{"id":4240,"date":"2023-05-27T22:59:25","date_gmt":"2023-05-27T15:59:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/jazzercise-benefits-i-found-when-i-swapped-walking-for-dancing\/"},"modified":"2023-05-27T22:59:25","modified_gmt":"2023-05-27T15:59:25","slug":"jazzercise-benefits-i-found-when-i-swapped-walking-for-dancing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=4240","title":{"rendered":"Jazzercise Benefits I Found When I Swapped Walking for Dancing"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"drop-cap text-big text-gray\"> <span class=\"drop-cap__first text-dropcap \">I<\/span>\u2019ve been taking daily four-mile strolls since long before any TikTokker dubbed them <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/hot-girl-walks\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/hot-girl-walks\/\">\u201cHot Girl Walks.\u201d<\/a> Then I hit my 50s, and severe heel pain made them nearly impossible. A podiatrist diagnosed the problem as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/plantar-fasciitis\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/plantar-fasciitis\/\">plantar fasciitis<\/a>. We tried cortisone shots, heel cups, stretching, pain pills. Any relief was temporary. I knew I had to find a new form of exercise.<\/div>\n<p>I tried cycling (too dangerous) and swimming (too cold), and I knew gym life was not for me.<\/p>\n<p>My neighbor was always posting online about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/importance-of-joy-in-exercise\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/importance-of-joy-in-exercise\/\">Jazzercise<\/a>, which I\u2019d dismissed as too retro. But after struggling to find a replacement for my physical (and mental) health, I decided to pop into a studio one day after work.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t know what I was expecting. Maybe leg warmers, a disco ball, and Barry Manilow on the sound system? What I saw instead was an energetic class full of women ranging from their 20s to 80s(!), dancing to Justin Bieber.<\/p>\n<p>I explained my foot situation to the studio owner, and told her that, while I love dancing, I wasn\u2019t sure if this program could work for me. She picked out some low-impact and strength classes, and encouraged me to try them over the next two weeks.<\/p>\n<p>I had no idea what to wear or what shoes I\u2019d need, really no idea where to begin. It had been years since I\u2019d been in a dance or fitness class of any kind. I went to Lululemon, looked at the prices, then went to Target. Then I drove to an athletic store and splurged on a pair of hot pink <a href=\"https:\/\/clicks.trx-hub.com\/xid\/leafgroup_ca5e0_wellgood?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kqzyfj.com%2Fclick-100155342-11552229%3Fsid%3DSTMSFT-415523%26url%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.brooksrunning.com%252F&amp;p=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wellandgood.com%2Fjazzercise-benefits%2F&amp;event_type=click\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.brooksrunning.com\/\">Brooks<\/a> sneakers, known for providing great support.<\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content \" style=\"\" data-module-init=\"related-content\" data-module-immediate=\"\" v-cloak=\"\">\n<div class=\"related-content__wrapper \" v-cloak=\"\" :class=\"{'is-loaded':isLoaded}\">\n<p> <span class=\"inline pr-6 text-seafoam-dark\">Related Stories<\/span> <\/p>\n<p> <related-content class=\"related-content__links\" parent-article-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/jazzercise-benefits\/\" current-title=\"I Started Doing Jazzercise Instead of My Daily Walks, and It\u2019s the Strengthening, Therapeutic Fun I Didn\u2019t Know I Needed\" current-image=\"GettyImages-jazzercise-benefits.jpg\" v-on:parsely-posts-loaded=\"onPostsLoaded\" start-date=\"2022-11-27\" tag=\"div\" inline-template=\"\" url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/jazzercise-benefits\/\" secret=\"w5ztterVB03LGZJLfXS0hf3EvQBuFFIWew9hmVQxthU\" apikey=\"wellandgood.com\" limit=\"3\"> <\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"related-content__card mb-[10px] sm:mb-[20px]\" :class=\"{'related-content__card--full':posts.length === 1}\" v-for=\"(post, key) in posts\"> <a v-on:click.prevent=\"trackLinkGA($event, key)\" :href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/jazzercise-benefits\/post.url\" data-url-source=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content__link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content__card--image bg-tan\" :style=\"{ backgroundImage: 'url(' + post.image_url + ')' }\"> <img :src=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/jazzercise-benefits\/post.image_url\" :alt=\"post.title\"\/> <\/div>\n<p> <\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/related-content> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>I started the next day. Terms I hadn\u2019t heard since my elementary school days of tap and ballet class (pli\u00e9! relev\u00e9! ball change!) brought back happy memories, and muscle memory soon kicked in.<\/p>\n<p>I went almost every day for those two weeks and my foot didn\u2019t bother me. That was more than three years ago, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jazzercise.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.jazzercise.com\/\">Jazzercise<\/a> is still a priority for me every day. Why? Here are six reasons that I now rely on this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/1980s-aerobics-instructors-jane-fonda-jazzercize\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/1980s-aerobics-instructors-jane-fonda-jazzercize\/\">54-year-old fitness program<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Surprising Jazzercise benefits that shouldn&#8217;t be overlooked<\/h2>\n<h3>1. You can adapt each routine to your personal ability<\/h3>\n<p>For every high-impact cardio song that involves a lot of jumping, there\u2019s a way to modify it. You can jump and move as much or as little as you want to.