Dancing is a physical activity unlike any other. Through movement, dance offers aesthetic expression, releases passion and bolsters social, intellectual, and physical growth. Believe it or not, dance is not only for the young. Dance can be a wonderful activity for people over the age of 50. Read on to find out about its many physiological and mental health benefits that will make you want to grab your dancing shoes and get moving.
Benefits of dance for older dancers
The blog Baila for life lists some of the many ways that dance can be good for more mature people. On a physiological level, dance improves heart and lung functionality and boosts muscular strength, endurance, and motor fitness. Dancing can also do wonders for older people to help improve balance and spatial awareness, aerobic fitness, coordination, agility, and flexibility and strengthen bones to reduce the risk of osteoporosis.
But while dance is good for the body, it also has the capacity to powerfully impact the soul. Dance increases confidence and self-esteem and can positively impact psychological well-being by releasing mood-improving hormones that relieve stress, anxiety, and depression. As people age they are more susceptible to grappling with mental health issues and for many dancing their blues away is the perfect antidote.
Strong and graceful ballerina at 64
Nancy taylor is a woman who refused to allow her physical limitations to hold her back. Unbelievably, she found her way to dance when she was in her fifties after falling and fracturing her spine. According to the Odyssey Online Taylor’s story became public, when she was photographed by world renowned dance photographer Gene Schiavone.
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"My surgeon diagnosed me with advanced Osteoporosis and told me that I would never lead an active lifestyle again. When a ballet studio opened just across the road from my home, I took it as a sign that I might have a chance to heal myself. I limped into the studio on a cane and told the instructor that if she helped me get my leg up on the bar, that I would learn ballet. She did, and on that day my life would be changed forever," Taylor wrote on Facebook.
Taylor has held onto ballet like a lifeline and has pushed the limits of her training further than anyone thought she would be capable of. At the age of 58 she decided to dance "En Pointe", combining strength, fierce determination, grace and bravery. Taylor is a living example of a woman who refuses to be defined by her limitations, opting instead to continue to evolve and grow.
Blind dancer has visions of ballet
The Denver Gazette reported about how after losing her sight nearly 30 years ago Brenda Mosby was forced to approach her life in a whole new way. Instead of giving up, Mosby has decided to live as fully as she can and is always on the lookout for new and challenging activities. Now at age 68, she has decided to take up ballet. With the help of a dedicated teacher and guided by her own stubborn determination and positive spirit, Mosby is loving the gift of ballet in her life.
“I lost my sight, my physical sight, the ability to see and read and all that, but then I found a vision of why I was here, what I'm here to do. I am a woman who wants to have a healthy body. That's what I feel ballet does to me. It gives me a healthy body. I know that ballet is good for the body, the mind and the soul," Mosby told the Denver Gazette.
The stories of these women are inspiring and they teach us by example that the only limitations that exist are the ones that we impose upon ourselves. If you have ever dreamt of becoming a dancer, now you know that it is never too late to take up this wonderful activity.
So get out there and move yourself to the music - whether it's in a professional dance studio, alone in your living room or out in the park with your grandchild - your body and your soul will thank you later.
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