When did you last dance? Like many people I gave up dance lessons in my late teens. Fast forward almost forty years and following the bereavement of my wonderful mum in December after a long decline with horrible Alzheimer’s, I decided in the bleakness of January I needed to find some joy to offset the grief where possible, so I returned to dance and instantly fell in love with it again. A friend came with me for moral support, and we arrived in the old and cold local scout hall to a warm and friendly bunch for the over fifties. Did it matter if we got the steps wrong and turned the way, of course not but most importantly we enjoyed ourselves and came out smiling and feeling warm and more mobile.
As a health and wellness coach I advocate that any movement is better than none and even if this means exercising in your chair any movement is valid. A key part of coaching is finding what matters to you and focusing some time and attention on this. Dance for me is my happy place and it is a shared passion with so many others. Strictly Come Dancing at its peak viewing had over ten million viewers but I wonder how many have put on their dancing shoes.
I recently attended a conference to discover more about the profound benefits of dance and movement at The Royal Academy of Dance in London. It was hosted by Dr Peter Lovatt also known as Dr Dance who is a dance psychologist and can provide the neuroscience behind the positive impact of movement on human thinking and behaviour after over twenty years of research. He was accompanied by Lindsey Lovett an Occupational Therapist and specialist on mental health. Dame Darcey Bussell and Peter have created a Mental wellbeing programme which is known as Move Assure and gracefully led us through a dance. The day was filled with dance and inspiring speakers.
To summarise dance has profound benefits for all ages and abilities both physically and mentally. Importantly it is social and builds connectiveness, its thinking skills build cognitive challenges and learning something new is of value, it builds emotional intelligence and resilience through connecting with feelings. For physical health it provides cardio, aerobic exercise whilst developing strength and flexibility. Mentally it can reduce stress, help with concentration, increase energy. So, the mind and body get a workout which is neuro protective against cognitive decline. So, crank up your favourite music and as the saying goes “dance as if nobody is watching”.
