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Top 4 Health Benefits of Dance |
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Top 4 Health Benefits of Dance
Dancing is a great way for people of all ages to get and stay in shape. Besides being fun, dancing has many positive health benefits. Following are the top 4 health benefits of dance.
1. Flexibility
Flexibility is an important part of being healthy. Dance requires a great amount of flexibility. Most dance classes begin with a warm-up including several stretching exercises. Dancers must strive to achieve full range of motion for all the major muscle groups. The greater the range of motion, the more muscles can flex and extend. Most forms of dance require dancers to perform moves that require bending and stretching, so dancers naturally become more flexible by simply dancing.
2. Strength
Strength is defined as the ability of a muscle to exert a force against resistance. Dancing builds strength by forcing the muscles to resist against a dancer's own body weight. Many styles of dance, including jazz Hip Hop and ballet, require jumping and leaping high into the air. Jumping and leaping require tremendous strength of the major leg muscles. All dances builds strength.
3. Endurance
Dance is physical exercise. Exercise increases endurance. Endurance is the ability of muscles to work hard for increasingly longer periods of time without fatigue. Regular dancing is great for improving endurance, especially vigorous dancing such as Salsa, …
Elevating the heart rate can increase stamina. Just as in any form of exercise, regular dancing will build endurance.
4. Sense of Well-Being
Dancing is a social activity. Studies have shown that strong social ties and socializing with friends contribute to high self-esteem and a positive outlook. Dancing provides many opportunities to meet other people. Joining a dance class can increase self-confidence and build social skills. Because physical activity reduces stress and tension, regular dancing gives an overall sense of well-being.
Can dancing cause weight loss?
Answer: Many forms of dance can cause weight loss. Dancing is a fantastic form of exercise. Not only does it raise the heart rate through movement, dancing also tones and tightens the major muscle groups of the body. Dancing can burn as many calories as walking, swimming or riding a bicycle. A half hour session of sustained dancing can burn a lot of calories.
One of the best things you can do to lose weight is to find an exercise that you actually enjoy doing, because you won't stick to an exercise routine that you don't really like. If you are serious about losing weight through dancing, be sure to choose the right type of dance. Some dance styles are much more strenuous than others. For example, a Hip Hop or fast-paced jazz class will burn more calories than a slow and graceful lesson in ballet. Choose a dance class that gets you up and moving!
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