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Dance your Way to Good Mental Health

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The great feeling we experience out on the dance floor has a scientific explanation behind it. Dance is more than moving to music, it’s the manifestation of self’s deepest passions and an escape to our own nirvana.

“The job of feet is walking, but their hobby is dancing.” – Amit Kalantri

What do weddings, parties, other celebratory occasions and now even funerals have in common? It’s dancing. Dance is the most rhythmic, gracious way of expressing emotion. A beautiful series of movements knitted together to match harmoniously with music; dance touches the soul of the performer as well as the audience. Numerous cultures have developed their own dance form that depicts its customs and traditions in a unique way.

When we move, we feel good. Grooving to the beats of music has many benefits on our physical well – being. It improves balance, flexibility, cardiovascular health and increases strength.Dance also leads to body awareness such as maintaining proper posture, thus preventing injuries and long term ailments. Apart from the benefits of movement and music, the most vital impact of dancing is on mental health. A growing number of researchers have proven that while dancing, an abundance of mood-improving chemicals is released within the body of the dancer. This happiness does not end as you stop dancing, rather can continue for more thana week. For those who find it difficult to express their feelings, dance offers an alternative mode to creatively express their mind. Therapists also prescribe dance to patients suffering from social anxiety and/or a fear of public speaking as dance allows people to ditch self-consciousness. According to a study conducted by the University of Oxford, dancing alongside other dancers “lights up brain pathways,” which break down the hesitation we usually face in interacting with people. Establishing these connections helps one experience a sense of oneness and unity.Dance as a therapy is particularly recommended for depression reduction.

Dance is the perfect combination of physical exertion and creativity. But the most incredible aspect of dancing, which makes it especially beneficial for mental health issues is its inclusivity. Anyone can participate, whether a teenager or a senior adult and move in whatever way music takes him/her. This makes it popular even among people who usually shy away from other kinds of exercises.

Currently, all of us are fighting difficult and testing times that have negatively affected our psychological well – being. Stress and boredom are peaking and the lockdown seems to have put a stop on all our pizzazz as well. But on the other hand, it is offering us a ‘me’ time to reset, rejuvenate and refocus. And, dance can prove to be our liberator. So, jump out of the couch, put on the song which makes you sway or shimmy and just dance, with/without a partner because ‘jab tak tumhare pair chalenge tumhara mood accha rahega, tumhare pair ruke toh yeh stress badega (as long as your feet move, you will be in a good mood, if your feet stop moving, stress will increase).’

Feature Image Credits: Dreamstime

IpshikaGhosh

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Why Glorification of a Slim Body is Problematic

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The strong winds of having a “perfect figure” have swept us away with their glamorous appeal. The hype has been created for having a slim body, and a lot of it has to do with the celebrities’ idea of a zero figure and an hourglass-shaped body alluring the public to a huge extent.

 It is not to be denied that, due to the pressure that has been created to maintain a particular figure and size, people have started giving thought to fitness and health. People seem to have realised that it is important to have a fit body and that it is important to work towards it by indulging in physical activities. In a lot of parks of the capital city, men and women can be seen enjoying a morning walk or practising yoga.

But a major consequence that has occurred due to the perfect body hype is that we have now started associating beauty with a slim figure. Not only is the idea problematic, but it is also highly demeaning for those who do not have a slim body. In a survey conducted by our correspondent on the same matter, with the sample size of 50 people, half concluded that the general belief links beauty with having a slim body. However, around 40% of people did not agree with this concept at all. A second-year student says to this, “The people who are fat or obese need to become slim only to lead a healthy lifestyle and not to become beautiful because they already are beautiful. And being slim should not be a standard, because even that has consequences. Personally, I am very slim, and that does not make me the ‘ideal size zero’, because I face many health complications due to it. And people tell me to put on weight so that I can look beautiful. It’s this hypocrisy and mindset that needs to be changed.”

The hypocrisy that this student mention is perhaps present in the very air we breathe in. And another very interesting example of this hypocrisy can be seen in the social media accounts of various personalities and ‘influencers’ who first put up weight-loss stories and then proclaim with excitement the notion of “self-love”. To love your body, you must first become beautiful and to become beautiful, you need to become thin, is the idea that they seem to spread. A statement by another student sums it up pretty well as she says, “Having a fitter body is fine but associating health with size-zero figure is wrong. However, I don’t subscribe to the “love your body” argument. If someone is obese then s/he needs to do something about it. The modern notions of beauty which I call ‘Insta beauty’ is fake and cosmetic. I feel like people should stop following these models who do nothing but make other people insecure about their bodies and promote products which they never use themselves.”

Although the idea of having a slim body gained significance primarily during the Victorian times when women were supposed to wear corsets and what not to highlight their small waist, a lot of scholars believe that the modern conception is hence, a result of the colonial effect. Another very important thing we must remember is that during the Greco-Roman times, a woman with a plump body was regarded as beautiful. If one looks at the paintings of those times, one would come across female bodies with fat thighs and chubby body, which is just as beautiful. Speaking in the Indian context, in Kalidasa’s famous play, Abhijnanasakuntalam, Shakuntala is described in such terms that the present reader would perhaps condemn. Her plump thighs are seen as a positive aspect because it would mean she will be able to bear a child well – a popular conception in those times.

“I’m trying to decondition myself from thinking that thin people are pretty but it is difficult to do so when these ideals are constantly reinforced to you. I find the plus sized movement discouraging, they make normal sized women as plus models; which further negatively impacts our perception of size”, expresses another student. And this is exactly the problem with the whole issue. One involuntarily caves in due to the pressure that one feels is coming from all around. Many teenagers, in recent times, have been reported to be suffering from mental health issues because of the stress to mould their bodies into a particular manner. And this is why the glorification of having a slim body is problematic.

