Yes, it can. But to a certain extent. Your weight is a combination of multiple factors and not just an exercise routine like dance. Read on to know why dance is a good form of exercise and what else you need to consider on your weight loss journey.
Dance is fun!
Dance is not about being Michael Jackson and performing flawlessly on stage. It’s about losing yourself to music. It’s about forgetting your surroundings while you groove to the music. A lot of people are hesitant about dance because they worry too much about their surroundings. Once you let go, it doesn’t matter what steps you do. What matters is you focus on the music and let your body do the rest.
Dance can help in consistent exercise
You can’t force yourself to do something for a long time. If you don’t enjoy something, you are going to give up eventually. Weight loss requires consistency. You have to give up some old habits and build new ones. Sticking to new habits will only happen if you enjoy following them.
So, it’s important that you choose an exercise routine that you will be able to follow for a long time. And dance is something that can be enjoyable. Normally, we don’t categorize it as an exercise and so it is easier to do for a longer period of time.
Weight loss ≠ Just exercise
If you want to lose weight, exercising and dancing more and more is not going to help. You need to consider two more factors when thinking about weight management:
a) Your diet
What you put in your body is equally important to what you burn out of it. It’s simple math. Let’s say,
Your optimal body fat is X.
You eat Y. Now, your body fat is (X+Y).
You will have to exercise to burn Y.
If you eat more, say Y+Z.
You will have to exercise even more to burn it.
So, you not only need to focus on burning excess body mass, you also need to make sure that you eat something that can be burnt easily. And I say this from experience, controlling your urges to eat healthier is a lot harder than exercising.
So, if you have taken up dance as an exercise routine, great! Now, you need to pay attention to what you are eating. Ask yourself, “Can I burn this food via dance?” If not, either switch to a better diet or switch to a different form of exercise.
b) Your natural body shape
You ever meet people who eat a lot and still are lean and thin. Or maybe people who eat very less and still have a lot of fat in the body. Some people will do everything that the weight experts say and still remain in the same shape they always have been.
Here’s my non-medical claim for this: Sometimes our weight and body shape is determined not by our habits, but by our DNA and ancestral habits. It’s similar to diseases like diabetes. If it runs in your family, you have a higher chance of having it. So, your weight and shape is also sometimes determined by your ancestors.
You have two options for this:
i) Accept your body and make peace with it. Make efforts to just adopt healthy habits, but don't worry about your body too much.
ii) Don’t accept your default body shape and strive to get in a shape that you consider to be healthy.
There are obviously gotchas to the above points. It’s important to understand WHY you are choosing an option and what will be the consequences of it on your physical and mental well being.
Here are some scenarios where each option might be considered a wrong choice:
❌ Your current weight is causing health issues. Yet, you still choose to eat unhealthy food and choose not to manage your weight.
❌ You are insecure about your image and want to build a body to show off among your peers. You keep exercising even though you hate it.
Here are some scenarios where the two options would be considered a good choice:
✅ You don’t have any health issues. You eat healthy and move your body regularly.
✅ You want to become a better version of yourself. You exercise and maintain your body only to have a disciplined and healthy life.
It is very important that you eliminate the noise around you. Then only you can make a rational decision about what is an optimal weight for you. Once that is done, you can proceed to choose an exercise routine and dietary habits that are appropriate for you.
Dance Guru Near Me
Whether you choose dance or any other form of exercise, it is important to gain knowledge from experts. Guru Near Me is on a mission to connect people with the right teachers near them. If you are looking for dance classes near you, consider visiting our dance classes page and select “Near Me” or a city of your choice.
The views expressed in this post are personal. It's important that you consult an expert before making any decision about your body. Exercise and diet changes should always be done after consulting a health expert.
