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Ballroom and Latin Dance For The Youthful And Athletic Person Inside You! The next workout outfit you buy may look more like a tuxedo or gown than a sweat suit. That's because ballroom dancing is catching on across the U.S. as a way to burn calories and have fun. How can dancing be good exercise? Experts say the muscle exertion and breathing rates of ballroom dancers performing in one dance competition are equivalent to those of Olympic-level cyclists, swimmers and runners. As the phenomenon continues to catch on, the dance style has become more accessible to people-with Americans across the country signing up for ballroom classes. ARTICLES OF INTEREST
Improve Practicing and Performance
Searching for The Performer Within You
Two Key Elements of Dance
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FEATURED ARTICLE
DANCE WARS
They've judged others on ABC's Dancing With the Stars. Now
their own choreography and showmanship will be in the spotlight on
the network's debut of Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann
(tonight, 8 ET/PT).
The latest British reality show (Dance X) adapted for the U.S. market pits Stars judges Carrie Ann Inaba against Bruno Tonioli, the dancemeisters who'll guide teams of amateur singer/dancers in performances that could lead to stardom.
Dancing Your Way To Better Health
John O'Hurley (top) has dropped 15 lbs. since donning his dancing
shoes on ABC's 'Dancing With the Stars.' Ballroom Dancing May Help Mind, Body, and Spirit By Miranda Hitti
WebMD Feature Reviewed By Michael Smith, MD on Monday, June 27, 2005
Tangos, waltzes, sambas, and foxtrots are gliding across
America's TV sets on the hit ballroom dance show, Dancing with the
Stars. Do you tap along with the beat as you watch? Or shimmy during the
commercial breaks? This may be one time when health experts won't
fret if you follow in the footsteps of prime-time TV. Ballroom
dancing could help tweak the mind and body, they say. Shall We
Dance? You're not likely to practice for hours with a world- class
dance partner as on the show. But you also won't face live national
TV and the judges' barbs. Will you get a good workout? What about
those two left feet? And how can "twinkle toes" benefit your brain?
WebMD posed those questions to science, dance, and fitness pros.
Here's their spin on ballroom dancing's health perks. Is It
Exercise? The TV show's contestants are often winded after their
routines. One dancer, actor John O'Hurley, says he's lost 15 pounds
since he signed on for the show. How typical is that? It depends on
the type of dancing and your skill level, says exercise physiologist
Catherine Cram, MS, of Comprehensive Fitness Consulting in
Middleton, Wis. "Once someone gets to the point where they're
getting their heart rate up, they're actually getting a terrific
workout," says Cram. Dance is a weight-bearing activity, which
builds bones. It's also "wonderful" for your upper body and
strength, says Cram. Would-be dancers should consult their doctors
first, especially if they have any health problems, says Cram.
Calorie Check How many calories will you burn? That depends on your
body and how vigorously you dance. Dance is a "moderate activity,"
say the USDA's physical activity guidelines. Adults should get at
least 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity daily, according
to the guidelines, released earlier this year. It can be easier to
stick to that with fun activities, says Cram. Muscles Worked New
ballroom dancers may feel muscles they didn't know they had. That
often happens with a new activity, says Ken Richards, spokesman for
USA Dance, the national governing body of DanceSport -- the
competitive version of ballroom dancing. Ballroom dancing often
means moving backward, especially for women, says Richards, a
professional ballroom dancing veteran. "If you're dancing the
foxtrot, you're taking long, sweeping steps backwards. That's very
different than walking forward on a treadmill or taking a jog around
the neighborhood," he says. Ballroom dancing works the backs of the
thighs and buttock muscles differently from many other types of
exercise, says Richards. Core Experience The legs and arms often do
the flashy dance moves. But they're sunk without a strong body core.
The "core" muscles -- the abs and back -- are also used in Pilates,
says Janice Byer. A lifelong dancer, Byer is group exercise director
of The Courthouse Athletic Club in Oakland, Calif. Byer and her
husband (whom she met through dancing) are avid swing dancers.
They're now working on the foxtrot and salsa and plan to start
Argentine tango lessons. Brain Teaser Dance can challenge your mind
as well as your muscles. At least one observational study has shown
sharper minds with ballroom dancing. The study appeared in The New
England Journal of Medicine two years ago. Joe Verghese, MD, and
colleagues studied 469 people who were at least 75 years old. At the
study's start, they answered surveys about mental and physical
activities, like doing crossword puzzles or dancing. Back then, none
had dementia. Five years later, 124 had dementia. Frequent dancers
had a reduced risk of dementia compared with those who rarely or
never danced. Of 11 physical activities considered, only dancing was
tied to a lower dementia risk, Verghese tells WebMD. Most dancers
did ballroom dancing, says Verghese. He's an assistant neurology
professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. The
Dancing Brain How might ballroom dancing help the brain? Verghese
outlines three possibilities: Increased blood flow to the brain from
the physical exercise Less stress, depression, and loneliness from
dancing's social aspect Mental challenges (memorizing steps, working
with your partner) "Dance, in many ways, is a complex activity. It's
not just purely physical," says Verghese. An 'Exciting' Option No
one is prescribing ballroom dancing, and Verghese's study doesn't
claim dancing drove the results. To get real proof, a study could
assign one group of people to ballroom dancing, comparing them to
inactive people. So says Carl Cotman, PhD. He directs the Institute
for Brain Aging and Dementia at the University of California,
Irvine. "There aren't any experimental models in animals that would
be equivalent to ballroom dancing, that's for sure," says Cotman.
