LESSON 1: AEROBICS DANCE FOR HEALTH

SEMI FINAL COVERAGE

 KEY TERMS

 Aerobic – strengthening the heart and lungs by making them work hard for several
minutes or more; using oxygen.

 Movement – the act or process of moving people or things from one place or position
to another

 Axial – refers to an element of dance in which dancers stay anchored to one place by a
single body part while available space in any direction.

 Locomotor – are those that incorporate traveling from one point to another.

IV - AEROBIC DANCE FOR HEALTH AND FITNESS

“Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live in.”

-         Anonymous

 
 

 
 

                Aerobic Dance is not only an activity that provides a good aerobic workout in
a pleasurable rhythmic way, but also provides an opportunity for socialization and
allows one to make new friends. Aerobic Dance can be made accessible for individuals
with disabilities. Most individuals with disabilities need little help or no modifications to
participate successfully in a regular aerobic dance program. It offers individuals with
special needs a safe and good workout, and helps them to lead a healthier and more
meaningful life.

Aerobic dance is a fan way to get fit. It combines fa- burning aerobic movements,
muscle-building exercises, and stretching into routines that are performed to music.
Many dance forms are used, including disco, jazz, and ballet. Any ages can benefit from
aerobic dance. Aerobic dance classes are usually offered at three levels of intensity. A
low impact class is conducted at a slower pace and is easier to do to improve the
efficiency of the heart and lungs in people who are already fit. In the intermediate
classes, dancers benefit their heart and lungs as they gain overall strength and flexibity.
The advanced classes, also called high-impact, are for fit people who want a hard
workout.

          A large percentage of aerobic dance class participants and instructors injure
themselves. Most injuries will cause them to fatigue and increase risk for injury. Dancing
on the wrong type of floor can lead to injury. Do not take high impact classes on
concrete or tile floors. They are too hard. A floor that is too soft many cause ankle
sprains. Hard wood or cushioned flooring is best. Avoid floors that are extremely sticky
of slick. The best clothing for aerobic dance is lightweight and allows freedom of
movement. Wear shoes that give good support and cushioning to the ball of your feet.
Shoes should slide on the floor without sticking. Hand, wrist, or ankle weights add extra
stress to your joints. If you want to wear them to intensify your workout, you can keep
your risk of injury low by using weight of less than a pound.

What is Aerobic Exercise?

          Aerobic Exercise refers to exercise which is of moderate intensity, undertaken for a
long duration. Aerobic means “with oxygen” and refers to the use of oxygen in a
muscle’s energy-generating process. Many types of exercise are aerobic, and by
definition are performed at moderate levels of intensity for extended periods of time.

          An effective aerobic exercise should involve 5-10 minutes of warming up at an

intensity of 50-60% of maximum heart rate, followed by at least 20 minutes of exercise
at an intensity of 70-80% of maximum heart rate, ending with 5-10 minutes of cooling
down at an intensity of 50-60% of maximum heart rate.

          The American College Sports Medicine (ACSM) define Aerobic Exercise as “an
activity that uses large muscle groups, can be maintained continuously, and is rhythmic
in nature.” It is a type of exercise that overloads the heart and lungs and causes get up
and get moving.

History

          Aerobic dance and aerobic exercise were developed by Kenneth H. Cooper,
M.D., an exercise physiologist of the US Air Force. Dr. Cooper, an avowed exercise
enthusiast, was personally and professionally puzzled about why some people with
excellent muscular strength were still prone to poor performance at tasks such as lond-
distance, running, swimming, and bicycling. He began measuring sustained performance
in terms of ability to utilize oxygen.

          His groundbreaking book, Aerobics, was published in 1969, and included scientific
exercise programs using, walking, swimming, and bicycling. The book came at fortuitous
historical moment, when increasing weakness and inactivity in the general population
was causing a perceived need for increased exercise. It became a best seller.

          Cooper’s data provided the scientific baseline for almost all modern aerobics
programs, most of which are based on oxygen-consumption equivalency. Activities such
as walking, jogging, running, rope jumping, swimming, bicycling and dancing are
considered aerobic in nature if they are done continuously for a period of approximately
30-45 minutes (except rope jumping) at least three times a week on alternately days.
Kenneth Cooper (1982) considered the “Father of Aerobics”.

