Dance: Let yourself Go!

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Dancing is something that has got to be in my family’s DNA. In the 1940’s my grandparents, from what I understand were a phenomenal dance team. One of their favorite things to do was to go out dancing. When they arrived to the party the floor was theirs.  People loved seeing the synergy they had on the floor. They were described as the best dance couple in town. So, it is no wonder that I love to dance and always have, for as long as I can remember. You could say I dance to the beat of my own drum. I don’t take instruction well, but I can pick up moves pretty easily, with the exception of the robot. Yep, never could do the robot, but I am past that. Dancing is not only fun, but a great form of exercise. Oh and a great opportunity to release and express yourself. Who cares what anyone thinks or says. Get in the zone, have fun and let it rip. Beware, it will certainly get your heart rate up, work muscles you did not know you had and because it is so much fun you just keep going.

Recently, a friend invited us over to celebrate Cuatro de Mayo, in lieu of Cinco de Mayo; Saturday vs. Sunday.  She also invited a dance instructor friend of ours to the party as well. Unbeknownst to the rest of us, he was there to give us some dance instruction. At first, I was like, ut oh, I don’t take instruction well, but I had already had a bit of liquid courage, so I said, “what the heck, lets do this!” My husband is not the dancing machine I am, but he did get some video and pictures.

There are so many different types of dance, from Ballroom on out to line dancing. No matter the style of dance you are sure to get some great exercise while doing it. Personally, I like all kind of different forms of dance. My grandparents leaned more towards Ballroom style. I on the other hand lean towards freestyle and jazz/modern. I also enjoy line dancing. Our friend taught us Merengue, Bachata and Salsa. I am familiar with all three styles as when I was younger I stood up in a Quinceanera, attended many others and weddings as well.

One of my fondest memories of my younger dancing era was an elderly gentleman who also loved to dance. Every Saturday night you could count on him being at the local dance club. He had to be in his seventies or so. He was some what hunched over, so he was not much taller than me, but he could cut a rug. He always dressed in suit and tie. He only drank water and would dance with anyone. It wasn’t often that he would be turned down, but there were a few times. One of those times, I saw a girl turn him down, so I headed over to ask him to dance, but he didn’t me to rescue him. He asked a girl next to her and before I could get close they were on the dance floor. I did have a chance to dance with him a few times. His style was Ballroom, not my area, but he was very patient, lead well and very light on his feet. It was obvious that he had been dancing for years. He may have been an instructor, given his patience. I believe that was his way of getting his exercise and having fun.

Over the last twenty-eight years I have been out dancing, but not nearly as often as I would like to. Yea, we had five children, for which their needs took priority. We did our best to keep them busy by keeping them in sports. Running around with them pretty much took the place of dancing. Here we are mostly empty nesters, so dancing is something I want to start doing again. Quite honestly, I would really like to make time to dance. Not necessarily take instruction, just go somewhere dance and enjoy family and friends. All the while burning some calories and improving my health. Thanks Heidi for the fun time and re-ignition of the dance bug! Let’s put those dancing shoes on and hit the floor….