Whether you’ve danced before, or you’re thinking of taking it up as a new hobby, dancing is a fantastic way to spend your time. You don’t have to be a spritely youngster to take up dance, and the older you are; the more enjoyable you may find it!
Dancing is a great way to improve your mobility, cognitive, and social elements. It can help to restore your balance, strength and help prevent falls in older adults. It can give you a fantastic mind and body workout, while the movements keep your body fit, the steps and sequences boost your memory skills. Just one evening a week can help to reduce stress and tension, increase your stamina, flexibility and posture, and provide cardiovascular risks and weight management without having to bore yourself in the gym.
Whether you work ridiculous hours, or if you’re retired and have more free time on your hands, dancing is a great form of social interaction, a way to meet new people, and to do something really great fun that is away from your everyday routine. It’s likely the older you are you’re not going to be able to pursue a career in dance – there are some dancers who didn’t start until their mid-20s but as the life span of a professional dancer is fairly short, dancing for fun is much more ideal. The older you are, means you have more control over what dance you want to do, when you want to go, and how far you want to push yourself. You’re doing it for you, and not for your parents, teachers, and peer group at school.
There’s a variety of options out there: adult ballet classes are fast becoming more popular, some who tried it as a child and fancy giving it another go, and some who are complete beginners. They’re slow paced; great for those who want to try a more classical dance style.
Ballroom, Latin and Salsa dance classes are the best way to meet new people as you’ll often partner up with other members in the group.
Some studies suggest it can even help ward off dementia! It also a great excuse to get you some gorgeous new dance shoes!
Check at your local gyms, schools, youth clubs, libraries etc for local teachers and classes.
Remember, know your limits. Take your time with getting into it, especially if you haven’t done much form of solid exercise for a while. And be patient. You may not love it at first, nerves and lack of ability might be daunting, but stick with it – you’ll soon love it. It’s always great to take a friend with you too so you can work at something new together!
