The truth is, it doesn’t matter if you stomp it out at a studio hip-hop class or jam to your favorite tunes in your living room: If your heart rate hastens (and you start to sweat), whatever type of dance you’re doing (and wherever you’re doing it), you’re working out.
That said, structured dance workout classes are sometimes created by professionals with fitness expertise to deliver certain exercise benefits.
“The way I program dance cardio is that it’s pretty repetitive, and it’s aerobic, so the intention is to get your heart rate up,” says Megan Roup, a former professional dancer and an ACE-certified personal trainer who founded the The Sculpt Society, a dance cardio workout app. But hitting the dance floor with friends, or busting a move in your living room, can certainly be a workout, too, she adds — even if that’s not your intention.
Many dance workouts are designed to build muscular strength, mobility, and flexibility.Dancing uses most of your muscles, but primarily the hamstrings, quads, glutes, and calves, says Judson MacDonald, an ACE-certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor in Durham, North Carolina, who is currently a learning and development specialist forLes Mills International.
You may not reap the same benefits if you’re just dancing for fun.
How intense a workout you get from dancing depends on the style of dance you’re doing and how long you do it. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) notes that slower dance styles, like many types of ballroom dancing, are often the same intensity as walking or other moderate-intensity workouts; faster-paced dance types, like salsa or cardio dance, can often be the equivalent of a more vigorous workout, like jogging or swimming.
