Dance has been sweeping the globe as a fun and fast way to get fit.  If you haven't jumped on to the dance floor yet, you may want to give it a try.  If you don't have a partner, don't worry.  There are many styles of dance that do not require a partner.  Additionally, you will find there are classes that teach partner dances that do not require you to have your own partner to participate. 

Chances are good that there are all kinds of dance classes offered in your community. Besides traditional dance studios, check out gyms, YMCA's, churches, civic centers and senior centers to see if they offer dance classes.

To get you started, here's a list and a brief description of some popular dance styles that you may want to take part in as one way to help you reach your fitness goals. 

No Partner Required

Line Dancing:  Line dancing is no longer done in smoky bars to strictly country western tunes.  Many of today's popular line dances have been choreographed to contemporary music and infused with other dance styles such as jazz, hip-hop, cha-cha, east coast swing, tango, waltz, and many others.  Line dancing still incorporates country music— especially the "classic" line dances.  However, the mix of country versus contemporary music will largely depend on the instructor.

Clogging: A form of folk dance where the shoe is used as an instrument to strike the floor with the heel, toe, or in unison to create musical rhythms.

Jazz: High energy with fast footwork and leaps and turns. Jazz has bold, dramatic body movements, including body isolations and contractions.  While there are a number of steps in jazz, dancers are encouraged to add their own personality and originality.   

Modern Dance: This style of dance was created as a rebellion against classical ballet, underlining creativity in choreography and performance.
Modern is an interpretative style of dance, emphasizing a relaxed and free form style, where the dancer uses his/her own emotions and moods to design the steps and choreography.

Tap: This style of dance makes frequent use of syncopation and therefore is generally fast paced.  Danced with metal taps on the bottom of the shoes, the sounds of the taps create rhythmic patterns and timely beats.

Hip Hop:  This style is a cultural movement that grew out of multiple styles of street dance, all of which were highly improvisational.  Hip-hop includes various moves such as breaking, popping, locking and krumping. Today hip hop is generally danced to rap music and other percussive elements that provide strong rhythmic beats.

Zumba:  Mixing International and Latin styles such as salsa and meringue, this form of aerobic dance uses fast paced beats.  Dancers twist, twirl and kick and are encouraged to move their hips and shake their booty without inhibitions. The dance routines feature aerobic and interval training for a combination of fast and slow.

Belly Dancing:  A slower style of dance characterized by sharp, rolling movements of the hips and abdomen.  With much of the emphasis on moving the hips and abdomen, the core of the body and the back are significantly strengthened. Belly dancing is generally done to Mid-Eastern music.

Ballet:  This is one of the more structured and disciplined styles of dance.  You will learn how to stretch and build a strong posture in addition to getting a great workout. Ballet is generally danced to classical music.

Partner Dancing

Ballroom: One of the most popular forms of dancing around the world.  Many classes for singles are offered all over the country. Newer dance styles have deep swaying, rapid spins, exciting throws, and challenging dips.

Latin:  Latin dance is a fast-paced, often sensual, partner dance characterized by sexy hip movements. However, hip movements are not intentional in any of the Latin dances. The hip motion is a natural consequence of changing weight from one foot to the other.

Swing: There are many forms of swing dances.  Some are high energy in which couples swing, spin and jump together and other forms are much slower where couples move rhythmically towards and away from one another while travelling across the floor in various patterns.

Contra Dancing: A form of American folk dance in which the dancers form two parallel lines and perform a sequence of dance movements with different partners down the length of the line. Contra dances are relaxed with family-like atmospheres.

Square Dancing: A folk dance characterized by 8 dancers arranged in a square.  A caller cues the dance sequence during the music to dance specific movements which can range between 4 to 32 counts of the music. Music can range anywhere from Country to Pop.

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