Belly Dance Basics
Oriental Dance, also known as belly dancing is one of, if not the most sensual styles of dance. It is also one of the most beneficial forms of dance there is healthwise. In addition to the great calorie burning affect of belly dancing there are other health benefits that this form of dance has become famous for over the centuries.
Belly dance has a long and proud history dating back to the dawn of civilization. This style of dance has in its history been used as both an act of worship and an act of seduction. Not always in exclusion of the either as this form of dance is believed by some religions to be a boost for fertility of newly wedded couples.
Belly dance is a style of dance that doesn't require participants to be in optimal physical condition in order to begin. In fact, the low impact nature of this form of movement makes it an excellent choice for those who are not in ideal shape to begin with. This form of dance works the muscles gently with the jarring effects of impact aerobics and other exercise methods. It also works the belly, which is often the problem area for many who aren't in the best of shape. You should also find that you will strengthen your back through belly dance as you progress. This will also help with almost every aspect of your physical fitness routine. More importantly for those who are a little (or a lot) out of shape is the belly dance burns an average of 300 calories an hour. This means that if you practice one hour a day you are burning over 2,000 calories per week.
For those who celebrate their womanhood, there is no better form of dance to express that joy. Belly dance has a long history as a celebration of being female. From being used in ceremonies in the temple to being used to entice and seduce the unwitting belly dance is a celebration of simply being a girl.
If you are afraid to begin your belly dance lessons in a class full of other men and women you can always opt to purchase videos and DVD lessons. There are many of these lessons from which to choose, even lessons that focus on the mental and/or healing aspects of Oriental dance if that is where you feel you need to focus your efforts. Belly dancing is a great deal of fun in addition to being a decent form of getting much needed physical activity.
If you plan to belly dance, you should understand that the costume is part of what sets the mood or the tone. While you do not need all the bells and whistles, the general consensus is that baring your midriff puts you in the state of mind that is most suitable for belly dancing. For this reason it is recommended that you wear clothes that bare your belly such as low-rise yoga pants and a sports bra or some other belly-baring shirt for your practice sessions. This also helps your instructor see if you are making the moves correctly.
If you decide to partake in belly dancing classes, congratulations! You will be joining an historic group of women that date back to what many believe is the very beginning of time. You should also have a new hobby that is both entertaining and healthy.
Oriental Dance, also known as belly dancing is one of, if not the most sensual styles of dance. It is also one of the most beneficial forms of dance there is healthwise. In addition to the great calorie burning affect of belly dancing there are other health benefits that this form of dance has become famous for over the centuries.
Belly dance has a long and proud history dating back to the dawn of civilization. This style of dance has in its history been used as both an act of worship and an act of seduction. Not always in exclusion of the either as this form of dance is believed by some religions to be a boost for fertility of newly wedded couples.
Belly dance is a style of dance that doesn't require participants to be in optimal physical condition in order to begin. In fact, the low impact nature of this form of movement makes it an excellent choice for those who are not in ideal shape to begin with. This form of dance works the muscles gently with the jarring effects of impact aerobics and other exercise methods. It also works the belly, which is often the problem area for many who aren't in the best of shape. You should also find that you will strengthen your back through belly dance as you progress. This will also help with almost every aspect of your physical fitness routine. More importantly for those who are a little (or a lot) out of shape is the belly dance burns an average of 300 calories an hour. This means that if you practice one hour a day you are burning over 2,000 calories per week.
For those who celebrate their womanhood, there is no better form of dance to express that joy. Belly dance has a long history as a celebration of being female. From being used in ceremonies in the temple to being used to entice and seduce the unwitting belly dance is a celebration of simply being a girl.
If you are afraid to begin your belly dance lessons in a class full of other men and women you can always opt to purchase videos and DVD lessons. There are many of these lessons from which to choose, even lessons that focus on the mental and/or healing aspects of Oriental dance if that is where you feel you need to focus your efforts. Belly dancing is a great deal of fun in addition to being a decent form of getting much needed physical activity.
If you plan to belly dance, you should understand that the costume is part of what sets the mood or the tone. While you do not need all the bells and whistles, the general consensus is that baring your midriff puts you in the state of mind that is most suitable for belly dancing. For this reason it is recommended that you wear clothes that bare your belly such as low-rise yoga pants and a sports bra or some other belly-baring shirt for your practice sessions. This also helps your instructor see if you are making the moves correctly.
If you decide to partake in belly dancing classes, congratulations! You will be joining an historic group of women that date back to what many believe is the very beginning of time. You should also have a new hobby that is both entertaining and healthy.
Dance Dance Revolution
Those who aren't big fans of gaming systems may not realize that Dance Revolution is actually a video game for the Playstation 2 gaming system that actually has taken the industry by storm. It was one of, if not the very first attempts of the gaming industry to combat the idea that playing games robbed children of the physical activity that is so important to their overall health and well being.
The solution was to introduce a game in which the players were scored based on their ability to dance according to the directions of the game. If you haven't tried this game, let me be the first to tell you that it requires some fancy footwork and more than some degree of tunnel vision. The really cool thing about this game is that you can adjust the level of difficulty and combine games with friends who have the same game for a competition. Competition with yourself is all well and good but the idea of crushing your friends with your dance talents is even better.
This is a game that happens to be crossing generational barriers however and making quite a splash in doing so. Mothers and fathers are competing against sons and daughters and the wagers are quite fantastic. I know I've been known to win a week or two off from washing dishes as the result of a rousing round of friendly competition. The irony is that I'm not really that good at the game. It is a great deal of fun though and I feel less guilty about letting the kids play this game for an hour than I do about allowing them to play some "all your base are belong to us" sort of game for an hour.
The wide popularity of the game should be completely obvious in all the 'knock off' versions of this game that have already flooded the market. I do expect to see more games along this line in the near future particularly with the new Nintendo Wii system making waves for the physical nature of many of their games. The hope is definitely that the Playstation Dance Dance Revolution. We have already seen follow up with Dance Dance Revolution 2, Dance Dance Revolution Extreme, and Dance Dance Revolution SuperNova. I can only predict that Playstation will attempt to bring this successful line to the ailing Playstation 3 in the near future.
As far as the workout reality of this game goes you will find that it offers an excellent aerobic workout and great exercises for your legs. The arms are really up to you to a large degree. If you chose to approach in a river dance sort of method your arms are likely to receive quite the excellent degree of a workout that your legs will receive. However if you put everything into your dance moves then the revolution will be all the calories you burn as well as the strengthening and toning you manage as a side benefit.
While very few of us consider video games to be a great source of health or fitness, this game may be the one exception to the rule. Who would have ever thought you could get all of these things and so much more from playing a video game. Next thing you know they'll come out with Mountain Dew that is a health drink.
No comments:
Post a Comment