3 Reasons why dancing is a phenomenal exercise

The fact that dancing is an incredible form of exercise forms the backbone of this whole site, so the question of whether or not dance is a good form of exercise is not one which has come up all too often here. This is perfectly exampled by the title of this blog article....

Notice the way that the title assumes that exercise is an awesome form of exercise? Notice how at no point does the question of 'if' even get a look in. No, our question is not 'if' but 'why'. Why is dance such a great form of exercise? Because it is, and there is no debating that simple fact... at least not on this blog!

This rambling digression is my attempt at an introduction to this incredibly important blog article. I want to outline for you a handful of reasons (and I am very sure that there are more) why dance is such a good exercise. So without further ado, I give you my top three reasons why dance is such a great way to get in shape.

1. There is such a low barrier for entry

There are so many forms of exercise which may sound exotic or much more interesting than dancing, but they often have a very high barrier for entry. That is to say that there are costs or other factors that would stop the average person from taking part. There may be masses of equipment that you would need in order to begin taking part (think fencing or archery) or there may be an initial skill set that would inhibit you from going along to your first class (imagine turning up to an ice hockey training session with zero ability to skate).

But dancing is different. What do you need? Shorts, t shirt, sneakers and any one of a hundred different dance bags that you can pick up from Amazon for a few bucks? Most people have all that stuff gathering dust in their bedrooms.

2. Because exercise is boring, but dancing in so much fun

Have you ever went running? Seriously... its not a fun thing to do, unless you are a very peculiar person indeed. Or how about a rowing machine? No, that's not our idea of a good time... not by a long shot. But dancing is an amazing way to spend an hour or so. Rehearsing steps, practising for shows, running through routine after routine, getting better and better? Now that's a great way to spend some time. Of course some people really do not like to dance, so we acknowledge that this is somewhat subjective. But the truth is that most people who claim not to enjoy dancing have never actually been to a dance class, and this kind of dancing is quite different from your local nightclub bopping. In short, do not knock it till you have tried it. We think its great fun, and if you agree then you will have yourself a great form of exercise.

3. Dancing is a social activity

So many forms of exercise are solo activities. This may well suit some people, but for a great many of us it can be a real turn off. Even forms of exercise where you can take part in it with other people (running being a great example) hardly constitute a group activity - sure, you may well be completing the activity as part of a group, but its not like there is any kind of bonding or sense of group synergy about the whole thing... that kind of exercise is more like a group of people together completing solo activities near each other, rather than a group activity.

Dance classes are very much a group experience. This is not unique to dance, as team sports can have the same appeal. But there is something about dance that makes this class mentality all the more powerful and significant to those involved.