It’s post-holiday season. You’re putting away your ugly sweaters, taking down the holiday decorations and making New Year’s resolutions in pants that are now a little too tight while repeating the mantra, “I’m going to get in shape soon.” Want to know a fun way to work off the extra holiday calories, enjoy family and friends, benefit your heart health and start off the new year strong? Get dancing!
Try freestyle, Zumba, hip-hop or waltz to get started. Freestyle may be the easiest when dancing spontaneously, given you make it up as you go and it isn’t choreographed or planned ahead of time. Zumba is also a good type of dance to try, as it’s often a move-as-you-go hybrid of dance and cardio used for fitness workouts to Latin-American music. Hip-hop uses isolated body movements, requiring lots of pop, lock and drop-its, as well as shimmying, shaking and full-body control to soulful, percussive music. A waltz is a step-step-close patterned dance in triple meter with an accented first beat. There are so many more styles of dance to try. But you can first try to explore these popular options.
[See: 10 Fun Kid Activities for Adult Bodies and Minds.]
Good for Your Heart
Some people try to walk off their holiday meals. It turns out, moderate-intensity dance may be even more beneficial than walking. According to one large study in the U.K., dancing was associated with a 46 percent reduced risk of death caused by cardiovascular disease. Dancers also appear to have healthier heart rates and healthier changes in heart rate with exercise. These benefits may be in part due to the rhythm of activity during dance. Rather than the steady exertion that walkers experience, dancers engage in fast-paced bouts of intense activity followed by lulls, which matches the structure of the accompanying music.
A summary of 28 studies including 1,276 study participants indicated that dancers who participated in structured dance programs lasting more than four weeks had less body weight and fat, lower blood cholesterol and triglycerides and improved musculoskeletal function. Thus, when developing a physical activity plan, health practitioners may explore the patient’s interest level in committing to a regular dance program.
Dance may have psychosocial benefits, too. It creates stronger connections to the people you dance with and heightens mood, amicability and passion. In other words, dance could benefit your heart in multiple ways.
Good for Your Mind
In addition to the psychosocial benefits of dance, grooving to the music — even as a completely untrained dancer — can benefit your brain. Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York found that dancing is associated with a lower risk of dementia. Dance also increases emotional valence, by which the brain categorizes emotional events as positive or negative. It acts as a physical medium through which emotions can be expressed. This bodily expression of emotion and the psychological experience of emotion itself can feed off one another in a synergistic cycle. Facial expressions, body movement and postures can regulate and enhance the feeling of emotions. A study by neuroscience researchers in Montreal found that spontaneous, enjoyable dance increased emotional valence and pleasure. Even science says dancing makes you feel good!
[See: How to Be the New Kid in Fitness Class.]
Bringing the Brain and Body Closer
Interoception is heightened in people who dance. Interoception is exactly what it sounds like: internal perception of bodily processes such as heart rate and gastric signals. Heightened perception of one’s internal processes may lead to increased self-awareness. So dancing won’t only help your heart, get you in shape and bring you closer to the people you’re dancing with, but will also bring you closer to yourself. The more in-touch an individual is with his or her own body, the more understanding they will be of themselves and their experiences. Dance creates a feedback loop, where the muscular, cardiovascular, psychological and neurological systems are in dialogue.
Let’s Get to the Grooves, Moves and Tunes
OK, we get it. We all need to dance. But how and to what music? Sure, you could waltz it out to some “Blue Danube,” “Carol of the Bells” or “Moon River.” If you love to waltz, then aim for music with a 3/4 or 6/8 time signature (triple meter) that gives the music that cyclical feel with an arch-like, rather than corner-like, beat.
In addition to jamming to the classics, try checking out some more modern hits for a bunch of different dance forms. “New Rules” by Dua Lipa, “What Lovers Do” by Maroon 5 featuring SZA, “No Limit” by G-Eazy featuring A$AP Rocky and Cardi B and the entirety of Sia’s incredible album “Everyday Is Christmas” will surely get you grooving. These songs are great for partner dances with footwork and spins, but also have great beats that allow for some hip-hop, jazz and other rhythmic movement. Hip-hop emphasizes the use of each part of the body. Jazz is fluid and trick-based, with leaps, pirouettes, jetés and more. Lyrical dance is a ballet-jazz hybrid where movements are evocative, emotional and expressive of the lyrics and music. There’s a ton of technique, terminology and style to learn for each type of dance, so you have plenty to try out!
If you and your family and friends are feeling energetic and determined, try learning some tap dance. Tap is percussion through the soul, or rather, soles. Your feet get extra happy in this form of dance. It’s extremely rhythmic, and different sounds can be made from the different parts of the metal plates on the shoes coming in contact with one another or the ground. Try to learn the basics: toe/tip, ball, dig and heel. Then you can step it up and learn some moves comprising those footed breakdowns, including shuffles, ball changes, cramp rolls and flaps. Pro-level will include wings, pullbacks, shadiggady-bops and more. Nothing can spice up the sound of a song like tap dance.
[See: 6 Reasons Going to Concerts Is Good for Your Health.]
Slow Down, Partner
Not trying to be the next Jennifer Lopez? Does this all sound like too much? Let’s break it down with some basic beginner tips:
Step 1. Turn on the tunes.
Step 2. Start to feel the music with your body. Walk or bop in place.
Step 3. Vibe, loosen your limbs, sway side-to-side and nod to the music. Try to move naturally and have your slight motions convey the essence of the song.
Step 4. Completely let loose, make your movements bigger and just keep moving! Even if you look silly, you’re releasing endorphins and heading down a healthier path. So laugh it up and enjoy yourself. Don’t take it too seriously. There’s nothing better than having fun and connecting with others.
To learn more about dance, the easiest way may be to consult YouTube. Check out some professional dancers’ tutorials. Play them on the screen and dance along. You can also Google nearby dance studios and visit. Most studios have classes ranging from beginner to professional.
Moral of the story: Dance with family and friends! Incorporate dance into your New Year’s resolutions and enjoy its diverse benefits. You’ll share smiles and laughs in 2018 while working toward calves of steel and hearts of gold.
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The New Year Is Here, So Get on Your Feet and Dance! originally appeared on usnews.com
