I live in Honolulu, HI and I seeking a dance partner that would be interested in leading and following a variety of ballroom dances at either the bronze or silver level (American Style) preferred, but not necessary. The purpose of these meetings would be strictly exercise so an interested dance partner could be male or female. Let me know if you are interested by replying back to this forum and we can further discuss the details.

If you only want to sweat to music, why don't you try Zumba. Dancing is so much more than 'exercise'. And I have found those who only want to 'exercise' don't care much about frame, footwork, head place ment, connection and all the aspects of dancing that make it look and feel beautiful. No one I know who is a serious dancer when asked why they dance would answer "for the exercise'. Fitness is a result not a goal.

Well, I guess I am the exception to the rule! I taught American Style smooth and Latin for over a decade and only dance with excellent form, perfect timing, and appropriate style. I guess this might answer your question about Zumba as it is moving to music but without any of the grace and purpose of the Ballroom dance art form! I would be interested in your thoughts on my post. Guess people shouldn't judge others without seeking the facts. What is your expertise in ballroom dancing?

Which rule are you referring to? The poster I responded to said "The purpose of these meetings would be strictly exercise". So no lessons, no practice of certain steps, just moving quickly around the floor to get the heartbeat up. Sounds boring to me. No mention of art or anything else. There is no rule, Connie can dance for whatever reason she wants, however "strictly exercise" is the last reason why someone should dance, in my opinion. If you taught for a decade, I'm sure you offered dance classes not exercise classes. As for me, I have no expertise, I started dancing in my 40's and have progressed to be a competent International style silver level competitor. I have just come from a coaching session with an amateur champion where we worked on my position and head placement. Not exercise but I wouldn't trade that hour for anything in the world.

Why did you even reply to my initial post? I said that I dance American and want to dance for exercise; you don't want to dance for fun and exercise and you don't even dance American style. It seems like you posted simply to be a neussence and you have been! I am now going to wish you all the best in your dancing as we have nothing further to discuss.

i am interested in it)i have been dancing from 5 years old)also train children have been for 5 years* feel free to contact me* http://www.facebook.com/lyuda.mironyuk

I'm all for working to develop efficient technique, but one shouldn't loose sight of the point that the purpose of technique is to enable dancing. If two people find their technique is sufficient to enable comfortable movement together, then just exercising and enjoying that seems fine. An argument could be made that knowing when to stop worrying and just benefit from your dancing is healthier than spending all one's time studying dance in the abstract, especially if one isn't getting to apply those skills with someone other than a teacher paid by the hour.

But really, we each have what we individually want to get from dancing, and hopefully the personal choices we make are ones that enable that for ourselves and our partners.

Anymouse, nice to see you back. There has been nothing on this site but partner searches and 'what's the name of this song'. I agree with all you say, but if someone requests a partner at the 'bronze or silver' level regardless of style, this suggests they have mastered the technique required at that level or they are not bronze/silver level. They have merely learned the steps. I suspect Connie only wants a partner that knows the steps. That's fine but perhaps salsa would be the way to go for 'exercise'. There are several couples at my studio that dance for 'exercise'. If you couldn't hear the music you wouldn't know what dance they are doing. They all look the same (all quicks). They fly around the floor faster than anyone else. No one looks at them and says "I want to dance like them". It's more like, "what the hell is that?"
As for me, I did take my lesson with my partner. His frame was a large part of the lesson as well. I do dance for 'fun' and my greatest joy is dancing. And doing it right is the most fun of all.

ladydance, I always look forward to posts from you, anymouse, and (who can ever forget) jj. I think your remarks are spot on. As a personal trainer myself, I would say that the most efficient way to benefit from "exercise" is to hire a personal trainer (like moi ) and work on specific techniques for various goals. One of these goals could be good dance technique, but it's this way, and not the other way round.

While it's possible to dance in a low-impact way, it's also entirely possible to get a solid workout while dancing, both from obvious things like faster choreography and creating more movement, and from less obvious ones like working to keep a smoothly evolving movement even through difficult transitions.