York fitness trainer MICHAEL PHAN says it's good to dance

DID you know that April 29 is International Dance Day?

The event celebrates all dance, but dance fitness is really taking off with many ways to dance yourself fit.

With TV shows such as The Greatest Dancer and Strictly Come Dancing this kind of fitness has never been a more popular choice to get active and healthy at the same time.

Dance is a full body aerobic workout where you can really have fun while you get fit and learn the steps and techniques.

There are so many varieties of dance fitness classes on offer and you can learn some new moves and meet new friends too.

Whether your goal is to lose weight, tone up or even if you just want to try something new and different, taking part in dance will increase your fitness and really boost your confidence. You’ll also have so much fun getting involved no matter what level you’re at when you start.

Dancing is great for losing weight, maintaining strong bones, improving posture and muscle strength, increasing balance and co-ordination, and beating stress.

Why do what everyone else does when they first set out to get fit? Go against the grain and try something like dance that you can get enthusiastic about and lose yourself in the music to.

Ultimately, I think it’s about putting yourself out there and finding something that you genuinely enjoy. Most of the time, that is half the battle when it comes to getting fit.

Benefits of dance:

Weight loss

As part of a sustainable approach to exercise, dancing is up there in terms of calories burnt per hour. You can expect to burn between 300-500 calories an hour through vigorous dancing, which can be one way of creating that calorie deficit you need to generate weight loss

Strong bones

As we age, our bone strength naturally degrades (through loss of calcium and other minerals) and in some cases, can lead to osteoporosis. Looking at your diet and load-bearing exercises such as dancing can help prevent, slow down or even reverse this natural degradation.

Improve posture and muscle strength

Through progressive and regular movement of dance and the muscles we use, we find that we ‘hold’ ourselves better. This is down to challenging the muscles and encouraging them to grow stronger so that they can take the strain and be better at helping you move next time. This also has the effect of helping to hold the spine in a better position and give us better posture

Balance and co-ordination

Moving your whole body to the music takes both balance and co-ordination, as you move the various limbs in time with the beat. Proprioception tells the body where your limbs are in relation to everything else, and with practice, the dancing improves two things: 1) how easy you find being on one foot at a time; and 2) the ease with which you are able to move from one position to the next

Beating stress

Dancing makes you feel happier, because it not only triggers the sensory and motor circuits of the brain, but also the areas associated with pleasure. It’s a great way to relax and forget your troubles and take a fresh look at what you have on your plate.

Find out more from: michaelphan.co.uk