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Whether you’re new to dance or a seasoned competitor, the following list can apply to universal strategies you can use at every lesson to maximize your learning and enjoyment.

Set your course

This basically means to envision some of the intricacies of this new challenge you are undertaking. Decide, in advance, how you will face a challenge. This will enable you to better overcome it; therefore, you will feel more relieved, less apprehensive and frustrated. As everything in life this requires a plan and a map.

Clear your mind

Before entering the dance studio, clear your mind of any outside concerns, interferences and issues. Remember that dancing serves as a stress reliever so you can use your class time to relax and clear your mind. This activity is supposed to be anxiety-free and enjoyable. Remember, it’s your hobby – not your job!

 Learn at your own pace

Everyone learns to dance at different speeds, so do not compare yourself to others in your class. There are people who just seem to catch on faster than the others, and many people may already have a dance background. Do not hesitate to ask questions if you are doubtful about a certain step. Teachers love questions! (And chances are, you’re not the only person who has them.)

Wear the right clothes

Ensure that your clothes are of the right size and come in proper dance attire depending on the instructions proposed by your instructor. Make sure that your dance clothes fit your body well; otherwise, it can disrupt your dancing. Make sure you are comfortable!

Be open-minded to new possibilities

Do not take for granted that dances like Samba or Viennese Waltz are simply difficult and impossible because you are an older dancer. When you open your heart and mind to all of life’s possibilities, you will be greatly rewarded. In conclusion, willingness matters and pays off the investment.

Find and work on your own style

Each of us has certain inclinations and tastes that make us feel happy and fulfilled.  While it’s nice to try many things, when you do find something that you absolutely love, make sure to make that a central part of your dancing.  Whether it’s latin music, electronic style, or swing dancing, when something brings you joy, make that a regular part of your life.

Happy dancing everyone!!

The post How to Make Your First Dance Lesson a Success! appeared first on Dance Louisville.

You’ve probably heard the phrase ‘two left feet before.’ It is a common excuse to justify the fear that we may have when it comes to trying something new, say ballroom dancing. Don’t get us wrong…walking into a new, unknown environment can be terrifying! But you never know what’s on the other side unless we give things a shot, right?!

No one was born with two left feet, and in any situation, we guarantee that you’re going to do better than you think your first time out. We want you to get rid of any misconceptions you may have and encourage you to live up to your very own potential. You don’t have forever, so why not start today? Sometimes we hear people say I wish I had started this when I was younger…but age is just a number people and many activities, including dancing may actually extend your life! Just keep that in mind…

First and foremost, if we want to overcome a fear we need to start by wanting to do so. Hesitation is probably one of the agents that tends to hold us back, so you may start with a simple decision and see what happens next. Based on that, we want to remind you that at this very first stage you probably won’t be participating in “Dancing with the Starts” (maybe later, who knows?), so let’s take it easy and focus on just trying out a few steps and listening to the music. We are all our harshest critics, but try to avoid early assessments. Every day that you try, you’re making progress.  It would be unfair to judge the entire process at such an early stage.  We don’t have the miracle  pill  for  everything  we  want,  but  what  we  do  have which  is  even  better  than  a magic  pill  or  wand…we have a PLAN! When we plan any project (whether it be personal,  social, or economic) we are a step ahead of the three ugly Fs: Failure,  Frustration,  and  Fear.

What  does  a  plan  for  overcoming a fear of  Ballroom Dance contain?
How could it be carried out?

Try these ingredients:

1. The first step is the first step
Conquering the  initial  nervousness  is  the  key. Starting something from the scratch may be hard, but there’s nothing that practice cannot defeat. Practice makes perfect!

2. Forget about the cliché “I have no rhythm”
Does your heart beat?  Do you breathe?  Do you walk? Then you definitely have rhythm. It’s scientifically proven! We just have to refine it!

3-. Ballroom Dancing has no age limits!
Anyone at any age can dance. Don’t believe me?  Do you remember the 106-year-old lady who danced with the Obamas a couple of  months ago?  When asked what was the secret to still dancing at 106, she said just keep moving.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/barack-obama-michelle-obama-dance-106-year-old-woman-visits-white-house-a6888656.html

So you have all the ingredients, what about the execution?

