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Middle Aged Moves

Can’t Get Enough of Those Endocannabinoids

By Rochelle Lockridge

My motivations and reasons for passionately enjoying and participating in partner dancing were brought into question recently by someone other than myself or my adult children (who are coming around but still think their mother’s a bit off-her-rocker). This person didn’t say it directly, but reading between the lines my current path of social dance was somehow not as valid as their desire and drive to compete in the dance world. I felt a twinge of shame at the implications: “less than;” “low-brow trailer trash;” all because I’m not pursuing a direction that is leading to competing. I’m a collaborator, not a competitor. I don’t want to place myself in a situation where interference from other couples who want to “look better” in front of a judge is a floor hazard you need to plan for. I don’t want to be a part of something, that by design ends with a winner and a loser; where for some, not all, the end justifies the means. YUCK!

My decision to largely pursue social dancing has a pragmatic component as well. Without the 6-figure income I enjoyed 8 months ago, when my job of 26 years was suddenly eliminated and no new viable income stream flowing in yet, I no longer have the disposable income required to dance Ballroom competitively in the United States anyway. I’m still shocked when I read about the woman who takes one or two private lessons a week, does four or five competitions a year (mostly in Florida), pays for gowns, accessories, shoes and beauty services, and ultimately spends at least $30,000 a year on her hobby. That, she says, is the low end of the scale. There is another who has a trust fund that supports her dancing. She estimates she spends upwards of $25,000 for a major competition like the Ohio Star Ball, and well over $100,000 a year altogether. In contrast my immersion in the social dance circuit gives me the opportunity to dance pretty much any night of the week, in almost any city I visit, and go “shopping” in my closet, or the sale rack at Target, for perfectly suitable attire. Fortunately, the quality dance shoes I purchased before my financial crisis are safely in inventory in my bedroom shopping mall. Plus I pay a mere $5-$10 cover charge to dance as much as I want with as many people as I want--truer now than ever with the variety of dances I’m now familiar with and my improving lead/follow skills.

While I don’t have the 2000ish dollars to buy a quality ball gown, and I don’t “get off” on the thrills and spills of competition (mind you this doesn’t mean that I don’t like to perform; I just don’t like doing it competitively), I do share a common attraction with competitive dancers for that delightful “dancers high” we find out on the dance floor. Partner dancing, no matter what style, has all the components right there, readily available, to create a neurochemical cocktail that boosts self-esteem, body image, coping abilities, and your overall sense of well-being; along with reducing depression, anxiety and stress, the benefits last over time. In one study, it even helped control “emotional eating” in obese women who eat as a response to stress (that would be me--on all accounts!). I’ll have mine stirred, not shaken…

You were expecting endorphins to be on the list? Nope, not any longer. Recent research suggests that the endorphin molecules are too big to cross the blood-brain barrier, so they have little to do with making workouts enjoyable. Instead, that euphoric feeling may be the product of a completely different substance—the body’s own endocannabinoids. Competitive or social, what dancer wouldn’t want more of the stuff that makes us feel good?

It’s clear we all dance, or don’t dance, a particular style for different reasons. I started out two years ago simply looking for a place I could take this middle-aged “fluffy” body to exercise regularly with a group. Others, like the person I referred to earlier, find the thrill of competition draws them in. And still others may be fighting off the ravages of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Whatever the motivation and reasoning behind our choices to partner dance, we can all agree that we have found an activity that gives us a sense of joy that keeps us coming
back for more.

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