Can Ballroom Dancing Be Healthy?
by admin on March 11th, 2011
filed under Ballroom Dancing, Ballroom Instructors, Erin Pick, Group Dance Classes, Health and Ballroom Dancing, Private Dance Lessons, Types of Dances
Every time we turn around someone or something is telling us we need to be more healthy!
Ok, we know, we know – don’t eat junk food (Time to ration those Wendy’s chocolate frosties and midnight Del Taco runs 
), drink lots of water and walk at least twenty minutes a day.
But what if ballroom dancing was the perfect way to stay healthy?
What if we didn’t need to beat ourselves up about missing yet another workout because we just couldn’t get motivated.
Well, we’re in luck because ballroom dancing is a great way to
stay fit in body, mind and spirit.
According to Kathryn Radeff, E-How Contributor, “It lifts the spirit, strengthens the body, stimulates the mind, and according to researchers, keeps you healthy as you age.”
Mike Brown in his e-article, “Dance To Improve Your Health and Strength”, says, “The second simple reason for learning how to dance is self-evident: aerobic exercise. Any experienced body-builder knows that cardiovascular exercise is a necessity in order to gain muscular size, improve circulation, and prevent injury.”
Miranda Hitti in “Dancing Your Way To Better Health” offers us this advice, “Dance can challenge your mind as well as your muscles. At least one observational study has shown sharper minds with ballroom dancing.”
Dance for Health!
What more could we want?
And what are we waiting for?
Ballroom dancing utilizes the brain for learning steps and mastering music, the muscles (in different ways than we’re used to!) and brings out the joy in our hearts to do something fun and exciting.
Which means ballroom dancing is a healthy habit we can stay with year in and year out!
I don’t want to say how many times I’ve started out with the best of intentions, January 2nd, to make and keep a fitness routine?
By March 1st that resolution is paling and the grind of every day life has taken its toll on me and my fitness routine.
But with ballroom dancing we can be healthy and have fun at the same time and isn’t that a lot easier to stick to over the long run?
Check out the Beginners Start Here page and see what dances catch your interest.
- Do you want to “swing it”?
- How about a steamy tango?
- Always fantasized about being a waltzer?
- Fred and Ginger fan – try the foxtrot!
- Salsa your thing?
Click here to go to the Pick School of Ballroom Dancing Master Calendar… for group classes or try some up close and personal exercise and take a private lesson with Erin Pick!
Email today to start a new ballroom dancing fitness routine and get on the road to a healthier you!
About Ballroom Dancing…
by admin on March 7th, 2011
filed under Ballroom Dancing, Ballroom Instructors, Erin Pick, History, Types of Dances
Interview with Erin Pick, owner of the Pick School of Ballroom Dancing, SF, CA
By Roxanne Minott
SF Ballroom Dancing, Examiner
INTERVIEW WITH ERIN:
1) How did you become involved in ballroom dancing?
“My mother Rhona Pick opened a dance school in the Richmond district in 1962. She was a Standard & Latin Professional dance competitor. She became a United States Champion and represented the United States in Blackpool, England, one of the biggest dance festivals in the world. She retired from competitive dancing in the mid-70’s but continued to run the Pick School of Ballroom Dancing. She retired in 2006. At this time, the building in the Richmond district was sold and I moved the studio to the Sunset district.”
“I started ballroom dancing at 8 years old. My mother, along with her partner Roy Hinton and teachers in the school, Gene Jennings and Derek Lewis, gave me my basic foundation in dance and I went on to compete as an amateur, then as a professional and in Pro/Am competitions. I earned my teaching credentials with the Imperial Society of Teachers, through which I became a Licentiate in the International Standard and Latin dances. I also earned my teaching credentials with Terpsichore, a dance association through which I became an Associate in the American style Smooth and Rhythm dances.”
2) Which dances present the most challenges in teaching your students?
“Every student is different. Some students find the Latin/Rhythm dances more challenging and some find the Standard/Smooth dances more challenging. Teaching basic movements correctly is challenging in every dance. Steps are usually easy to pick up but correct technique takes practice and patience.”
3) What do you enjoy the most about being a ballroom instructor?
“I enjoy watching students who have never danced before develop into beautiful dancers. There are individuals who come to the studio thinking they will never be able to dance and several weeks later they are dancing. The benefits of ballroom dancing are not only physical but mental. Observing students working both their bodies and minds simultaneously is what I truly enjoy.”
4) What personal traits are necessary in order to be an effective ballroom instructor?
“One must first have patience. In addition, one must have the ability to present information in different ways, adapting to the needs of that particular student. A willingness to continue one’s education in Ballroom/Latin dance enables you as a teacher to give the students your best. Most importantly, love of the art of Ballroom/Latin dance will be revealed in your teaching and be passed on to your students.”
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