Shall we dance? Ballroom dancing is all the rage - and not just on reality TV. An Italian study shows that waltzing is as good as cycling or treadmill walking at helping heart failure patients regain strength and aerobic capacity.
Over eight weeks, all three activities successfully raised participants' heart rates, increased oxygen uptake, and improved the muscle fatigue threshold. But researchers also noted the benefits of the social aspect of dance, as opposed to more solitary forms of exercise.
Even if your heart is healthy, ballroom dancing can help you keep it that way. It's great aerobic exercise, it's fun, and it can burn as many as 374 calories an hour! So if you think healthy exercise has to be a sweaty and tedious session on a treadmill -- although I know plenty of folks who do just fine with that -- maybe a whirl on the dance floor is the answer for you.
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