[TaraJW]

I joined a bellydancing class monday and I have to say......its really really .........relaxing. I thought it might be a good thing to do to get some exercise and she uses a lot of yoga too. I had a surprisingly good time! Has anybody tried this before?

[taekwondomom]

I've tried bellydance, but only with videos. There is a bellydance class available here in my town but I haven't tried it.

[Goddess Jessica]

Tara,

I've been bellydancing for years. I love it. I think it gives you a real sense of body awareness like yoga does and it does some wonderful things for self-esteem.

I recently joined a racewalking class - believe it or not, my previous bellydance experience gave me a huge advantage over the other beginners. While they struggled to move their hips and to keep their hips movement independent of their upper body, I was like, "Oh, like bellydance." The coach commented on how easy I caught on and I told her it was all bellydance.

One more thing - I started Bellydance like 5 years ago in Ohio. California bellydance is very different. Almost ALL of their classes are tribal bellydance - which is a modern take on bellydance. Almost all the classes I took back east were traditional bellydance.

[teapotdynamo]

Ooh, I'm glad I finally have time to post on this thread. I started taking belly dance lessons recently as well, and I really, really love it. I started with lessons at this one studio, then added another weekly class at another.

I too find the hour really relaxing, and it tends to fly by. I walk out of there feeling both relaxed AND more energetic (and I really have to tone down those hips when I'm walking home! ). It also makes me feel -- dare I say it -- beautiful. The movements are extremely sensuous and complement a woman's form beautifully.

I was initially surprised at what great exercise it is. I can definitely feel a difference in my obliques and lower back, which have tightened. Also (and yes, this is TMI, I'm sure!), the muscles that you work on in belly dance are useful for more... erotic pursuits!

I also got some DVDs so I can practice at home between classes. Yup, I'm addicted!

If you haven't already seen it, there's a belly dance thread on the Exercise forum -- you should check it out.

Thanks for bringing this up! I've been dying to talk about belly dance with more people!

[TaraJW]

Yay! Im so excited more people are doing this. I tell people around here and I get comments like "so its like learning to be a stripper?" Not a lot of positive feedback around here. But I love the class. I feel so relaxed afterwards and I notice I walk different and try to keep up the "proper form." And I will be sitting in my car and listening to music and I'll want to start doing some of my new moves! Hahah! Hey, what ever actually gets me up and moving sounds good to me. Im having a great time!

[Br00klyn]

I've been wanting to do the belly dancing thing forever.. Only problem is, there's only 1 gym in my city that offers it and its EXPENSIVE! My gym does occasionally run a 6-week belly-dance program but its every Thursday at 5pm and i'll never be able to make it on time.

In the early winter, I was taking a "Shape up & Dance" class and loved it.. I found it so relaxing and it helped feel better about myself too. The instructor was great, and some nights she would incorporate some belly-dancing. I really hope to get back to it soon.

So, for those of you that have done the belly-dancing thing... did you find it hard to get the moves down originally?

[taekwondomom]

So, for those of you that have done the belly-dancing thing... did you find it hard to get the moves down originally?

Hi, Celina! I'm a newbie and it's nice to meet you!

No, I didn't think the moved were to hard to learn. And I'm not very coordinated. I have only done videos though. I've done "Veena and Neena Present Bellydance Fitness for Beginners: Basic Moves" and "Veena and Neena Present Bellydance Fitness for Beginners: Fat Burning". I am also waiting for my chance to borrow one from the library called something like the "Goddess Workout", I've heard that one is pretty good too. I would recommend borrowing the videos from a library if they're available in your area. Here in the states our libraries are linked together so you can go online and request an item from other libraries in the system and they will send it to your local library so you can borrow stuff your library doesn't have. It is awesome-I love public libraries! I have borrowed lots of workout stuff, not just bellydance videos, that way I can try and make sure I like it before I buy a video.

Anyway, hope this helps. Of all the workouts I've tried Tae Kwon Do, Tae bo/Cardio Kick, Yoga and Bellydance are my favorites.

[bonnieangel]

I would love to find a belly dancing class! I have a couple of videos at home, but would really like to take lessons. I keep telling my husband that it's something I want to do to reward myself for losing weight. But he keeps telling me to take a class now, so I may look into it. I always thought it looked so sensuous!

M'Chelle