Hot Topic: Don't Just Exercise...Dance!
Exercise sounds like such a chore … but it doesn’t have to be. Exercise just means moving your body and increasing your heart rate, and dance can be a fun way to get healthy. As part of Mayor Otis Johnson’s Get Healthy Savannah Initiative, the Chatham County Health Department is sponsoring “Let’s Dance!” Savannah Saturdays, a series of FREE dance classes every Saturday from August 25th through October 27th.
“We have a great variety of dance styles and locations, so everyone will find something they can enjoy,” says Cristina Gibson, Health Promotion Director for the Coastal Health District, and organizer of “Let’s Dance!” Savannah Saturdays. Click here to download a full schedule of events and locations through October, or visit this website's calendar.
The need to increase the physical activity of all Americans has never been greater. Millions of us suffer from illnesses that can be prevented or improved through regular physical activity. Here are just a few highlights from the CDC:
·13.5 million people have coronary heart disease.
·8 million people have adult-onset (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes.
·95,000 people are newly diagnosed with colon cancer each year.
·50 million people have high blood pressure.
·Over 60 million people (a third of the population) are overweight.
The good news is this: regular physical activity performed on most days of the week can greatly improve health. Exercise reduces the risk of dying prematurely, developing diabetes, developing high blood pressure, colon cancer, and can even reduce depression and anxiety.
"Most people know exercise has benefits,” says Gibson, “but they’re just not motivated. I hope they’ll come to our dance classes and let the music, the friends, and the movement be their inspiration.”
WWW Address: http://www.gachd.org/hot-topic/do_more_than_exercisedance.php