His rat studies have shown brain benefits from voluntary running. If
dance is aerobic enough, it could aid the brain, says Cotman. The
social and mental aspects could also help. "You've got togetherness,
and training the brain to do a new motor skill," says Cotman. "I
think it's pretty exciting." No one knows how much or what kind of
exercise the brain needs, says Cotman. He'd like to see such studies
done. Meanwhile, "there's no evidence that it's going to hurt
anything," says Cotman. Check Your Ego at the Door Here's some
advice for beginners from New York dance therapist Jane Wilson
Cathcart, LMSW, ADTR, CMA: Look for a good teacher who emphasizes
what you can do, not your limits. Don't be a perfectionist about it.
Don't worry about your size. Dance is for everyone. Get into the
music, as well as the movement. "Take in all the good feedback
you're getting and give your inner judge a couple of dollars to go
to the movies," says Cathcart. "We are usually our own worst
critic," says Cathcart. "Think of how many other times your critical
judge has limited you from doing something." New skills can bring
confidence. At parties and social events, dancers may head to the
dance floor feeling good about themselves without a martini's
encouragement, Richards jokes. "Lay the pathwork of positivity
through it," says Cathcart. "The coolest dance begins with one step.
The rest will follow." Published June 27, 2005.
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Twelve
celebrities - six men and six women - attempt to outshine one another on a
sixth season of the hit series, "Dancing with the Stars", which
returns Monday, March 17 (8:00-9:30 PM, ET) on ABC. The season six cast
includes an Academy Award winner, a Tony Award winner, an Olympic Gold
medalist, a nine-time Grand Slam tennis champion, and the NFL's current Man
of the Year.
On Tuesday, March 25th (9:00-10:00 PM, ET), the first Results Show will be held where for the first time in the show's history, two couples' fates will be determined in a dramatic double elimination.
Here's the exciting pairings...
ADAM CAROLLA &
JULIANNE HOUGH
MARLEE MATLIN
& FABIAN SANCHEZ
Hosted by Tom Bergeron (America's Funniest Home Videos) and Samantha Harris (E! Entertainment), the celebrities will perform choreographed dance routines which will be judged by renowned Ballroom judge Len Goodman and dancer/choreographers Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba
Miami
Teen Takes Stage At National Dance Contest
Winning the U.S. National Professional/Amateur Junior Latin-American Dance
Championship requires hundreds of hours of practice, a handful of rhinestone
necklaces, and glitter. Lots of glitter. The five-day dance extravaganza featuring 700 competitors from 30 countries ended Saturday night with five ballroom championships. Bianka, 13, dreams of a career as a professional dancer, but all she wanted to do was dance and not place last. She began
competing in 1996 when she was 4 years old and has participated in dozens of
local and state competitions, but never at the national level. The contestants knew what
the five music genres would be-- cha-cha, samba, rumba, paso doble, and jive
-- but they didn't know which songs they would be dancing to during the
10-minute competition.
Isaac and Laura win $5000 in dance
contest on the Mega TV show Dimelo Bailando! Over 70 teams
competed! Grand Finals to air May 24th at 8pm as a 2 hour special. From the Miami Herald - El Nuevo Herald - May 26, 2006 FINAL DE BAILE El miercoles tuvo lugar en el Dolphin Mall la gran final de “Dimelo Bailando”, el programa de concursos del Canal 22-WSBS/Mega TV, despues de 11 semanas en las que desfilaron decenas de bailarines de diferentes estilos, edades y nacionalidades. La conductora Nadia Rowinsky y el disk-jockey Jammin Johnny Caride anunciaron a la pareja ganadora: Isaac Altman, norteamericano de 57 años y Laura Altman, colombiana de 35. El jurado estuvo compuesto por la cantante y bailarina panameña Erika Ender, el bailarin y coreografo cubano Rudy Sanchez y el danzador, presentador y comediante español Juna de Alba. Esten atentos a la convocatoria para una nueva temporada de “Dimelo Bailando”
Laura and Bianka make big splash
with the stars as they danced on UNIVISION
2006 Premious Juventud! More to come...
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