have ones weight forward so as to provide proper form and connection in latin dancing. You may place your heel down in the backward rock steps but little or no weight is placed on the heel. To allow for the cuban action, you must shift weight from foot to foot, but 'most' of it must remain on the ball of your foot.
In the faster cha-cha for example, you simply will look too "clunky" if you place your heel down in the rock steps, and you simply won't have the time - not to mention have poor form.
I suggest you look at yourself in a mirror while trying to place your full weight on the heel and then negligible weight on it. You should notice the difference in your form even without a partner. Next try it to some cha-cha music, and notice how you will have to scurry through the 4&1 steps in order to make up for the time lost swinging your body weight all the way back and forward.
My suggestion - stay forward, and don't transfer much weight to your heel. BUT, don't dance on your toes all the time either, your calves will tense up and bother you before long. The object is to place just enough weight on the heel without 'falling backwards". Good luck.
sRi.

I've done rock steps (or "back/replaces") in jive several different ways, depending upon what follows that action. My default rock step would be to put the back heel down, though I'm definitely not doing a full transfer of weight like I would in a rumba back break. I achieve that by swiveling the right hip open (the lady's part) quite strongly. However, in choreography, I don't always use that action. If I need to do a progressive spin (or something that moves forward) after the back/replace, it's not always productive to put the heel down. Though that's only a partial transfer of weight, it still has a very solid and anchored feel. When I need to get moving forward, I'll substitute a tap-ball-change action, with the tap behind me. You can propel slightly forward with that, so it's more efficient in some cases. For anyone who watches competitors, it appears that Michael and Beata (especially her) use this action a lot in jive, which wouldn't be surprising given how many changes of direction and momentum they do!

Vanessa