POSITIVE EFFECTS OF DANCING

We all know that dancing benefits the body. It’s a great way of getting or keeping in shape while enjoying ourselves. But have you ever considered the effect dancing can have on your mental health?

Thankfully we now live in a day and age where discussing our mental health is losing the stigma and can discuss issues such as depression. Now we can talk to our friends and family about these issues without feeling ashamed.

While talking to those we care for about the things that matter most to us is a great tool to take the weight off our shoulders, dance is another tool that one can use to release pent up emotions like stress and anger.

Dancing can help improve our brain functions on many different levels, which help enhance our mental and emotional state of mind.

In some areas, dancing has now become a popular method of therapy for certain forms of mental illness, which shows us that dancing certainly does have a powerful and positive effect on our mental wellbeing.

Here, we list some of the ways dance can have a positive effect on our health.

Sense Of Happiness

Any time we exercise, whether it be running or swimming, our bodies release endorphins. These are the hormones that make you feel good after a workout. Even as you reach the top of that hill on your way to work, your body will release endorphins.

What Are Endorphins?

Endorphins are neurochemicals. These are produced by the brain, the hypothalamus, and the pituitary gland every time the body comes under stress or experiences pain.

These endorphins are considered as natural painkillers as they activate the opioid receptors in our brain. 

Endorphins are also structurally similar to the drug morphine.

With dancing, not only do you get a natural boost of endorphins, but you also get an added boost from the adrenaline that the body releases when dancing, listening to loud music, and generally having fun.

The effect of both the feel-good factors will contribute immensely to your overall sense of happiness and state of mind.

Release Tension And Express Yourself

It is too easy to get so caught up in our work and busy lifestyles that we end up like robots doing the same routine all day, every day, while never expressing ourselves.

One of the things I love the most about dancing is that there are so many different styles to choose from, no matter who you are and what you like, there will be a dance style for you that will allow you to feel the passion and express yourself.

Dancing could give you the perfect platform to release all that pent-up tension that you have stored inside while also keeping fit and expressing your true feelings.

Long-Term Positive Effects

One aspect of dancing that gives me hope is that the positive effects of dancing on your mental state are not only temporary there are also long-term benefits.

Anytime we learn something new, our brains encode the information by tuning connections between neurons in the brain. I’m no scientist by any stretch of the imagination, so I won’t try and go into too much detail on this, but to keep it simple – in effect, when we learn something new, our brain creates a new pathway (connection) between neurons.

So, maybe those hard to learn routines are rewiring our brains for the better.

Coordination

Dancing is a way for the body and mind to learn and improve overall coordination. It is also a great tool to help us achieve our goals and learn some discipline.

Confidence

Confidence is another of the benefits of dancing. It creeps into your everyday life and can improve many different aspects of your personal and work life.

There is no better feeling than taking a look back to when you first began and realise how far you have come. The sense of achievement can be overwhelming, to say the least, and can give you a springboard to go on and achieve even greater things in life.

Improve and maintain mental health

Dancing is for everyone and the perfect form of exercise to integrate into one’s busy life. Not only does it keep you fit, but it also provides you with a platform to help improve and maintain your mental health. The positive effects of dancing are many and are there for anyone who decides to give it a go.

Dance is a fun form of exercise that provides many physical and mental benefits that can:

• Help improve the condition of your heart and lungs
• increase your muscular strength, endurance, and motor fitness
• increased aerobic fitness
• improve overall muscle tone and strength
• Help with weight management
• Increase bone strength and reduce the risk of osteoporosis
• improve your coordination, agility, and flexibility
• improved overall balance and spatial awareness
• improve physical confidence
• Help increase mental functioning
• Helps improve general and psychological wellbeing
• Boost your self-confidence and self-esteem
• Can improve social skills

Line dancing is a popular dance style among older people and perfect for beginners. We recently wrote an article titled, is line dancing good exercise?

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