Once your ingredients are ready and your fear has started to fade away, what  else do you need?  Well…for dancing you need a dance floor or studio for you to step in to! You don’t actually even need a partner! Plenty of group classes are structured for you to rotate so you get a chance to meet new people, and learn at a faster pace. If you have a built in dance partner, then you’re also set – just remember you’re both learning new skills and patience is essential. This is a fun and exciting experience to share, so keep it fun and light!

Enjoy this new adventure and keep us posted on how it goes. Remember that you won’t be the newbie all your life. Try something new today…what do you have to lose? Hope to see you on a dance floor soon!

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In ballroom dance lessons, you will most likely need a partner to dance with. Just by going to group classes or lessons you will spend some time with various partners. Chances are that the instructor will keep the partners rotating, so you will get the chance to dance with and meet a lot of new people. After you get to know your classmates, you can always experience new classes, rhythms or styles during different classes and still meet new people along the way.

Getting along with your classmates in your dance lessons and group classes is only the beginning! Beyond regular classes, are gatherings called “social dances”, in which tons of people get together to move themselves to the beat and try out what they have learned, ‘in the wild.’ Thanks to your dance lessons, and the new people you have met through dance classes, you’ve got some moves under your belt, and you can meet anyone by just asking them out for a dance. It’s as simple as that! One great thing about people who dance is, that they always want to do it, so if you ask someone out, they will gladly say yes almost every time!

You will notice that every time you surround yourself with people who are dancing, you will be in a relaxed, safe and joyful environment. You’ll soon find out dance makes people physically and mentally happy, so you will be meeting new people in a time and place where they are at their best. That’s makes everything easier!

In other matters, if you decide to travel, dancing will also open a lot of doors for you, no matter if you speak the local language or not. You can typically hit a local dance studio and sign up for a random group class or lesson, or check the internet for “social dances” or dancing events in the area. Instantly, you will be meeting new people with at least one common interest, and that will make it easier to break the language barrier, and have a good time despite of it.

Dance is the universal language of the world, don’t you want to be a part of that? You never know who you will meet. So give it a shot – meet new people through dance and see how it changes and impacts your life!

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So, you want to learn to dance, that’s excellent! Finding a dance studio that fits you, will be an easy second step in this pleasant journey called Dancing.

And to help you narrow down your decision, we are going to give you six pointers that you can follow, and help you to make a right decision, but these are all suggestions, the weight that you give to each of these parameters will be up to you, remember that what matters most is you having the more fun!

Professionals

A detail to consider is the experience of those who will be your teachers, in this type of schools you can evaluate if the teachers have been part of some competition in their discipline, or if they have any certifications or even some awards. It always helps to see a previous class, to see if there is good chemistry between the teacher and the students, and that will also give you a chance to see if you like their methods.

Variety

In a dance school you will find different styles of dance, with different levels of difficulty. When choosing you should consider that the academy has more than one style you like, that way you can continue growing your dance knowledge by learning another rhythm after reaching a certain level in other. See the types of dances we teach.

Proximity

You should find a place that you can access easily, so it should be close to work or home. One of the risks of choosing a school away from your environment is, that daily tasks may eventually prevent you from attending classes. In addition, you must value your time, and the less time you spend on your way to the studio the better. Dance Louisville has a convenient east end location.

Schedules

Schedules Like the proximity of the academy, are very important, since these must be compatible with your availability. Always choose a schedule that you know you can meet. It is worthless to choose the best school or the one that is closer to your house, if you are late. You can see our schedule here.

Trial Run

There are schools that allow you to receive a free trial lesson, and there are others that allow you to take a single lesson by paying it, take it in order to test the service and quality. If you are interested in how to choose a ballroom dance studio… you should first and foremost give one a try! For those studios that do not allow trial lessons, it may be possible to witness one session, go there and watch it, take your time to assets the relation between teacher and students and watch how the teacher perform, and if his styles suit you.