Benefits of Aerobics Exercise

          Kenneth H. Cooper (Tulio 2008) had identified the following benefits from
Aerobics Exercises:

1.  Promotes strong and healthy bones;

2.  Helps control life’s physical and emotional stresses;

3.  Improves intellectual capacity and increases one’s productivity;

4.  Aids in the natural way of losing weight and keeping it off;

5.  Provides significant protection from heart disease;

6.  Promotes better and more effective sleep.

Music Assisted Aerobics Exercise

          Everyone likes to dance; even the physically impaired likes to do it. There is fun in
dancing although the person who dances does not find any direct reward of doing it. It
is more enjoyable when dancing is done with awareness that it shapes the body. Aerobic
dance combines fun and fat burning. The fact that it is called dance, it is performed in
accordance to a musical tune. Many aerobic dances use disco music, jazz and ballet.
Aerobic dance is performed according to three levels or classes. These classes are; low
impact, intermediate, and advance. The low impact has a slower pace which makes it
easy to perform. This class is not well active and not enough to develop heart and lungs
which make it fit for the beginners in aerobic. In the intermediate class, performers
could then improve the feat of the heart and lungs. They could gain over all strength
and flexibility. The advanced or high impact aerobics class fits to the people who desire
for more challenging physical activities or those men who hard work.

          Overused muscles would increase risk of the performers. Concrete or tiled floors
are not good for high impact aerobics. Soft floor may also cause ankle sprains. Sticky or
sick floors are also dangerous. Hardwood or cushioned floor would be better. For
clothing lightweight would allow movements. Shoes that slide on the floor and would
support cushioning of the feet are also better. Carrying a weight of less than a pound
would not pose risk if a performer would like to intensify the workout. It is
choreographed; it means that exercise is conducted with steps that follow the beat of
music. This type of exercise is known throughout the world where body building is
concerned. Dance aerobic towered above all the other style of conducting exercises.
These are some groups who even call it “jazzercise”.

          It was only in the most recent time when aerobic enthusiasts found more
fulfillment and success in a routine movement which are athletic in nature. Although
music is still being used yet the movements are athletic in form. One could take boxing
in an exercise with music. Taekwondo at the same time is also taken as aerobic exercise
following the rock music because of its fast beating instead of the traditional jazzercise
with complicated movements. Many sport instructors are developing their own
choreographed exercise. Particular team has its own particular exercise designed only
for the team. Instructor designing the exercise for their respective team consider
primarily the steps that lessen injuries yet give impact to the athlete’s condition. As
suggested, in the low level aerobics consider the steps that do not take both feet of the
ground at the same time. Imbalance in landing are usual occurrences hence injuries are
possible. Knowledgeable instructors who are designing the exercises must know some
alternative movements to avoid injuries. The high level aerobic demands the participants
a high intensity workout to reach and maintain the required heart rate. Movements that
allow one foot on the ground at all times would help participant to meet the intensity.
However, this kind of movement poses risk to the performers. Good aerobic shoes and a
good aerobic floor would not be the sole solutions to protect the athletes. These items
could help lessen the injuries. To reiterate floors, and floors with covering are the worst.
Floors made of hardwood are better.

A combination of the high and low impact movements is now a popular aerobics class.
In practice the low impact movements are used as warm up and the cool down
activities. In the actual workout students could vary their activities depending on their
endurance and capability. If routines turn very complicated and intense that students
could no longer catch up, they could stay for a few moments until comfort is regained
then they could rejoin the workout. Fitness experts suggest studying the movements
and combinations so as the self-made one eventually come up.

Today music with accompanied exercises are very popular. In fact, there are regular TV
programs which direct the viewers to do the aerobic exercises at home. Although it is
found effective to the practitioners who are confined in their houses as circumstance
could not let them go out, the other important fiber of socialization through exercise is
then suffered. Anyone can go to venues where aerobic exercises are conducted.
Movements induced by the beating of music with a company of friends are like a single
stone hitting two birds at the same time. It helps shape the body, and helps create new
friends.

          Movements for routine exercises could be developed and performed without
equipment. As already said, study the movements and combinations, then create your
own variations. Following are movements for locomotor and axial.

