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Tuesday, April 16, 2013

N is For Nutrition

Competitive dancers are aware of the importance of nutrition for keeping the body in tip-top shape. Dancers are a hard working group of individuals who strive to keep their bodies at an ideal weight by making healthy food choices. 

Dancers rarely drink alcohol because it throws off timing, unlike social dancers who
sometimes need a shot of courage.

We used to have a saying in the dance world, " Dancers are never sick," meaning, a dancer performs with a temp, the flu, pneumonia,
malaria.......well, you know what I mean and all with a smile. So why go out on the floor, feeling like you'd like to die?  It's better to eat right, take some supplements and stay healthy. It makes dancing soooooo much easier.  



Healthy Choices








32 comments:

  1. "..sometimes need a shot of courage." I always need 4 shots of courage!

    What I have so far learned form you, I am pretty sure to have an ideal weight is also less stress on the knee, cos you know the knee is very important to a dancer. ...How am I doing?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Poke the Rock,
      Good learning.... You get a gold star on your forehead. Now ... out to the sawmill. :)

      Delete
  2. Liquid Courage!! I have never been much for alcohol although I have taken a nip or two....

    I think I need rhthm not courage.

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    Replies
    1. Terry,
      Me too but haven't you noticed that a lot of men won't get on the dance floor unless they are half snapped and then they think they can dance. Haha

      Delete
  3. I work to understand nutrition, allergic to even carrots, it's rough. Always wanted a pill like the astronauts (then I found out they didn't exist) so I could avoid the food.

    Stay healthy!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yolanda,
      Food (well first water) is the most important thing. Organic food, not GMO's, is the thing we have to try to preserve, not new clothes or furniture. Very little nutrition in that.
      Thanks for stopping.

      Delete
  4. I need several shots of courage before I even THINK about dancing :)

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    Replies
    1. Hahahaha Some people like the courage better than dancing. Especially the cowboys out here and then they whoop it up.

      Delete
    2. Looking at the professional dancers' bodies, I wonder if they eat much at all, but I guess they must do , otherwise they wouldn't have all that energy! This really is a very interesting series of posts, and I'm really enjoying them.

      Delete
  5. hahaha! I would need a shot of courage before I ever got out on a public dance floor. now in my living room... :) I just turn up Aretha and Chain, Chain, Chain... thru the house.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. turquoisemoon
      Yeah, go girl. Most of the women don't need a shot of courage, seem like just the men need it. LOL

      Delete
  6. Well I have the eating part down
    Here in my town
    So no matter what you say
    Kind of like the postman in that way
    Except going postal is of no need
    For they can spin one around, make them dizzy, stomp on their toes, knock them to the floor and step on their head to do the deed hahaha

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hahahahahaha
      That made me laugh, you saved my day
      That brought the sunshine on a ray
      If postal is the way to go
      You'll end up on the funny row
      Funny rows are quite the racket
      Say no if they offer the funny jacket

      Delete
  7. I guess I'm a social dancer!! LOL!! But I do know the importance of eating healthily!! Yay! Take care
    x

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    Replies
    1. Old Kitty,
      I know. That courage thing is mostly for the guys. Gals love to dance.

      Delete
  8. You can tell that dancers take care of themselves as most are always in terrific shape....especially those legs..hubba, hubba! :)

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    Replies
    1. Mark
      You are giving your age away. Hubba hubba. Haven't heard that in a long time but I like it. We should bring it back.LOL

      Delete
  9. You are living proof of this truth.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The proof is in the pudding, as my old granny always used to say. Ha

      Delete
  10. Nutrition is important no matter what. Growing up in a culture where dancing is prevalent, I was never in need of liquid courage. Kids start "shaking it up" at an early age. :)

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    Replies
    1. Bish
      I should have named gender. That is mostly for the guys. They need the courage to get on the dance floor. I bet they do the wonderful dancing in the islands. Yay for you.

      Delete
  11. You are so right. When I was into line dancing and partner country dancing back in the day, I absolutely never drank alcohol. It was always water. You simply could not do the steps if you were hopped on up booze. The goal was to be light on your feet. Now, I don't dance, but my diet is soooo important. I also take a boatload of supplements. Imagine if I had been doing BOTH back then!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Robin, It really throws the timing off and one looks like an idiot. When I had a lot of students and we did many performances, I had a rule of no drinking before the performance. But rules can be broken. If someone had stage fright to the core, I let them take a teeny sip of alcohol... not a guzzle or a big gulp LOL just enough to take the edge off and I noticed in most cases, that worked quite well.

      Delete
  12. Nutrition is very important! (I won't go off the tangent I want to here)

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    Replies
    1. baygirl32
      Go ahead. The right nutrition is the most important thing in my life.I'd listen and I think most of the readers also would.

      Delete
  13. As I have watched your videos, I always ask myself how long dancers can dance in competition. Is there a point at which they need to stop?

    Watching the crazy street dancers of this age, I think most of them will be done dancing before they hit 30.

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    Replies
    1. Susan,
      This doesn't seem right, what I'm about to say, but looks matter a great deal in competition. I've never seen a real chubby person competing. So, it really depends on what you look like. In that picture of me, I can see my waist beginning to thicken a little and I really had enough. 30 some years is long enough and I wanted to teach both Flamenco and ballroom and pass my information on. I never charged because I know that most young dancers are struggling BUT it wasn't all fun either. I guess I was pretty strict and if they didn't work, out they went.

      Delete
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  15. Sage advice, dancer or not. I spent years dancing and as I age realize it takes more work and better nutrition to actually stay healthy and thin. It seems the less hours in the day you have, the more you actually need. Jennifer a.k.a. Urban Gypsy Girl

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  16. In your comment to Susan you mentioned your waist was beginning to thicken, mine has been thick most of my life, we're a thick waisted family, being of German peasant stock. All of us are kind of short and chunky.
    I never learned much about nutrition, I know that protein and fibre are as important as water, but I just can't seem to keep it up like I should.

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  17. Manzie: I had that kind of discipline most of my life. Now, my art is mostly spiritual. However, I am toying with the idea of applying for a tryout with the Senior Olympics. It would require a Spartan existence for four years, and I don't know if my family is behind me. Martial Arts competition is a lot tougher than it looks on TV. In my competitive years, I broke quite a few bones and a number of ribs. They worry. However, it is not harder than dance, and you are an inspiration. If I decide to take the plunge, I'll travel to Montana for a pep talk!

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  18. Hi Manzanita,

    Competitive dancers. Such dedication and commitment. Excellent advice on nutritional values. Of course, I've seen a few folks who think that dancing and alcohol, mix. We no otherwise.

    Thank you for this, dear lady.

    Gary

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