Competitive Ballroom Dancing
The benefits of ballroom and Latin dancing
I grew into the person who I am today through ballroom dance. The community and the hard work shaped my personality and work ethics significantly. Here are my key words when discussing the benefits of ballroom and Latin dancing.
Achievement – The feeling of being on the dance floor while others cheering for you is remarkable. The fear of performing and being watched by others is of course there at the beginning. However, as with everything in life, the more often you do it, the more your nerves get used to it. One day it becomes easy and natural. This calmness then can be applied in other aspects of life consciously.
Social connections – I made the best friendships through ballroom dancing in my native Hungary, in the USA, and in many other countries. This bond is very strong since we have the appreciation and common ground in achieving goals in dancing. If you like traveling competitive ballroom dancing is for you.
Health and fitness – One of the most important benefits is a lifestyle that is based on discipline. I am also a nutritionist and I very often see my clients wanting to succeed in becoming healthier or losing weight; however, the lack of discipline stands between them and success.
Why do Dancers Compete?
Becoming a competitive athlete is a process and no need to deny that the dance studio’s environment has a strong influence on your journey what type of competitor you become. A studio with teachers of competitive ballroom dance background will more likely influence their students to become competitors.
Type of Competitive Dancers
Some studios focus on single dancers and prepare them for so-called pro-am competitions, where the student partners with her/his teacher. Another way for a single dancer to compete is with another amateur dancer who is a higher-level dancer. Others will train you only when you have a dance partner. The best experience is if you have a similar level dance partner and you train together. You can share the cost of lessons as well as travel expenses. You grow together and you set your goals depending on how high you would like to climb on the ranking. You can set your goal just to enter local competitions or you can aim for becoming the national champion.
Does Age Count When Competing?
Can you be too young or too old to compete? Each dancer can decide based on how the body is responding to practicing whether to pursue competitive training. As far as the ballroom system, you are never too young or too old to compete in ballroom dance. The youngest competitive age is 4 or 5 years old. The best year to start for children is around 6 or 7 based on my teaching experience. Then you go through the age categories: pre-teen, junior, youth, U21, and adult. Once over 35 you can enter senior competitions, so you see, you do not have to be old to be a senior. From there you can compete in senior I, II, III, IV, and V being age 75 and older.
In summary…
As you are reading this blog, ask the question of yourself: What have I done for myself recently? If you find this ballroom dance picture exciting, please check out our web site where you will find all our programs with information. Regardless of your budget, you should be able to find where to start.
I look forward to seeing you in one of our classes.