<\/p>\n<p>For planks\u2014my least favorite of all things\u2014you can do them like a Navy Seal on your forearms or on your knees like I do. If you don\u2019t want to descend to a mat during the strength and stretch part of class, you can stay standing.<\/p>\n<p>No two people in a Jazzercise class have the exact same workout.<\/p>\n<h3>2. Jazzercise is also a mental workout<\/h3>\n<p>Although I sometimes miss the fresh air and sunshine of my daily walks, I\u2019ve found that Jazzercise requires <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/brain-benefits-dance-fitness\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/brain-benefits-dance-fitness\/\">more mental focus<\/a>, which is a great stress reliever.<\/p>\n<p>When the instructor shouts, \u201cChass\u00e9 right!\u201d you can\u2019t be worried about your broken A\/C; you will literally get run over by the other women. You simply have to be in the moment. The instructors remind us, \u201cThis is your time, ladies!\u201d Everything else can wait.<\/p>\n<h3>3. I have newfound strength<\/h3>\n<p>While my stomach isn\u2019t flat and my hips are not small, I feel like now, at 55, I\u2019m in the best physical shape of my life. When I started Jazzercise, I\u2019d grab an adorable pair of 2.5-pound weights each day for the strength portion, which was my least favorite part of class.<\/p>\n<p>Soon, though, those felt too easy, and I moved up to four pounds, then five, then six. One day after class, a woman behind me commented that my back muscles were looking good. <em>What? I had back muscles?<\/em> I went home and looked in the mirror and sure enough, I had definition I\u2019d never had before.<\/p>\n<p>As menopause hit and hot flashes kicked in, this standing-still strength portion of class quickly became my favorite part of the hour. (Seven pounds, here I come.)<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve noticed this physical strength in other areas of my life, too. I can squat easily now to change kitty litter. I can touch my toes, balance on one leg, and zoom upstairs at home without panting.<\/p>\n<h3>4. My endurance increased<\/h3>\n<p>Some Jazzercise moves were familiar to me, like leg lifts and crunches. But I\u2019d never done kickboxing, yoga, or Pilates before. Different moves work different muscles, and there were days I could feel it all over.<\/p>\n<p>One day we did a floor routine on our backs where we had to lift and lower our legs, never letting them touch the floor. I couldn\u2019t do it. I phoned that one in. A few days later, I could hold it for a few seconds, and after two weeks I could do the full routine. I had built up my endurance, little by little. Now I can keep up with my husband on our occasional hikes.<\/p>\n<h3>5. The group provides emotional support<\/h3>\n<p>As a married mother of two sons, my home life involves a lot of testosterone. The older I get, the more I value female companionship.<\/p>\n<p>After my mom died, getting back to Jazzercise was the first step in my healing and resuming a normal routine. People noticed I\u2019d been gone and welcomed me back. This group of women provides a sense of community and camaraderie.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019ve been days when an instructor will yell out, \u201cWe got this!\u201d or, \u201cYou can do hard things!\u201d and it\u2019s just what I need to hear.<\/p>\n<p>Many of us show up to class with a lot on our minds. But once the music starts, everything else fades away.<\/p>\n<p>And there\u2019s no judgment. One woman had had enough one day and just sat down on the floor in the middle of class. We made sure she was okay\u2014and then kept on dancing. She needed a moment. And we all understood.<\/p>\n<h3>6. Jazzercise is my way to move without pain<\/h3>\n<p>I\u2019m still careful not to jump or tax my foot in any way, and Jazzercise has provided a way for me to keep moving and stay fit, while having fun.<\/p>\n<p>Now that I\u2019ve found something I love to do, I do it consistently. There are women in my class who\u2019ve been doing it for 40 years. A friend remarked to me recently that she missed our college days when we\u2019d all go out clubbing every weekend. \u201cI miss dancing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Not me. I get to go to a dance party every day.<\/p>\n<p><em>Want to get your own groove on? Try this dance cardio routine from dancer Amanda Baxter:<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"iframe-container\">\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"10 Minute Cardio Dance Workout | Trainer of the Month Club | Well+Good\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DHuAJ5QqtXw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1675549\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I\u2019ve been taking daily four-mile strolls since long before any TikTokker dubbed them \u201cHot Girl Walks.\u201d Then I hit my 50s, and severe heel pain made them nearly impossible. A podiatrist diagnosed the problem as plantar fasciitis. We tried cortisone shots, heel cups, stretching, pain pills. Any relief was temporary. I knew I had to &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4242,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4240","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4240"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4240\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}