I Could Dance All Night

Exercise is always easier when you are doing something fun that you love.  For years, I have wanted to take dancing lessons.  Not the ballet and tap lessons I had as a child but ballroom or latin dancing.  A friend of mine recently met a young man who teaches latin dances and arranged for 7 couples to take a class on Tuesday evenings.  We have had 3 classes so far and we are having a ball learning the merangue.  Each evening when we leave, my hair is soaked, my makeup wiped off on my sweaty shirt and I am feeling so good.

Yes, people!  Exercise makes you feel SO GOOD.  And it is so good for you.  You all know that exercise helps maintain your weight and keeps your heart running well but do you know how much exercise does for your brain?  Of course I'm going to tell you and if this doesn't make you get off the couch and get moving, nothing will. 

Exercise improves your circulation, getting more oxygen and glucose to your brain.  It improves our ability to learn, concentrate, reason, plan, organize and mentally juggle multiple tasks.  Regular exercise may delay the onset of and progression of diseases like Alzheimers.  Older adults who exercise experience less forgetfulness and have better mental function.  People who exercise have better moods and handle stress better. 

So, do you want to be happier?  Feel less stressed and concentrate better at work?  Avoid the embarrassment of wandering out of the house naked when you are 70?  Be healthier in every way?  Exercise!  Find something you like and do it.  I do many different things so I don't get bored.  I lift weights, walk, swim, shovel horse poo daily, do yoga, and now, dance.  It beats the alternative - nursing home, impaired health, forgetting who you are.

Even more important - get your kids moving.  Today's kids don't get nearly enough exercise but spend plenty of time sitting at a computer or TV.  If you want your kids to be better behaved, smarter and do better in school, this is a simple step to take.  Kids with ADD and ADHD can improve enough with exercise that they can do without medication.  I always feel better any time I can avoid taking medication or giving it to my kids.

I hope I have given you some food for thought.  Do some google research on your own if you aren't convinced.  I know I want to feel good. 

Have a happy weekend and get moving.