I was having a discussion with a friend and we appeared to be calling the same pattern by two different names. Wanting to enlighten myself I looked at the American Rumba 5 Position Break and Crossover Back Break. I am not picking up on what makes the two different. Both videos show the dancers taking back steps, in my opinion larger that a 5th position foot placement, the both charts describe the back step footwork as Ball-Heal. What am I missing ?

Hi DelDance,

Great question — you're not imagining things. The foot action is very similar between the two, which is why they can feel almost identical at first glance.

The difference is really about position and shape, not the step itself:

5th Position Breaks
• Danced arm-to-arm (not fully side-by-side)
• The couple alternates between promenade and counter-promenade (a slight “V” shape)
• The turn is smaller — about ¼ turn from side to side

Crossover Back Breaks
• Danced in a true side-by-side position (no “V” shape)
• Typically hand-in-hand
• The turn is larger — about ½ turn from side to side

So while both figures use a back break action with similar footwork, they feel different because of how the couple is aligned and how much they rotate.

That difference in position and rotation is what gives them separate names in the syllabus.

Fun fact: 5th position breaks get their name from 5th position in classical ballet, which is a toe-to-heel foot position. In practice, however, ballroom 5th position breaks are more typically danced with feet a couple of inches apart -- which of course is not a true 5th position in the strictest terms. But the name has stuck.

Hope that helps clarify it!

That makes so much sense and brings great enlightenment to me (as an armature dancer). In the future I will need to review the charts more closely before asking questions.
I've always struggled with reference to 5th position by ballroom instructors as being larger than ballet 5th position. In my personal application I view the distance component wrt how much the dancer wants to open up the hip (IMHO). Having a degenerated disk I have to remind instructors - I'm limited. But still, I want to dance and enjoy.
Thank you for your time to provide clarification,