THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF TRADITIONAL DANCES

Research from the Aristotle University showed that retirees who danced traditional Greek dances experienced many health benefits.

In fact, the head of the research, Mr. Zacharias Vordos, who deals with the psychology of exercise, explained that it is possible that Greek dances will make rehabilitation programs more attractive (eg from injuries or due to diseases) since during classes the frequency of attendance reached 90%.

The 40 seniors, with an average age of 73, suffered from heart failure and managed to jump higher than their peers after the dances, but also strengthened their legs, allowing them to walk faster and longer distances.

Their practice was done 3 times a week from 45 to 60 minutes at a time. During the lessons, the researchers measured the range of their jumps and how long and how long distance they were able to walk. At the end of the lessons, they found that those who had done the Greek dances had legs that were 10% stronger, jumped 10% higher and were 6% faster than those who did not dance.