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I’ve invented a new workout, and I think you’ll find the calories melting away without much consternation on your part. The catch is, you have to have a toddler. I call it the “dance to corny pop music for an hour straight with your toddler” workout, and you won’t have enough time to feel tired or pain because you’ll be laughing at the creative moves your little one comes up with on the spot.
I distinctly remember going to dances in high school with no idea what I was supposed to do with my hands or my feet, the awkward feeling of gangly limbs swishing through the air and wondering, “Do I look awesome right now? Or frightening?”
Looking back, my serious face, stuck in concentration, combined with the animatronic movement of my body as I struggled to look “cool” was, indeed, very likely frightening.
What I didn’t realize then is that dancing must have been invented out of silliness. Sure, we’ve refined various forms that are beautiful or interesting to watch or have some kind of religious or cultural value. But at its core, dancing is just wiggling. And wiggling is silly.
Toddlers are good at silly, and adults ought to remember that they too were once good at it. So, remembering the little boy that I once was, I put on a playlist of bumping pop music and joined my 3-year-old on the dance floor otherwise known as my living room.
With the nearby Christmas tree providing stage lights, and likely my perfect, fat silhouette for my neighbors to see through the window, we shimmied and shook and formed congo lines and spun.
There was never a “why are we doing this?” moment from my son. Once I cut a rug, he joined me. He laughed at my moves. I laughed at his. Suddenly I realized there’s some truth to that old corny expression: Dance like no one is watching. To dance as if no one’s watching — with confidence, with laughter — is the only way to ensure your dancing is worth watching at all.
Of course, dancing is a metaphor for “living life” in this expression. Do whatever it is you do as if no one is over your shoulder. However, I suggest you try some literal dancing. With someone who doesn’t care. With someone who loves you unconditionally.
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Photo credit: Shutterstock