Dance Your Ass Off - Season 1 (2009)

With Warren being eliminated after the latest dance and weigh-in, there are ten contestant remaining. The theme for this week scares many of the contestants for several reasons. That theme is stripper pole. Many fear the overt sexual connotation and exposure associated with stripping. Others fear the flexibility and upper body strength required to do the pole dancing. At Crunch Gym in West Hollywood, they are all instructed on the basic moves in pole dancing. The judges' critiques focus in on the key areas of sexiness, and the use or lack of use of the pole itself. ...

With Karla being eliminated after the latest dance and weigh-in, there are nine contestants remaining, they who head into Latin week. Many are scared about the dance style because they know the demanding and exacting technical aspects of the dance. However, some feel that their Latin ethnic backgrounds will help in the dance. At the beginning of the week, Marissa provides them with news that disturbs most: it will be a double elimination week. A few see the double elimination as news which will spur them on to work even harder. Some who have not had the greatest ...

With Brandon and Tara's elimination after the latest dance and weigh-in, there are seven contestants remaining, they who enter into movie week. Each contestant learns that they will be assigned a specific movie, a specific song from that movie and a specific dance style. For most, the dance style is outside of their comfort zone, which scares some of the contestants. Some contestants are also worried about their assigned dance not being a "showcase" style. In addition, some of the dance styles are not obvious matches to the song itself. This latter issues causes ...

With Miles' elimination after the latest dance and weigh-in, the remaining six contestants head into swing week. They are pushed to work even harder than usual because of a special reward given to the winner of the week: a telephone call home. One contestant's selfless act provides another an extra chance for that call home. The contestants find that another challenge for the week is to find the right amount of bounce to their step in the dance based on whether they are doing the jive, west coast swing or Lindy hop. Mara has an extra obstacle as she incurred a knee ...

Trice was eliminated after the latest dance and weigh-in. The remaining five contestants learn that for the first time they will be dancing two competition numbers, the first being hip hop (for which they are given a special cardio workout) and the second being the tango. Most contestants feel that one of the dances will be their strong dance, while the other will be outside of their comfort zone. One contestant, however, feels that she will nail both dances. The two dance scores will be averaged to determine the week's final dance score. The first dance, the hip hop,...

After Mara is eliminated at the latest dance and weigh-in, the final four contestants learn that they are heading into another double dance week, the first being an '80's routine, and the second being a foxtrot. As the contestants begin their weekly rehearsals, they each are unexpectedly joined by two of their loved ones from home. The reunion is especially emotional for Ruben, whose partner John is recovering from cancer. These loved ones end up spending the week, which includes having a luncheon cooked by the four contestants of healthier versions of their favorite ...

As no one was eliminated at the last dance and weigh-in, there are four contestants heading into the semi-final week, which will consist of two ballroom dances, the cha cha and Viennese waltz. They receive additional coaching on these dances by 2005 world American ballroom dancing champion Nick Kosovich. The four also head into makeover week for a photo shoot with Life & Style magazine. The experience assists them all with their self confidence. Beyond this boost, Alicia is still having difficulty in accepting how her slimmed down body is affecting her emotional psyche. They also ...

Pinky, Ruben and Shayla - the final three contestants left standing - are unexpectedly joined by all the eliminated contestants. For the first time ever, all the contestants will dance together in a non-competition group number, each wearing the same costume they wore on their first dance to show how much weight they've lost since the beginning of the competition. The final three learn that they will be dancing two competition numbers, the first in a style of their own choice. Pinky chooses hip hop, Ruben chooses country western, and Shayla chooses lyrical jazz. The ...

Five months after Ruben was crowned Dance Your Ass Off champion for season 1, Marissa brings back all the season 1 contestants and judges for a reunion. With never before seen behind-the-scenes footage, the contestants discuss the process they went through over the competition period. They also describe how they've done at home with all the real life issues once again facing them. They answer some viewer questions. They reminisce about their relationship with their respective dance partner/choreographer, which was not always harmonious. The judges discuss their ...