Belly Dancing Classes - Great Way To Stay In Shape

One of my co-workers has recently lost a great deal of weight. She has increased energy and wants to exercise more to help keep the weight off. She has tried walking and health club exercise classes but she has not found anything that she enjoys enough to keep motivated. She recently saw that community education was offering a belly dancing class. The description of the class stated that belly dancing is a fun activity to improve flexibility, increase your cardiovascular stamina and firm muscles.

My co-worker approached several of us and wanted to know if we would take the belly dancing classes with her. The classes were two nights a week for five weeks. They were held from 6:30 to 7:30pm. I live quite a distance from the office so I told her that I did not want to be arriving home after 8:30 two nights a week. I thought this sounded like fun, but I declined. Most of the other workers also declined because the time was over the dinner hour and they needed to be home with their children. One very shy introverted worker agreed to take the belly dancing lessons. We were all stunned when she said that she would do this.

After the first lesson they came back to work and reported that they needed to purchase scarves to use in their dancing. The scarves would help them get into the flow of the music. They also had finger cymbals that they were to use to help keep the beat for some of the belly dancing segments. Those of us that declined taking the classes were now glad that we had done so. I could not picture myself twirling scarves and clinking together cymbals. The shy co-worker did not have much to say about the lessons. After three weeks they were talking about going to buy fabric to make outfits for belly dancing. They were going to wear them the last night of class. The instructor was hoping that several of the students would continue with the belly dancing as an on-going source of exercise. She thought having the outfits would motivate them to do this.

Several of us agreed that we would go to the last lesson of belly dancing to watch. We wanted to see our co-workers dressed in their costumes and twirling their scarves. They both had toned their muscles over the course of the lessons, and the shy co-worker has seemed more out going. The classes were held in the gym of a local junior high school. Four of us went in the back door and stood in the back of the darkened gym to watch. We could not believe our shy co-worker. She danced with the music with such grace; she was oblivious to our being there. It was amazing how belly dancing lessons had improved her confidence and self esteem.