Thus, it is important for us to maintain a healthy body by engaging in physical activities. But the inspiration behind this must be that your aim is a healthy lifestyle rather than succumbing to the societal ideals of beauty.

 

Image Credits: The Indian Express

 

Akshada

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Physical Wellness in College Students

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In their college years, students pay no attention to their physical wellness which has hazardous implications in future. Here’s delving deep into the subject and discussing the changes one needs to bring in their lifestyle to improve their physical health.

College years can be some of the most stressful years for a student- both mentally and physically. You are overburdened with academics, society activities, friends and social life, and so much more.

In such a scenario, students, more often than not, forget taking care of themselves and pay no attention to their physical wellness. Several unhealthy habits ingrained during college years often deteriorate their health which become the root of health issues later in life.

How often do you prefer eating out over cooking for yourself? Do you also spend the most amount of your day sitting in front laptop completing your assignment or well, just binging shows on Netflix?

During college years, students, especially those living in hostels, find themselves involved into unhealthy eating habits like eating junk food very often, binging on unhealthy snacks during midnight study sessions, heavy dependence on caffeine among others. Excessive intake of such unhealthy high-on-calorie food items leads to problems like obesity.

There’s also a considerable reduction in the number of physical activities performed by college students as compared to when they were in school. Lack of any compulsory physical exercise like sports in college gives students numerous reasons to never leave the comfort of their cozy beds and go out in the fresh air. Physical lethargy leads to mental lethargy, robbing students of concentration and an active mind.

In conversation with DU Beat, Sakshi from Kamala Nehru College (KNC) said that she didn’t remember the last time she played any sport during her college years. She also added that regular intake of junk food and soft drinks have become the norm of college life.

This decline in attention towards physical health is worrisome, for it may have several hazardous implications for students.

Thus, it’s quite important for college students to become aware of their daily physical habits and to not ruin it further every day. Small changes are key to bringing about a major change in one’s physical lifestyle.

Prefer cooking at home over regularly binging junk food outside. Try healthier snack options during your late night study sessions. Get up from your bed and chair every hour, take a walk outside in the fresh air, and give your body some physical movement like sports and exercise. Simran from Gargi College said, “I have started exercising daily in my hostel itself due to lack of time to go to the gym. It helps me feel rejuvenated and healthy.”

Engaging in sports brings an individual not only physical benefits but they also leave the person mentally fresh and energised. Dharna Bothra from KNC said, “I feel extremely active and energised not only physically but also mentally after playing sports.”

So, put your phones down, get up from your beds and take a long walk outside. Do your physical health a favor!

Feature Image Credits: Northern Lights College

Shreya Agrawal

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5 Ways to Transform Your Fitness This Summer

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Surfing the internet, one would easily find a ‘30 Day Challenge with Trainer Chintu’ to transform fitness or a ‘Get Your Summer Body in just 30 Days’. Anecdotes, on offer by the ‘summer fitness market,’ don’t offer much when practically put to use by a college student who has to balance social media, TV shows and academics. It seems as though Whatsapp has set the lower limit to ‘last seen’ as 2 AM for every collegiate. Alas, it is actually the latter that doesn’t sleep before that. Putting the ‘challenges’ to use therefore doesn’t reap anything. Here are five ways in which a collegiate, whose routine fluctuates with mood and engagements can transform his/her fitness this summer:

1. Water: The primary fat burner

Believe it or not, but water, if consumed sufficiently burns fat at a great speed even when the body is at rest. No matter how much you exercise or don’t exercise at all, dehydration can lead to storage of fat in the body. A study done by the University of Tokyo reveals that a hydrated body burns fat three times faster than a dehydrated body. The best way to check the sufficiency of water in your body is to check the colour of your urine, which if yellow hints at the dehydrated nature of the body and if colourless signifies the sufficiency of water in your body. Remember, the next time someone says that they have been exercising for a while but don’t lose weight or that they are fat although they eat very less, tell them that either it’s genetics or lack of water in the body. The latter can always be mended.

2. Don’t starve yourself, rather eat frequently

Starving is the most imbecile custom to stay fit. Not only will the body lose strength and immunity; you’ll also lose fat at a pace slower than a person who eats frequently but clean. Stupid as it may seem, but researches have revealed that eating clean meals frequently (after every three hours) helps in building a better metabolism and constitution. Eating frequently would help those of you in need of some ‘toning’ and also those who are into bodybuilding.

3. The Rule of input and Output

You are what you eat. But who can let go of those chicken rolls and pizzas. Well who told you too? You can continue eating street food and stay fit by burning the calories you eat. Fitness is all about controlling how much, not what you consume and how much of that your burn. Simple math, if you eat more calories and burn less, you’ll gain weight. If you consume less calories and burn more, you’ll lose weight. Therefore, jump onto all those hamburgers, but remember to burn what you eat.

4. Sleep well

Okay! Sleeping before 2 AM is impossible. But even after that, try sleeping for a minimum of seven hours. As per a study, lack of sleep ages you quickly. So, if you feel lack of strength or get tired easily, then focus on your sleep. If you sleep properly, your body will be repaired adequately, you’ll have less black heads or acne and you’ll have a better memory. Try sleeping properly for a week, you’ll see the difference.

5. Look for long term goals

Want to be fit to attract someone in particular? Want to have a body like that actor or actress in the movie? Well, nothing would work unless you strive to be fit for yourself and not to impress others. When the former is there, the latter automatically follows. Love yourself before expecting someone to love you.

Image Credits- www.beautynfitness.com

Sidharth Yadav
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