in a hip hop dance class

hiphop2

Something that may not be obvious about me is I love hip hop! Love it. I love rap. I find it to require a huge amount of talent. It’s clever and fun. I love Eminem, I really love Snoop Dogg. Then there’s Nicki Minaj, A$AP Rocky, Tupac, Iggy Azalea, Lauryn Hill, I could go on forever. I know the way some of them speak about women is wrong. Consider it a guilty pleasure.

So, when some of the MJ girls invited me to join them at a hip hop dance class I immediately said yes. As far as I am concerned, anything Nicole Richie does is cool by me. But, that is the thing you should know about hip hop. The people who dance hip hop are really cool. Way cooler than me. In fact, the first lesson learned at hip hop class was I am not as cool as the kids who dance hip hop. I am much more a woman in my 30’s trying to dance hip hop. But, that didn’t matter because the instructor was so nice and fun.
I very naively thought this could be a new exercise routine for me. However, a day later, after nursing my sore calves, I realized hip hop class gets me too hyped up. I have an anxiety problem. I haven’t always, but one day I developed one out of thin air and as a result after hip hop class, while exhausted, I couldn’t sleep. There are very few things that upset me more than not being able to sleep. I mean… talk about anxiety.
Hip hop class was a great workout. I moved muscles that I’m sure had not moved ever. I will also tell you I have never laughed as much during exercise. It was a lot of fun. At the end of yoga there is Shavasana, literally meaning corpse pose. I think it is one of the most important parts of my exercise routine. I need the cool down. Shavasana allows the body a chance to regroup and reset itself.
Not to mention the entire list of benefits on wikipedia.

In the end, I’ve decided yoga is still best for me. But, I learned quite a few lessons anyway.

1.) Hip Hop & House are two different types of dance. Who knew?
2.) Toenails need to be cut short. Very Short. As someone whose workouts usually do not include shoes, this was painfully (pun intended) obvious after the class.
3.) Perfection isn’t the goal. Listening to your body and following the beat is most important.
4.) Dancing is extremely hard and takes a lot of concentration and memorization.
5.) People take these moves to the club.

***beauty always comes from within, photo taken by Amanda Teague, xoxo behind the mirror***

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