It does a nice job of explaining some great benefits and the history of salsa.

Here it is:

“10 Things you didn’t know about Salsa dancing by Vanessa Wennerstrom

Salsa dancing, like salsa dip, is hot, hot, hot! Here are a few things you might not know about the wonderful and sensuous dance that is the Salsa…

1) On average, you can hope to burn around 350 calories an hour whilst Salsa Dancing. That’s a great reason to get yourself off the couch and start grinding those hips.

2) Salsa dance music usually has 180 to 210 beats per minute (no wonder you can burn so many calories!).

3) The origins of salsa dancing are widely disputed as it is a fusion of a number of different influences. It is generally accepted that the Salsa we know today was mainly developed in the Latin Quarter of New York City.

4) Salsa dancing does not travel the floor, in general, salsa dancers aim to keep their feet less than one foot apart – this of course excludes the occasions where your leg is draped over your partner’s shoulder!

5) Salsa is considered a Club or Street dance and so is not part of the ballroom dance curriculum.

6) The Einstein Aging Study found that dancing was the only one out of eleven physical activities they studied which helps prevent dementia. The reasons for this could be:

– The need to learn and remember the sometimes complicated moves and sequences.

– The positive social interaction.

– The relaxation and pleasure.

– The sense of accomplishment and confidence boosting when mastering a new skill.

These are all good for the brain and Salsa ticks all those boxes, so that’s another good reason to start dancing the fabulous Salsa.

7) Salsa is the Spanish word for sauce.

8) Salsa is one of the main dances in Cuba and Puerto Rico.

9) In an attempt to get into the record books for the Longest Non-Stop Salsa Dance, a Salsa Marathon took place in Malaysia in 2007. The dance which lasted for 14 hours raised funds for the Ronald McDonald Children’s Charities and involved 250 dancers, both local and from several other countries including Cuba, South Africa, Japan and South Korea (I wonder how many collective calories were burned off that day…).

10) In the 1988 film ‘Salsa’, the character Rita is seen climbing onto Kent’s motorcycle wearing a blue backpack; in the shot showing them riding around a field, her backpack has mysteriously changed to pink.”

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Lucky for me there is a new dance movie coming out this weekend called “Step Up 2 the Streets” which is the sequel to Step Up which came out about one year ago. I actually really enjoyed the original Step Up. The female lead was the same girl that was in the Tango Threesome in Take the Lead which was a great dance scene. The male lead is the same lead as in Step Up 2 so hopefully it will be filled with some great street dancing scenes!

Here is a blurb from Apple.com:

The follow-up to the smash hit “Step Up,” which ignited theaters in August 2006. When rebellious street dancer Andie (BRIANA EVIGAN) lands at the elite Maryland School of the Arts, she finds herself fighting to fit in while also trying to hold ohttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifnto her old life. When she joins forces with the school’s hottest dancer Chase (ROBERT HOFFMAN) to form a crew of classmate outcasts to compete in Baltimore’s underground dance battle The Streets, she ultimately finds a way to live her dream while building a bridge between her two separate worlds. Featuring the directorial debut of award-winning up-and-comer Jon M. Chu, STEP UP 2 THE STREETS reunites much of the production team behind the original film including “Step Up“‘s cutting-edge hip-hop choreographer Jamal Sims, who is joined this time by choreographers Hi-Hat (“hip-hop’s high diva of dance”) and Dave Scott (“Stomp the Yard”). Patrick Wachsberger and Erik Feig of Summit Entertainment produce with Adam Shankman and Jennifer Gibgot of Offspring Entertainment.

Click here to see the trailer. I will write review as soon as I see it.

Happy watching!

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