Dancing is a good exercise to help you lose weight. It burns fat, tones your muscles and strengthens your bones. How often and how long you dance will depend on several factors, such as your weight-loss goals and the intensity and type of dance you are doing. However, if you combine a proper diet with a moderate amount of physical activity from dancing, you will see those pounds begin to drop.
Calories to Lose
You have to eliminate calories to lose excess weight, and while dancing can help you do this, you need to keep an eye on your food intake as well. Once you decide how much weight you want or need to lose, make it your goal to drop 1 to 2 pounds a week. This is the safest weight loss amount recommended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and it requires a weekly deficit of 3,500 to 7,000 calories. Decide how many calories you want to cut from your diet and how many you want to burn through dancing, and then design your eating and workout plans accordingly.
Type of Dance
All dancing is physical activity and will help you burn fat, but different dance forms burn different amounts of calories. For example, according to the Mayo Clinic, while performing a slow dance like a waltz, a 155-lb. person will burn 112 calories in 30 minutes. This means that to lose one pound a week, she would need to waltz for a half an hour daily and cut 388 calories from her diet. However, with a quicker dance like ballet, that same person could burn about 223 calories in 30 minutes, allowing her to eat a little more or lose weight more quickly.
Intensity and Length of Exercise
In general, the longer and more intense your exercise routine is, the more calories and fat you will burn, and the quicker your weight loss will be. If a 155-lb person increases his daily ballet class from 30 minutes to 60, he can burn 446 calories. However, to achieve this calorie-burn, you will want to make sure that you are dancing at a moderate to vigorous intensity. This means that your breathing deepens, your heart rate quickens and you sweat. Working below this intensity will not yield as great a calorie burn.
Other Considerations
To lose and maintain weight, most adults need 150 minutes of moderate exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous exercise a week. You may do more if you are physically active and healthy, but be careful not to overexert yourself. Working out multiple times during a day can lead to injury and fatigue, and may inhibit your weight-loss efforts. You can exercise every day, but monitor your heart rate and how you are feeling; you should not work out above your maximum heart rate, which is 220 minus your age, and slow your pace if you feel faint, short of breath or in pain. You should also adjust your diet so that you do not drop the pounds too quickly or move to below a weight that is healthy for you.
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