5 Good Reasons Why You Should Do Belly Dancing

If you have never tried belly dancing, then you must give it a try! Belly dancing is a superb way to tone your muscle, keep your body fit, reduce stress, and learn to feel comfortable about yourself.

1. Belly Dancing Involves Isolated Movements of all Major Muscle Groups

Belly dancing is a great way to improve your overall physical fitness as it gently tones and firms all major muscle groups, and especially abdominals, arms, upper back, hips and thighs. It involves serpentine head, neck and arm movements, as well as abdominal undulations and hip isolations, rotations, and shimmies.

But the greatest thing about this fabulous dance is that it teaches you to balance your body, as well as to isolate different muscle groups, in order to achieve more circular movements.

Belly dancing consists of moving certain parts of your body, while keeping the others still and firm. It also involves isolating major muscle groups like hips, and working them in opposition to the snake like movements of arms, upper torso, neck, shoulders, and head. It is actually a whole-body dance!

2. Belly Dancing Builds Your Abs!

Body of the belly dancer

Through undulating, circular, and vibrating movements of stomach and hips, belly dancing tones and firms the transverse abdominis, which is the deepest, innermost layer of abdominal muscles! Still doing boring sit-ups?

Apart from strengthening transverse abdominis, belly dancing tones also all other abdominal muscles, such as internal and external obliques, as well as rectus abdominus, which helps you build a perfect six-pack!

3. Belly Dancing Also Exercises Other Important Body Muscles

Belly dancing strengthens quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, arms, and back muscles.

By strengthening back muscles, it promotes good posture and prevents back injuries.

During the belly dance, body weight is constantly shifted from one leg to another. In this way the impact on knees, ankles, and joints is minimal as they are strengthened in a safe way.

4. Belly Dancing Can Help You Lose Weight

Apart from toning your muscles, belly dancing is a gentle form of aerobic exercise that can help you burn up to 300 calories per hour!

5. Belly Dancing Reduces Stress and Helps You Build Self-confidence

beautiful woman dancing belly dance

Inspired by undulating Middle Eastern melodies, belly dance consists of swaying, circular, fluid and repetitive movements that can induce a state of mental relaxation and reduce the build-up of daily stress.

As far as self-confidence is concerned, belly dancing will help you appreciate and love your body and become more comfortable with it. If you have voluptuous curves and a few extra pounds, belly dancing will teach you to love them as very sensual features of your body!

Ready to go belly dancing? I heartily recommend it to everyone, and I really think that you should give it a chance. Let us know in the comment section below.

About the author

Jessica

Jessica is a translator who has lived for many years in Asia and South America. She now lives and works in Europe, while preparing her new journeys. She enjoys traveling, meeting new people, exploring different cultures and foods, and being in love.

8 Comments

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  • i love belly dancing its easy, it helps your body in many ways and its FUN, i do it as often as i can its my hobby i especially love doing it with friends so we can challenge each other. I dont have the perfect body im no where near that but belly dancing does really make you love the body that you have. I recommend it to everyone

  • Yes, I would also agree that there are many reasons why you girls, should try belly dancing. Your guys will love it, too…

  • I just tried my 1st class tonight and my hips are already hurting. Hope that means Im doing it right? Dont feel any abdominal muscles yet, but lm def. excited about going to more classes in the future.

  • Hey guys, i love to bellydance (or at least try) but can somebody with long legs and a short torso do it? I find it kind of difficult to do some moves. Thanks

    • Yes. Anyone any size,shape,race,color etc. Anyone can do belly dancing it’s a good workout and fun to learn. This is going to be my year doing it I’m a tribal Fusion style dancer and just because how my teacher teaches I’m almost in level 3. It might be a little harder to do so doesn’t of the moves because you have a shorter torso but I’m pretty Sure you should be good!*^▁^* you might have a hard time finding skirts but you could either have someone make you the skirt or you can make you’re own. I hope I helped!

  • Belly dancing is like my life I dance almost like shakira know and that’s super duper awesome

  • thanks for this great article. I learned so much! I can’t wait to share this information with all of my belly dancer friends!