Line Dance and Wellness Letter: Week 2.2
What is line dancing and why should I do that?
Hey Ladies and Gents, It’s so great to see you again today. I hope you enjoy this read and make sure you click the bold, italicized links to see references and accompanying pages.
Positive Thought for the Day: “Dance first. Think later. It’s the natural order.” - Samuel Beckett
Recently I had someone ask me, ”What is line dancing?”
To which I responded “It’s a form of dance that repeats a pattern throughout a song. It is called line dancing because typically groups of people form lines almost like a grid when performing the dance. It is really great for cognitive development because you have to remember patterns and coordinate movements. Like any other form of dance, it is really great for developing balance, strength, coordination, and endurance. Line dancing does not typically require a dance partner, but occasionally having a partner is more fun.”
Pretty good answer, but it really only summarizes what line dancing is. There really is so much more to it. In fact, line dancing has been studied and discussed in medical journals, such as “The National Library of Medicine”. I really love that line dancing has many different difficulty levels so no matter what kind of workout you are looking to get, it matches your needs. People do it all around the world. It is good for all ages too.
Line dancing is great for the body, mind, and spirit no matter how you break it down.. so long, of course, as you do not overdo yourself. Getting into line dancing involves a lot. You learn a whole new way to move referred to by a whole new language full of dance terminology. You work muscles that you may not have even known existed. I always tell everyone to give it three months of at least weekly practice before expecting to see any major results. Truth be told, you will probably notice some results before that point, but it takes at least that long to get the hang of it, like really understand what you are doing and be able to execute it. Even at three months you will most likely still be at a beginner level for awhile.
Line dancing has lots of levels..
There is absolute beginner, beginner, high beginner, low intermediate, intermediate, high intermediate, and advanced competition. (Yes, line dancing is considered to be a sport.) Absolute beginner typically covers very simple steps that do not require a whole lot of balance. A lot of these dances can be done with use of a cane or walker and are often used for therapy after having knee or hip replacements. These dances are also a great place to start for brand new beginners and older seniors with no dance history.
Beginner level will start to utilize moves that work and develop your coordination. You will often find quicker turns as your balance will have already begun to improve. You will also see quicker triple steps that start to develop your speed, rock and cross moves that require the use of muscles that you may not commonly use on a daily basis.. Your average beginner line dance is made up of 32 counts.. Do not be confused; counts do not actually equal step count.
High beginner (improver) dances will start to utilize more intricate steps. Patterns will really work your both your memory and some of these start to give even the moderately active person a good cardio work out. You will begin to tone and shape muscle, while strengthening joints, ligaments, and increasing your endurance. Line dancing is super good for improving blood flow, lowering blood pressure, increasing oxygen throughout your body, and creating new neurological path ways. It is well known for decreasing anxiety levels and fighting depression because it causes your body to release endorphins.
Endorphins are a pretty HUGE deal to me. As someone who has broken many bones, and feels it every time the weather looks at me funny, I love LoVe LOVE endorphins. They are great for making the pain disappear, helping us to push through challenges, relieve stress, and regulate both immune and inflammatory responses (which helps our bodies to fight off illnesses). Beautiful… Absolutely beautiful.. These endorphins are part of what make us glow when we line dance.
Intermediate dances will usually include tags (which are “bonus” steps between cycles) and restarts (which means that you will start the dance over in the middle of a cycle). This goes towards strengthening memory and improving cognitive function. A lot of intermediate dances are more than 32 counts.. sometimes 48, 64, occasionally numbers that are not multiples of 6 or 8 (the common count groups for line dances). These dances are also great for toning and building muscle mass.
High intermediate line dances often includes phased dances, which often look like two or three shorter dances patterned together to make one big dance. These dances can easily reach more than a hundred counts. This is where the major mental work starts coming in. It can take years to reach this level of line dancing.
Line dancing benefits your mental health in so many ways too.
I have mentioned previously how line dancing benefits cognitive function, oxygen levels, hormones, and coordination, all of which effect your mental state.. But did you know that line dancing also builds things like confidence, self-esteem, and close relationships. It improves your visual recognition and decision making abilities too. A study done by Harvard on the benefits of dancing shows all of these things and even mentions that line dancing helps to improve long term memory, executive function, and spacial recognition. It also mentions how dancing is a great therapy for people with conditions such as parkinson’s disease. I am linking the article here, in case you are interested in reading that as well.
So after knowing how good it is for you, how can you not at least try it.. Here are some really great ones that I enjoy.
AB Cotton Eyed Joe - 32 Count, 4 Wall, Absolute Beginner
Choreographed by: Peter Probert; Music: Cotton Eyed Joe - Rednex
Scootin’ Bootin’ - 32 Count, 4 Wall, 1 Tag, 2 Restarts, Improver
Choreographed by: Mark Paulino; Music :Country dance -Aaron Goodvin
Reason To Stay - 32 Count, 4 Wall, 3 Tags, Improver/ Low Intermediate
Choreographed by : Darren Bailey; Music: Reason to stay- Brett Young
For sure try these out and let me know what you think. Til we meet again.. Keep dancing.
Much love,
Line dance lessons and wellness with Chrystal