Many people who start dancing Salsa get addicted pretty quickly. Hooked on the music, the atmosphere, the challenge of learning, and the buzz of getting some cool moves going on the dance floor.
However, there are some deeper and much more interesting reasons that we love dancing and find it so powerful and therapeutic, and these lurk deep within our physiology and the older parts of our evolved brain.
Our whole body runs to a rhythm…in fact all of our automatic physical processes are rhythmic in some way; breathing, heartbeat, peristalsis, sleep, digestion and elimination. These are all controlled by our parasympathetic nervous system which in turn is regulated involuntarily by your brain.
Now, if your brain isn’t happy, you won’t be happy. Scientific fact.
The brain has specific requirements that must be met in order for it to feel “safe” enough to drop the nervous system into its “off-guard” parasympathetic side…this is when all the repair and rebuilding happens.
It needs connection and interaction with other people for the emotional centres of the brain to stay on an even keel. Neurologically, it needs a good map of where the physical body is in relation to the environment. This is obtained through our sensory function – eyes, ears and sense of touch.
Physically, the muscles and fascia need stimulation through multi-directional and challenging movement.
Mentally, our brain needs stimulation through cognitive and spatial challenges.
Dancing gives us all of this and more. This is why it’s such a therapeutic, feelgood activity.
That’s why we get hooked, and it becomes a need as opposed to a want.
And that’s why I created Salsa Intoxica….to teach other people how to get everything they need to keep their brain happy!