Why Dance Louisville?

At Dance Louisville we have been in business for over 11 years. We are a family run dance studio with a professional staff of 6 excellent teachers who truly care about your experience at our studio. We personally invite you to take us up on our FREE FIRST LESSON. It will give you chance to come in and check us out. I’m sure you will have a great time. Give us a call (502) 3774859. See you on the dance floor!

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Thanks for clicking and taking the time to read this.

If we got a chance to sit down together – This is what I’d want to say.

I assume that there was something that intrigued you about dancing?

What was it for you?

Well whatever it is…It’s our job to help you reach your goal!

I know that walking into a dance studio is SUPER intimidating…

All of our students have gone through the exact same emotions.

Don’t worry….

After 20 years of dancing I know the exact steps you need to take.

The good news is the first few steps are very easy!

In fact by the time you’re reading this you may have even taken one or two of them.

Step 1. – Get some 1on1 time with an instructor. 

Being able to sit and talk to one of our instructors is the easiest (least nerve wracking) way to get started.

That’s why we offer a FREE 30-Min Private Lesson to all of our new students.

You can book that by calling (502) 377-4859.

If you’ve already done it.. congrats!

On to step 2…

Step 2. – Book a starter package.

A starter package allows you to take private lessons & group classes for a month!

After teaching A LOT of people to dance over year years I realized this.

You need to try group lessons AND private lessons.

So we created a special package to allow you to try both.

From there you’ll be more educated about which path will take you to your goals.

HINT: For most people in includes both group & private lessons.

The final step???

Step 3. – Doing the right things right.

Once you are taking the starter package….

You’re doing the right thing to ensure you’re on the path to reach your goals!

But how do you DO THE RIGHT THING RIGHT?

I’ve put together some tips on how to get the most out of your lessons.

After years of watching people…

The ones that had the most fun, struggled the least and ultimately achieved their goals, did these things.

Seriously.. all of them!

View my best tips

Again if there is anything I can do to help you on your dance journey.

Please let me us know.

Our staff is full of passionate helpful people and they are all on your team!

The post New Student Tips appeared first on Dance Louisville.

Keep your brain in shape!

Dance keeps the brain in shape. While dancing, you need to remember and apply a lot of different movement patterns, which is a great exercise for the brain. Think of a “Sudoku” puzzle for a moment…in it, you have to try different patterns and see which one fits on a column, something quite similar happens while dancing, only that it happens a lot faster, without noticing you are comparing all the different moves and turns you know. This comparison will give you the move or turn that fits the dance, then you try them in your head for a moment, and after all of this, you will perform them, all within split seconds of each other.

Needless is to say, this is a complex process that will get your brain running and exercising on a regular basis. Most of the time you are having too much fun or your brain has gotten so strong after dancing, that it does it effortlessly.

Keep depression away & relive stress

A good state of mind needs a brain in good shape, but some endorphins (happiness hormones) can make a lot of difference in keeping depression away, and releasing stress. Guess what – dancing makes the body secrete tons of endorphins! Almost all physical exercises will do this, but studies shows that due to dancing’s low impact on the “pain receptors” of the muscles, the endorphins are more effective and more powerful on the mind. More studies suggest that being able to keep a beat, gives the mind a sense of triumph and winning that would generate more endorphins, too! Next time you see people smiling while dancing, you will know what is going on their bodies and in their brain. 

In other studies, the American Council of Exercise found out that people who do ballroom dance at least twice a week are least likely to suffer mental disorders or Alzheimer’s. Dancing helps gain and maintain a healthy memory, and because it is a social activity it helps to alleviate a lot of the conditions that usually generate mental disorders.

Improve self esteem!

Last but not least, is the increased level of an individual’s Self-Esteem. After dancing for a while, your self esteem will be better than before, because you will see yourself as someone who is capable to learning something new, Someone who is capable of having fun and being sociable, and most of all someone who is doing something that you love. Different types of rhythms like salsa or flamenco celebrates different types of bodies and looks, so if you choose one that fits you, it will make you feel a lot more comfortable with yourself.

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