A.   Locomotor Movements
 

1. Walking. It does not require complicated facilities and equipment. It is now the most
popular form of exercise. It can be done by people of all ages and sexes. It is very
effective though it does not need skill and technique. It also poses a minute possible
injury to the walker. Another thing about walking is that, it can burn calories which make
it classified as fat level minimizer. Since it is a low impact kind of exercise it is effective to
the people who could not hold high impact activities. Anyone who wants to undergo
walking program is advised to monitor his heart rate and raise it to approximately 40
percent maximum. It must be performed at brisk pace to gain the aerobic effect. For
lower intensity level walker, a longer period of time approximately 40 mins and more
very often is required every week which is already good enough to reduce heart risk.
Following this requirement, a person could burn 2000 calories.

2. Jogging. Running or jogging allows the performers to finish a distance in a short

duration of time. Such activities burn greater measure of calories. Jogging or running
also develops cardio-vascular endurance. On the same hand, jogging is also described
as a low running at a pace of eight to 12 minutes per mile. Another difference between
running and jogging is that, joggers have shorter strides while runners have longer ones.

There are important techniques and styles of jogging enumerated below:

Ø  Jogging with hands making a swinging motion from left to right;

Ø  Jogging with up and down movements of the arms;

Ø  Jogging in any direction with hands shaking in an levels.

3. Jumping. This is another form of locomotor movement which basic aim is for
cardiovascular exercise. Jumping is easy to do and does not require any expensive
materials. Although it is easy, care and attention are always required in doing the
jumping. Accident is always around in a physical type of activity. Jumping also improve
muscular endurance. Experts suggest using jumping rope as a better way to do an than
an ordinary kind jumping. Rope jumping could take the place of the gym materials or
the gym itself. There are ways of doing it; each is enumerated below.

 
Ø  Jumping side to side with arms clasping above the head;

Ø  Jumping to different directions such as; forward, backward, sideward with arms
thrusting upward and downward;

Ø  Oblique jumping backward, rightward and oblique backward left at the arms
thrusting forward and sideward;

Ø  Jump and twist your body to the right while you swing your arms to the right; repeat
the action several times changing from left to right.

2.    Hopping. This is another kind of locomotor movements fits to people who are just
in the beginning part of exercises. Experts said if a participant has already lower body
strength he can do the exercise on the bench.

Ø  Hop on right while stretch forward the left knee. As the activity goes on put your
hand on your waist. Make four repetitions in reversed feet movements.

Ø  With only one-foot leg and touch it with your right hand then hop with your right
leg. Repeat it in a number of times in a reversed of foot and hand.

B.   Axial Movements

Ø  Stretch your arms from the direction of the shoulders then make a circling movement
of your hands. Repeat the circling clockwise and counterclockwise.

Ø  With closed fists thrust your arms sideward, forward and upward alternately. Do a
number of repetitions?

Ø  Bend your elbow and put on your hands to your chest. Push your right elbow
sideward and left elbow also sideward.
Ø  Put your knees slightly apart, then your waist twists your body to the left while at the
same time you swing your hands from left to right. It is a repetition of twist to the right
and swing of arms to the left. Repetitions are done by changing left and right moves.

Ø  Twist your right hip with your elbow touching it. Repeat the same activity with your
left hip and left elbow. Do the repetition as many as you can or as you desire?

C.    Suggested Movements for Dance Steps

Ø Marching according to the beat of music. Lift your right knee as high as you can, then
drop it on the ground. Do the same with the left as you walk forward marching.

Ø For two times lift one your knees while the other foot remains flat on the ground.
Repeat the activity in a number of times.

Ø Cross your legs with your resting on the waist stand with feet apart from each other.
Cross your left foot at the back of your right leg; do the repetition for a number of
times. This activity is also called grapevine.

Ø Press your heel, extend your right foot and press its heel to the floor. Give in your
weight to the other foot.

Ø In an arm akimbo stand straight then slowly lift one of your feet and bend it forward.
Make a number of repetitions in a quite long duration.

Ø Stand with feet slightly apart; bend your knee and curl it as you can until its heel
touches your buttocks. The bent knee should align with your hips. Put your weight on
your other foot.

Ø Extend your right foot sideward, give in your weight to your left leg then slowly twist
the upper part of your body while toe of the left foot is touching the floor as heel of the
same foot is up. Repeat on the other foot.

Exercise should be regarded as a tribute to the heart.

-          Gene Tunney
Stand with one foot forward, and then twist your body forward and backward for a number of
times.

Last modified: Monday, 22 November 2021, 9:49 PM