Ease some of your holiday stress and mitigate the impact of high-calorie Christmas treats by taking a spin around the dance floor.
December is a month of indulgence, including frosted cookies, long holiday shopping lists and numerous Christmas parties. It can also be a season of isolation for people grieving the loss of loved ones and trepidation for families struggling to give their children some holiday magic without breaking the bank. Sixty-one percent of adults feel stressed, often or sometimes, during the holiday season and 68 percent feel fatigued, according to a poll of 786 adults, conducted by the American Psychological Association.
Fred Astaire Dance Studios has the solution to keep the Christmas spirit alive. The more than 180-unit dance chain offers students the opportunity to try dancing for the first time or sharpen existing skills. Dancing releases endorphins that increase energy and reduce stress. It helps improve physical fitness, build agility and muscle strength and increase cardiovascular health. Turning up the music and dancing is a great way to boost your mood and relieve tension this month.
The characters in some of your favorite Christmas movies celebrate the season by dancing. Take a look at these toe-tapping dance scenes from some of your familiar holiday favorites.
“Holiday Inn,” a movie about two couples who turn a small hotel into a live-entertainment destination on major holidays, has numerous opportunities to see intricate dance moves in action. In this clip, Fred Astaire and Marjorie Reynolds dance at a New Year’s Eve party.
As the prime minister of England, Hugh Grant’s character in “Love Actually” has to display a stiff upper lip in public. In the privacy of his own home, it’s another story.
Dancing isn’t just for grownups. Kids can dance to improve posture, increase balance and boost physical fitness. Check out this clip of everyone’s favorite cartoon characters strutting their stuff in “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”
“The Polar Express,” a tale of a young boy who takes a train ride to the North Pole to keep the spirit of Christmas alive, came to the big screen in 2004. Watch the waiters delight their young riders by dancing as they serve hot chocolate.
Take a tip from these holiday films and visit your local Fred Astaire Dance Studios to learn how to cha-cha, swing and salsa your way to a peaceful Christmas season.
