HOT Salsa Dancing for Fitness

Has your fitness routine become boring and predictable? How about trying something different than the conventional aerobic exercises such as running or step classes and taking up something fun and social like salsa dancing.  The cool thing is you sweat as much doing salsa as you would climbing a stair climber, but you get to wear something sexier than sneakers to participate in it.

As a woman, I get excited about getting all dolled up and wearing high heels to go salsa dancing. It’s part of the art, part of the ambience, part of the excitement.  Men generally take a bit more effort to look debonair as well.  Who doesn’t want to go out and look and feel sexy? Most of us do and who knew that it also counts as a great workout even if it involves a possible mojito and rhythmic, sensual, upbeat music with lots of friends.

Salsa music first appeared in New York City in the 60’s  as a rhythmic fusion of Cuban Son with Guaracha, Montuno and Guaguanc.  It also has a strong American jazz influence and Plena and Bomba from Puerto Rico creating a unique urban sound that just penetrates through your veins and makes you want to move and shake it. Oh yeah! I always look forward to my salsa workouts.

Salsa's popularity began to heat up in the early 70’s in Latin neighborhoods and soon spread into New York's ballrooms and dance halls. Although it’s become standardized for dancers who wish to enter professional competitions, most people dance to it in a spontaneous and highly energetic way true to its original form.  The lively and variant musical style allows for alternating very slow and very furious dance movements.

The sudden bursts of frenzied dancing can help to improve the anaerobic fitness essential to other sports such as basketball, sprinting and swimming. I find that I’m able to engage in other activities with ease due to the aerobic and agility gains that I’ve made from salsa dancing, stretching and some light strength training. Elasticity from dancing will help your overall range of motion, power and coordination.

 Salsa dancing merges aerobic and anaerobic training, working your leg strength and endurance. Dancing in general is a great way to build the perfect body shape- well; I can aspire to it, right? The continual movements and use of your whole body build up aerobic endurance while steadily burning calories over the course of the evening. This helps to strengthen and tone your legs at the same time you are shedding pounds—salsa is fantastic for this. And although I may not have the perfect body, my legs often receive great compliments.

According to experts,  dancing salsa can burn up to 10 calories a minute, without the potential cause of injury and jarring of the knees that high impact exercises such as running can cause. You can learn salsa with or without a partner, at home or in a dance studio or club and integrate it into your fitness program. As you learn and engage in more salsa activity to get fit, you’ll not only look and feel great, you’ll end up having a blast and forming a whole new facet to your social life.   Life is too short to waste on boring, traditional aerobics and group classes. Ladies, put some sexy heels on and learn how to dance HOT salsa to look and feel great!

Marcella Castellanos teaches salsa at Yoga Vallarta. And also teaches bachata. You can contact her via Facebook or Twitter at Latin Motion PV or at www.latinmotionpv.com or visit her blog at http://latinmotionpv.blogspot.com/.

Flash Mob en Puerto Vallarta. Quien se anima ? Who will show their support?

Where can I go Latin dancing?

Sometimes local venues will give salsa socials a try at least one night a week, but unfortunately if they don’t see profits or a big draw of people in about a 4-6 week time-frame the effort will come to a halt. As a result, it’s a bit difficult to know where to go, because at times, just as you’re beginning to find out about a new place, the social night disappears. However, there are a few venues that are dedicated to this genre of music. Included is  the always lively Cuban hang-out La Bodeguita del Medio located on the Malecon.  The live music begins at 10 p.m Tuesday through Sunday with a Cuban band playing on a yearly contract. The atmosphere is cheery and reminiscent of being in a smoky dive bar in Havana. The only drawback is that the dance floor is tiny and lends itself to lots of bumping bodies or tight squeezes when bachata or salsa dancing. Besides that, it’s a great place and the staff is always friendly, and there is no cover.

Candela Pura is one of the newer places in PV located at the turn-off to the libramiento and across the street from Mega. On Thursdays and Fridays they’ll have a salsa band or a DJ play Latin tunes from 10 p.m.  into the wee hours of the night.  The dance floor is expansive, the place has a dark, nightclub atmosphere and the loungy sofas and tables are comfortable for long hours of socializing with a cocktail. I like this place mainly because they seem to like and support salseros although I generally prefer tropical-like or beachfront atmospheres when wanting to Latin dance- it’s just more inspiring. Here the sultry Dulce Mireya Palacios Prado teaches salsa in Spanish Thurs. and Sat. from 8:30- 10:00 p.m. and the cost per class is 50 pesos. No cover here.

Then there is J&B Nightclub, one of the oldest dance venues in PV.  This place looks like a 70’s disco and plays different Latin tunes almost every night.  The biggest advantage here is the hardwood dance floor, perfect for dancing and there almost always seems to be enough room for freedom of movement.  The last Friday of every month, they present what’s called Fiesta Latina when different dance schools –instructors and students alike perform on stage. This place stays open until the early morning and is located at Francisco Medina Ascencio. It’s not one of my favorite places, simply because I would prefer to hear more salsa, bachata and cha cha cha music than cumbia which is what they love to play, but many seem to really enjoy it. The Latin Brothers teach salsa class in Spanish on Tues., Thur. and Fridays from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.  Each hour class costs 50 pesos. They are a talented, well-liked brother and sister team. Sometimes there is a cover of up to 100 pesos.

Next up, the Twisted Rose in Bucerias. Now this is a tropical gem tucked about two or three blocks from the beach, it’s easy to miss if it weren’t for the vibrant sounds of the live Cuban band emanating from the inside. The dance floor is great and the eats and drinks are inexpensive. There is usually a cover charge of about 50 pesos and the band plays Saturdays from 9ish until midnight.  This is one of my favorite places due to the outdoor, tropical atmosphere.  More specifically, it’s located about two or three blocks from the central plaza.

Last, but definitely not least, is Don Pedro’s in Sayulita. Beachfront and fabulous! Many PV peeps drive an hour there and an hour back every Monday just to get there dancing fix and hear the fantastic Cuban band. It’s a great mix of foreigners out to have a good time with salsa obsessed locals.  The oceanfront vibe here is always worth the drive and I hear the food is really good. Sayulita is so small that you can just arrive and ask where it is so that someone will point you in the right direction. The band starts playing at 8 p.m. until eleven. About 30 pesos gets you through the door.

Marcella Castellanos teaches salsa at Yoga Vallarta. You can contact her via Facebook or Twitter at Latin Motion PV or at www.latinmotionpv.com or visit her blog at http://latinmotionpv.blogspot.com/.