Very few activities are able to do more for you than provide a fun time, and dancing is one of them. Dancing brings plenty to your life besides being able to reenact your favorite scenes from “Dirty Dancing” and the “Step Up” series. If you’re a beginner or want to learn a new style, there are a few facts you should discover beforehand so that you understand the importance of dancing.

The benefits that come from dance are not only good for your health, but for important skills needed on a regular basis. Different styles exist that you may not know about, and dancing has served as a reliable tool for political movements across the globe. Here are three fun facts you probably didn’t know about dancing that will make you even more excited about picking the hobby up.

A Tool For Protesting

While dance has been used as an entertaining form of expression in the United States and other countries, people in certain parts of the world don’t have this opportunity. Government laws in Iran, for example, forbid women from dancing in public or appearing without a headscarf. Several women have recently been arrested and have inspired others to post videos online of them dancing without their faces covered. Dancing faced similar condemnation for being wicked and provocative centuries ago in the United Kingdom, United States, and other countries that are more open to it today.

Protests against racial oppression have also benefited from dancing, such as during anti-apartheid demonstrations in Zimbabwe and other parts of South Africa with the toyi-toyi. The New Dance Group in New York was able to use dance as a way to bring attention to the harshness of class differences during the Depression Era. Current activists in America are also benefiting from the art of dancing, such as members the Black Lives Matter movement and the LGBTQ community. The dabke folk dance in Palestine has also been designed to demonstrate unity by having participants holding hands in a line during the performance. The purpose of this tool in these situations has been to replace tension with positive energy.

A Variety Of Options

It’s hard to come by someone who doesn’t know the Robot or the Worm, especially among those with very little professional dancing experience. However, there are a variety of styles out there for those who want to broaden their range. If there is a certain style of dance that you want to start or improve your skills in, there are a variety of dance companies available for you to enroll in. The Salsa and Cha Cha work for anyone who wants to get some experience in Latin dances, and if you want to learn a more common style just for a night out with some friends, the Waltz, Tango and Foxtrot will get you by pretty well.

You may be looking for a dance that allows you to use objects for some extra showcasing. Glowsticking comes in handy if you take frequent trips to the local rave spot. Services such as Premier Glow will provide you with everything you need to make your glow stick dance as fun to watch as possible. If you live in the city and have a trip planned to a more rural area, it wouldn’t hurt to learn the Country Shuffle and Swing or the Texas Two-Step to add to your arsenal. Some styles that you may not be familiar with include the Nightclub Two-Step, the Peabody, and the Argentine Tango. Picking these options up could help impress your friends who are trying to learn new styles, as well.

Health And Skill Benefits

Dance is among the skills that allow you to improve other aspects of your life. Health is a major area where dancing comes in handy, with studies showing that combining dancing with aerobic exercises and activities can improve memory and other brain functions. Relieving stress and tension is also made easier thanks to dance, as one study in 2014 proved that it can serve as a “mental break” the same way other physical activities can for people of different age groups. Different dances can help improve flexibility, balance, and coordination because of the poses and movements that they require, and athletes from other sports use dancing to improve motor skills and reduce the risk of injury.

Dance also allows you to improve mental and social skills that are important throughout our daily lives. Precision is a big part of dance because of the amount of practice needed to perfect movements and techniques, and this skill is important for other situations, such as studying for a test and putting together a project for work. Some dances require collaboration, and teamwork is necessary if tasks at work require effort from more than one person. Additionally, dancers can pick up determination and self-confidence that can be applied to other situations, such as presenting a project to your boss or asking someone out on a date.

Keep these facts in mind so that you allow dance to bring fun and fulfillment to every aspect of your life.