OUR BALLROOM BEACH BASH COMPETITION
Let me guess? You’re all thinking who is this and what the heck is he doing dancing with a flotation device around his waist?
LOL.
Meet Doug, my fantastic dance student! You may have noticed several of our silly photos from this competition on Instagram. We were having way too much fun at San Diego’s hottest, newest, ballroom dance competition, The San Diego Ballroom Beach Bash. Oh yeah- Doug placed first in his cha cha, rumba and paso double dances in case you were curious :).
So I’ve been known to brag about my students from time to time. And how can I not? They’re awesome. Doug didn’t care if we placed first or last. He worked so hard… taking extra lessons and practicing every day for weeks before the comp. Performing our routines to the best of Doug’s abilities and having fun were all that mattered. Amazingly, we accomplished just that!
SERIOUS FUN FOR GROWN UPS
As I’ve said before, entering the world of ballroom dance is like being transported to another galaxy. Everyone is usually orange because we all want to look tan and slim under those bright lights. The instructors run around like crazy to make their heats on time, grabbing whichever student is next. There’s so much sparkle, glitter and feathering going on, the room looks like a human zoo!
We all tease each other like crazy about silly things that only us dancers could ever talk about. In any other place of work, we’d be sued for sexual harassment with the amount of compliments spoken. No wonder dancers have such confident, healthy egos. After the hours we’ve spent prepping for our ten minutes of dancing, we all look fabulous and it shows!
A FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH
Dance is the sport we can do at every age. We can start when we are 5 or 50. (I’ve taught kids ages 2 and up, and adults in their 80’s)! It’s low impact, great for our spirits, bodies and minds. Dance gives us confidence, it sculpts and tones our bodies and makes our brains work hard at pattern recognition and memorization! In other words, dance will keep us young for a very long time.
How can an adult not have an awesome time at a dance competition?
We all loved Halloween and wearing our “coolest” costumes as kids, right ?Let’s apply that thought to a competition. Us ladies get to play dress up. We tan, put on a sexy dress and high heels, wear lots of sparkly makeup and jewelry, make our hair into some intricate up do and get to DANCE!
You men (yes, I’m talking to all of you guys out there so listen up!), get to slick your hair back, put on your John Travolta Saturday Night Fever faces, and dance with some pretty fantastic looking ladies!
Admit it. We may be all grown up now, but a part of us wants to stay forever young and dancing can do just that both mentally and physically. You train, you sweat, you get your cardio and sculpting, you get your brain active memorizing routines, you sweat some more, laugh, dress up and build up an adrenaline rush each time you step onto the competitive floor! We get to choose our costumes and dress how we want to.
Dancing makes us feel young and it helps keep our bodies young: it’s a two for one deal.
IN ALL SERIOUSNESS
Let me cut to the chase. Ballroom dancing is serious, it’s entertaining, it’s challenging. Dancing is about passion, dedication and fun. Doug is a businessman. When he’s not dancing, he’s writing a blog, managing peoples finances, speaking in front of huge audiences… in other words, he’s serious! He didn’t start dancing when he was 5 and he is too busy being a successful businessman to dance 6-8 hours a day. But when he gets to dance, he’s serious about having fun and laughing, whether it’s at me, with me or at our routine! Life is all about balance- dancing teaches us to laugh at ourselves.
It teaches us that we can take a break for our daily work routine and enjoy stepping out of this imaginary box we have created for ourselves. Dance allows us to express ourselves in a uniquely creative way and to set aside our problems for that hour or two as we dance.
I hope my Ballroom Beach Bash story inspires you to let loose and dance! I’m convinced dancing is the best activity we can do for our mind, body and spirit. It’s also a great bridge for building relationships and an awesome metaphor for life. I can’t wait to share more of my several student’s competition stories as we progress so STAY TUNED!
I’d LOVE to hear your feedback guys… what do you love most about dancing? What is stopping you from taking that first step? Who’s ever been to a ballroom competition and what was your first impression?!
xx Shanna
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