I come across the oddest videos on my various social feeds. They are a great way to pass the time while I am in a waiting room, when I don’t have long enough to get into another book chapter but I’m there long enough to need amusement.
Today this video popped up and I loved it: you can take a look here. It features a young woman running into a meeting room profusely apologizing to the group of seniors already seated at tables, patiently waiting. She turns on her music player with a raucus song and starts demonstrating dance moves while encouraging the seniors to get moving.
At first, the seniors aren’t sure what they are supposed to do but they get into the groove. Suddenly another woman appears at the door holding a bingo machine. Aha! The dance instructor is in the wrong room. No matter though; she and the seniors keep dancing.
I like this video for a number of reasons: first, the dance instructor isn’t phased by the room full of seniors. She clearly believes everyone can move at their pace and ability. When we see the seniors dancing, we see some are really grooving, some just moving their arms, or others following every move, including an older man dancing in a wheel chair. Everyone goes at their own pace and ability.
Over the last few years, I have spent time with family in long-term care facilities and I have seen how there is a strong focus on movement. “Motion is lotion” and whether it is chair yoga, group badminton, or a regular turnabout on the dance floor, older residents are supported in being active in the ways they want and can.
For example, there’s one assisted living facility in my community that partnered with the municipality to pave the walk around a small pond outside their building. The path is cleaned in the winter and on days when the weather cooperates, there’s a crowd some with canes, and some without, some using walkers and others in wheelchairs. During the spring, summer and fall months, you can also see people out walking with their families, or if they need a break, there are benches on which to sit and watch the ducks while you catch your breath.
But back to dancing. It’s an activity that builds strength, supports muscle tone, fosters endurance, and is in a word, fun. While it’s great to have social dancing, fitness dancing is equally important and not just for youngsters.
I am reminded of the side-eyes pregnant people get when they keep their fitness routine, be it running, weight lifting, swimming etc. There’s an attitude out there that only certain types of people can only do certain things in certain ways — only young people can do aerobics, only old people can go for a stroll — and if you don’t meet the unspoken criteria , then you are crossing a line that has no real relevance.
The unspoken message in the video is clear: if you can, do. So go ahead and shake your booty.
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