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There are no classes on the following dates: Wednesday 8th February Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 13th, 14th and 15th February - half term. The members of the Potters Bar Medau class are warmly invited to join other Medau classes for a day of classes on April 29th in Kent.  Dance for your physical health, but dance for your mental and social health! Yes, click here...men too!
After giving 'bad weather' warning last week all we had to deal with was the cold! While we have had some bright sunshine, we did have some very miserable rain and grey skies and it would have been very easy to hibernate. Class members arrived with coats and gloves, hats and scarves but within a few minutes we were all warm and peeling off the layers. Whole body exercise gets the whole body warm!
But why should we take exercise and movement to music classes? It has been shown that exercising to music adds an 'extra something' and that being in a group makes it a more positive and enjoyable experience. Todays apparatus at the Medau class was balls and we were doing something quite complicated, the music added shape, gave us the pauses, tempo and told us what to do next. As with the EXTEND classes, it is not about putting on a piece of music and hoping for the best, delivering a class means looking at the class, what they (as individuals) can do, making it enjoyable and progressing the movements so everyone has worked hard and achieved something. So, why should you take yourself out of hibernation and try a class? According the the NHS 'Regular dancing is great for losing weight, maintaining strong bones, improving posture and muscle strength, increasing balance and co-ordination, and beating stress.' http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/getting-started-guides/Pages/getting-started-dancing.aspx So unwrap yourself from your blankets and pop along, give a class a try and dance yourself warmer and fitter! Did you know the 1 in 2 women in England are damaging their health due to physical inactivity?
How can you increase your physical activity without making it hard work? When advised to take more exercise people usually turn to the gym or start jogging, but what if you do not fancy running or the gym is just not your thing? How many people know that they can dance themselves 30 -150 mins of physical activity a week? What if you already take exercise but need something else 'make that extra difference'? Your exercise diet should be broad and varied, in the same way no one would suggest you eat just apples so you should not take just one form of exercise, you need to use all of your muscle groups and variety is the spice of life. If you can slot Medau or EXTEND into your week then you are not just adding 'whole body exercise class' to your week but you are expanding your social life. Ladies that come to my EXTEND class are always saying that meeting friends is just as important as the exercise and the class challenges their grey cells and well as their muscles. The Medau class requires no previous experience and in a few weeks class members become exercise friends helping and encouraging each other. Try a class, it might be 'that extra thing' you are looking for! Happy 2017 Potters Bar!
The first class back is always the difficult one but once your have made the effort it is easy to slip back into the routine. We eased ourselves back into action with scarves - big 1mx1m scarves and because I like to challenge my classes I slipped in a contra-swing so we were swinging in all directions - the right directions and in time to the music. I just wish I had someone to film it! If you have no idea that what you are doing is tricky you just do it and that is one of the delights of Medau - you never know where the class is going to take you and when you get to the end you are completely amazed at what you have accomplished! A lovely first class back, and when welcoming a first time visitor someone said ‘welcome, we are a very friendly class’ and we are! It is so great to be back to class and it was lovely seeing everyone after the Christmas break.
We have a few new tunes and some new routines, building up the ideas slowly so everyone knows what they are doing. Fall prevention is an important part of every EXTEND class, swinging and swaying, changing weight from foot to foot in time to the music, knee lifts, hip swings and walking routines that change direction. Our classes encourage and encompasses many aspects of fall prevention, balance and co ordination. Pop aong and give it a go, first class is free! It might seem obvious to those who enjoy movement to music and dance...but rhytmic motion can improve your health!
The 'Music stimulates the brain’s reward centers, while dance activates its sensory and motor circuits. Dancing has improved balance, gait, and quality of life in people with Parkinson’s disease and related movement disorders. And several — but not all — studies have indicated that mastering dance movements and patterns yields greater improvements in memory and problem-solving than walking does.' With elements of dance in all EXTEND classes and dance based work in Medau you are working more than your muscles, you are improving your health! Happy 2017. Many of us were only too happy to wave good bye to 2016 but it was not all bad. My EXTEND classes celebrated our class members 70-something, 80 something and 90 something birthdays with a special celebratory class and three birthday cakes. EXTEND Exercise was 40 years old which we celebrated with classes, a barn dance and cream tea. The Queen celebrated her 90th birthday and I was privilaged to be on the Mall with the Sport and Recreation Alliance at the Patons Lunch (in the rain) to celebrate this historic event. Christmas is a time for family and a well deserved rest and I was in my usual position on New Years day, dancing round the kitchen to the New Years Day concert from Vienna while preparing lunch for the whole family. The dancing continued with the magnificent Red Shoes at Sadler Wells and friends parties. Inspired by ballet and the loss of iconic songwriters and performers I have been upating my play lists creating new motifs and exercises. With a new year to look forward to EXTEND and Medau are a great way of slipping in your active minutes. Make 2017 a year to remember and try someting new and different!
Join us on Monday or Tuesday for EXTEND or Wednesday for Medau.
You won't know if it is your 'thing' or not until you give it a go! |
Exercise With TracyEXTEND Exercise and Medau Movement teacher. Keeping the muscles working, the joints mobile and having fun! Archives
November 2025
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