Dance saved us all

This short month brings us a heart full of meaning. It is Heart health awareness month & Black history month. So, honoring the body means honoring the culture and communities that have taught the world how to move, endure and rise. Heart health, movement and cultural heritage are not separate conversations; they are intertwined. To care for the heart is to honor the rhythm that has guided generations and to move with intentions is to respect the bodies that came before. From the beginning of time we have been dancing to the rhythm of our heartbeats.

Movement was and still is a language

Movement was and still creates memories

Movement was and still is medicine

This is not a coincidence. This is lineage. Modern dance cultures live inside the pulse of African American movement traditions. Real Riddim being one of them! Every roll of the spine, every grounded step, every controlled release is rooted and honored as sacred, expressive and powerful.

There is something sensual about this connection. Not superficially but in the way our body listens inward. The way our breath meets the rhythm; the way movement becomes an intimate conversation between heart, muscle and memory. When we move today we are not just preforming, but continuing the story. One written with resilience, creativity and deep emotional intelligence.

The heart is rhythm, electricity and communication. Every beat sends signals throughout the body. It responds to stress, joy connection and rest. When life becomes overwhelming, the heart does not ignore it, it adapts. Over time that adaptations can either strengthen resilience or create strain.

This is where the fun comes in

MOVEMENT DOES NOT NEED TO LOOK CLINICAL TO BE EFFECTIVE.

Dancing, walking, stretching, sex, cleaning; really anything that gets our heart rate up by encouraging circulation, and heart rate variability.

When movement is engaging and enjoyable, it becomes sustainable.

Sustainability is what the heart responds to best.

Dance, in particular offers something unique. its blends cardiovascular support with rhythm, expression and presence. the heart is not working harder, it is working smarter to respond to changes in tempo , intensity and emotion.

Chronic stress keeps the body in a state of urgency. Over time, the tension impacts heart rate, blood pressure, and recovery. Movement in all forms helps interrupt and break that cycle. When our bodies move in ways that are expressive and grounding the body feels safe. our breath becomes deeper, muscles soften and our bodies feel it. Ever get a runners high? or danced the whole night away at the party and was not tired ? that was our body thanking us for moving.

Whether it is a dance class or a few intentional moments of movement, the act itself becomes self care and respect. A way of honoring the body not for how it looks or performs but for how it functions and carries life forward. Be sure to check out our schedule this month at Real Rhythm Dance and Fitness for celebrations, community and love for dance all month long and forever after. Thank me later!

As February unfolds, this space will continue to explore how movement, and intentional care support heart health. Because,

Love is not something we wait for, Its something we practice;

One beat,

One breath

One movement at a time.

So If you don't know, now WE know (;

Till next time beauties

xo,

Your Vitality Coach

Heather Rose