Women Prefer Baryshnikov

Listen up, gents.  Women are attracted to dancing...yes, dahn-cing.  And when it comes to dance moves, wide, sweeping, flamboyant moves are best for attracting the ladies.

In a study published this week in the journal, Biology Letters, a publication of Britain's Royal Society, researchers found that when rating male dancers, women preferred those who had a wide range of dance moves and focused on the head, neck and torso.  Think popping and locking.

Researchers from Northumbria University and the University of Gottingen in Germany asked 19 men aged 18 to 35 who were not professional dancers to dance in a laboratory for one minute to a basic drum rhythm. They filmed the men's movements with a dozen cameras, and then turned those movements into computer-generated avatars so the study could focus on moves, not appearances.

Scientists then showed the dancing avatars to 37 women, who rated their skills on a scale of 1 to 7.  Women rated the best dancers as those with wider, sweeping movements and those that had a variety of moves.

Evolutionarily speaking, women may subconsciously judge how fit a man is by the fluidity of his dancing. According to one of the study's authors, Nick Neave, an evolutionary psychologist at Northumbria University, their research was likely subjective and different cultures would have different measures for what constitutes good dancing.  He advised bad dancers to improve their core body moves.

"The movements around the head, neck and trunk were the most important," he said. "The good dancers had lots of different movements and used them with flair and creativity."

I don't think men who are bad dancers should get down on their chances of attracting females.  I think in general women are just attracted to men that will dance.  Embarrassingly bad dancing will probably repel before attract women, but as long as a man is willing to move, I think he should be okay.

Dancing is movement.  Movement is health.  Health is attractive.  So dance--it's that simple.

I've included a video below that I think does a good job of showing the uninitiated a few basic dance moves, and some dos and don't of dancing.  Have fun.

Tango Leads to Graceful Aging

Tango anyone? How about a Jitterbug, Cabbage Patch, or a little Roger Rabbit? No, really--dancing is a great way to keep yourself young. Just ask anyone who cuts it up regularly, and they'll tell you how much dancing helps them keep their youth.

But we now know that dancing--especially the tango--can also help people with Parkinson's Disease stay mobile and maintain balance. So say new findings out of Washington University of St. Louis medical school. According to the study, although dance in general is good therapy for Parkinson's patients, tango specifically helps with balance and mobility due to the nature of the dance, specifically its dynamic balance, turning, initiation of movement, moving at different speeds, and walking backwards.

The study looked at two groups of Parkinson's patients: one that was led through exercise classes, and the other was given tango lessons. The exercise group was given strength and conditioning exercises routine for Parkinson's patients and the elderly, while the tango group was taken through exercises which included stretching, balance exercises, tango-style walking, footwork patterns, experimenting of timing of steps, and dance with and without a partner. The exercise classes included 40 minutes of seated exercise, followed by standing exercises supported by a chair, core strengthening and stretching. Although both groups showed improvement, the tango group showed greater improvement with balance.

Great news and wonderful confirmation for the power of balance work. In the chiropractic profession, we know how crucial balance is to the overall health and well-being of the body. Our sense of balance is integral in many functions including our biomechanics or whether we'll suffer chronic pain or not. Also, having proper balance, especially for the elderly, is essential for preventing falls, which can lead to hip fractures and even death if vital arteries are severed during the break. Many systems contribute to the balance function including the cerebellum and proprioceptive receptors, but it all starts in the feet--and good footwork can only help us keep our balance intact--thus the power of tango.

So everybody, get up to get down...and tango.