How to Dance to Good Health

Dance is a great aerobic workout, and many styles offer serious health benefits. This article shows how dancing, a most enjoyable form of exercise, is one of the best ways to stay fit for life.

Things You'll Need

• Comfortable clothing and footwear

Instructions

1. Have fun. Dancing is a most enjoyable form of exercise. It's an expression of joy, like smiling. Much like the way smiling can lift your spirits whatever your mood, dancing has the power to transport you from blah to bliss. Dancing can have health benefits as dance exercises the whole being. It lifts the spirit, strengthens the body, stimulates the mind, and according to researchers, keeps you healthy as you age. Any kind of dancing, say experts, increases the number of chemicals being produced in the brain to help with the growth of nerve cells. In fact, the dances that require you to learn steps can actually increase your brainpower and help to improve memory skills. A wonderful alternative to aerobic dance and jogging, dancing makes your body and soul feel good in a way that no other form of exercise can. Any kind of dance has you using all the different parts of your body. Dancing increases stamina and flexibility, contributes to self-esteem, improves balance and posture, and strengthens muscles in your hips, thighs and calves without hurting your joints. Like any weight-bearing exercise, it also helps to strengthen bones, preventing osteoporosis and can help you lose weight.

2. Put your heart in it. Cardiovascular fitness doesn't have to mean 20 minutes at the gym, bored out of your mind. Instead, why not belly dance or shake your booty and have a blast? Depending on the form of dance, you can burn a large amount of calories. Most importantly, dancing is an activity most people can reasonably and safely continue into their later years.

3. Numbers you'll love. Studies show that a 150-pound adult can burn about 150 calories by doing 30 minutes of social dancing. Moderate dancing burns 250 to 300 calories an hour. Energetic dancing (like the jitterbug) can burn up to 400 calories in the same time span. Just 20 minutes of moderate dancing (about six songs’ worth) will get your heart rate up to aerobic training levels.

4. What dance can do. Although dancing appeals mostly to women, in the past few years, ballroom dancing has become a popular form of dance to both males and females. The fitness aspect of dancing is so well recognized that competitive ballroom dancing is now a sport. Specific dances have certain benefits. For example, belly dancing tones abdominal muscles and helps prevent lower back problems; ballroom dancing helps keep the heart in shape; and Latin dances like the salsa helps lower blood pressure and cholesterol. There are many different forms of dance to try, all of which are known to lower your risk of heart disease, help with weight loss, and strengthen your bones and muscles, keeping you in good health. Country-western dance—as popular as ever— will give your heart rate a healthy boost; ballet barre exercises are great strengtheners, and jazz dancing is a great workout that isolates different parts of the body. Partner dancing like polka, swing and waltzes are also particularly effective for weight loss.

5. Check out what's hot. In addition to ballroom, Latin's been popular for a few years now. the salsa and mambo are hot for the hips. Trendy health clubs offer dance-based classes like "Ballet Boot Camp," and country-western. Many health clubs also offer dance classes, which are more repetitive (aerobically more intense) than traditional dance classes. Dancing can be used in place of low-impact exercises such as cycling, walking, or aerobics. Whether it's the cha cha, waltz, rhumba, swing, salsa, hustle or hip-hop, dancing can be a great form of exercise for everyone, and you’ll be so busy having fun to even notice you’re working out. Whatever you choose—options are endless—you’ll soon find yourself both working out and having a blast. Don’t save dancing just for special occasions. It’s one of the best ways to stay healthy for life.

Tips & Warnings

• Dancing may not seem like a workout, but it is exercise, and the same common sense rules apply, such as to go easy for the first fie or 10 minutes to let your muscles warm up, drink lots of water and cool down afterwards. A moderate walk will do.

• Be kind to your feet and knees. High heels are for special occasions.