I remember when I was young and my neighborhood used to have a street fair called the Flatbush Frolic. Every year, they would set up this stage and a belly dancer would come and present a dance with veils, sexy attire and such controlled body movements. I remember it being such a fascinating dance to music that was so different than the ones that I was accustomed to hearing.

A few years back, me and a couple of friends from work decided to go and take a belly dancing class at Serena's Dance Studio in Manhattan. Serena was considered a pro at her art. She had been featured several times in the opera show Aida. She has choreographed many different dance programs that were being played at clubs around the New York City area. She possessed much control as a dancer and demonstrated and taught women the art of feminine power. It is so weird how news gets spread about. I had just a week ago decided to get back into doing it, remembering how much it worked out your waistline. I went to Serena Dance Studio on-line and found out that just a week ago, the great dancer who was 76 years old, had passed away. I was both saddened by the news and regretted that I hadn't been to her classes more often to get the best belly dance classes I ever remembered having.

Still wanting to incorporate the art of belly dancing into my working out, I purchased a couple of tapes to assist me. The latest one, Belly Dance Fitness for Beginners. Two young ladies by the name of Veena & Neena Bidasha introduce the art of belly dancing with easy to learn movements. Some of the movements, I had experienced already having taken Serena's classes as well as doing The Goddess Workout With Dolphina and Tribal Fusion Yoga & Belly Dancing. Veena & Neena worked together to create an enhanced dance workout that made it a little bit different and a little more clearer to me of how the moves are actually meant to happen.

Belly Dance is a dance that teaches a person how to dance with controlled movements. It is done in different parts of the world and was once performed as entertainment for royalty. It is not just a dance that works with the stomach. You also work the head, chest, hips, arms, thighs and legs. Belly dancing is a dance that works out your body from head to toe. I never expected my arms to be sore from doing belly dancing but they were. It reminds me of a high and low impact workout except belly dancing is a little bit more sensually stimulating and fun.

I did find some differences in the different workout sessions I did decided to do on my own at home. For instance in The Goddess Workout With Dolphina, Dolphina starts off with a 10 minute warm up and then brings you through a series of different belly dance moves starting with the head & arms, then hips, then chest and so on. For every section that she introduced movements for, she came out with a new outfit. She did every movement 8 times like most teachers would and then brought them up to speed and added different tricks to each one. like she did with the shimmy and the snake. I liked that she did put some effort into teaching you how to walk doing the movements. To me, her class could've possibly been beginner, but I got more of an in depth workout with Belly Dance Fitness for Beginners because even when doing the shoulder shrugs, I found it more enhanced following Veena & Neena. They taught it in a way that gave it more definition.

Tribal Fusion Yoga & Belly Dancing was pretty cool of a workout because I liked how the warm up was basic yoga moves. With that workout, you have the option of taking either the 15, 30 or 45 minute workouts that is featured. The moves are much more limited. It is true that you are taught the right way to do the movements, but to me, the movements are more of just a preparation to me and not what you would expect from a belly dancing class though it was still fun to do. Especially with the yoga involved. Belly Dance Fitness for Beginners taught more movements including different things to do with the arms while the belly, hips or chest was working. In 30 minutes, it enhanced the idea of really belly dancing because the actual dance involves doing some funky movements with your arms and hands, and it made it seem more real.

The music that was being danced to in Belly Dance Fitness for Beginners was really tribal and impacting. At the end of their workout, they also incorporated a couple of yoga moves that I have learned in the past at The Yoga Spot. Belly Dance is all about controlling the stomach movements. You gain from it flexibility and coordination skills. Belly Dance is an effective way to tighten your waist line and to lose belly fat. And not only is it fun, but it helps you to loosen up stiffness and walk with better posture. I just recently picked up the finger cymbals, so I am going to soon learn how to incorporate them with my belly dancing so maybe I can use them when I do singing engagements with my band. I am going to try to learn the dance performance that is featured at the end of Belly Dance Fitness for Beginners where I noticed the dancer pull out her finger cymbals. I liked it because it was fun, exotic and sexy, all which I also am. I do the belly dancing tapes about every 2 days and the other days, I do pilates, yoga, body ball workouts or sculpting ball workouts and the gym.

I really enjoyed doing the workout that Veena & Neena had to offer as professional belly dancing coaches in Belly Dance Fitness for Beginners. I would recommend Belly Dance Fitness for Beginners to any woman interested in a good, stimulating workout. It's easy to learn and has it's added benefits to the way that we feel as women once incorporated into our workout regimes.









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