Dance is a Universal Language
Dance allows you to make an immediate connection no matter the language or the culture, and learning from a native dancer creates an instant bond and a lasting beautiful memory.
Dancing Keeps You Young
"I don't mind getting older but the maintenance is a bitch." - Anonymous 85-year-old woman
Things change as we age. Muscle mass and bone density decrease. Balance declines. Things hurt. And then there's the memory thing. I'll never have to worry about lack of exercise because I'm always going upstairs, only to forget why I went there. So I go back downstairs where I finally remember why I went upstairs . . . So I go back upstairs . . .
But there's hope . . . dancing helps memory.
The results of a 21-year study published in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that of all the physical and nonphysical activities, frequent dancing produced the greatest protection against dementia. It also slows the progression for those who already have it.
The percentage of risk reduction for dementia based on activity is:
Reading - 35%
Doing crossword puzzles at least four times a week - 47%
Frequent dancing - 76%
Dancing increases mental acuity at all ages.
Dance Makes You Pretty
Dance posture (as demonstrated by Esperanza) can make you thinner and taller. For me, it takes an inch off off my waist and adds a half inch to my height - without losing a pound or wearing painful high heels! It can change the way you carry yourself, making you look and feel more confident.
All that exercise also makes skin look healthier and it gives you better (or even great) legs.
Dance also offers plenty of opportunity to play dress-up with pretty clothes, makeup and hair.
More importantly, it has a positive effect on the traits that most people find attractive - confidence, passion, happiness, freedom from inhibition, humility and a sense of humor. It certainly keeps me humble. It teaches me to laugh at myself when no matter how hard I try to make my body do something, it just ends up looking goofy.
If Esperanza is hiding, click on "Pull" and she'll come out. Then click the "X" in the upper right corner when you're done.
"How I got this body: Care to Dance?"
An article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune
Setting huge goals like mine and pursuing dreams that seem unattainable can be scary, but there are benefits to “dreaming really big”. It’s exciting! Just thinking about what your life will be like if you achieve them often gives you the willpower to keep going. You wake up every day knowing your purpose and it constantly pushes you to grow and improve. But if you’re like me, I’m tempted to give up when things get hard or scary. Here’s where accountability comes in.
My mentor, Caroline Adams Miller, gave me a few ideas to help keep me on track. She suggested I start this blog. That way I’d be more likely to follow through because a lot of people would see whether I was a woman of my word.
Caroline also suggested I contact newspapers to see if they’d be interested in my story. To my surprise, freelance writer Sheila Mulrooney Eldred asked to interview me for her Star Tribune column, "How I Got This Body" which features interesting things people do to get and stay in shape.
Sheila interviewed me and then set up a “photo shoot” with photographer Tom Wallace. Pushing yourself to achieve goals often takes you out of your comfort zone and this definitely took me out of mine. The photo shoot was just like the ones you see on TV - being up on a little stage, dancing Salsa to Marc Anthony while Tom sat across the room snapping photo after photo with occasional directions like “Shoulders back”, “Head to the right”; “ A little more hip please”.
It was very touching to me that they chose to publish the article on the one-year anniversary of my brother's death.
Photo by Tom Wallace
Dancing makes friends
Dancing increases your social circle. I can't tell you how many times I've asked men why they took up dancing. Their answer is always the same - "to meet women". And for the unattached or lonely, dance provides opportunities for the physical contact and touch we all need.
Dancers are friendly, warm people who are very comfortable in their bodies. Once, in order to demonstrate the correct way to use core abdominal muscles when dancing, my dance teacher pulled up his shirt to illustrate. I think my jaw dropped and I might have blurted out something like , "This is the closest I've ever been to a six-pack!"
Dancing makes you "Happy"
I love watching this uplifting video because it shows average folks (and an occasional celebrity) expressing themselves joyfully through dance. It illustrates what dancing is all about. It isn't about mastering dance steps or even about looking good; it's about self expression!
My interest in dancing has me on the look-out for opportunities to meet celebrities like . . .
Maks Chmerkovskiy from Dancing With The Stars agrees that dancing makes you happy. I explained my plan to dance around the world and asked if he had any advice for me. In his delightful Russian accent, he said, "Danz is about expression. Be yordself and jez haf fun!" ( . . . Yes, we are holding hands!)
