Every belly dancing instructor I've seen is overweight.

heatherloveslifting

Aren't they kind of required to have a high body fat percentage anyway?

Doesn't that make the belly rolling easier or something?

No.

whierd

I'm ok with a belly dancer that is overweight. They can still make the dance look sexy.

heatherloveslifting

I'm ok with a belly dancer that is overweight. They can still make the dance look sexy.

I also saw women of all shapes, sizes, colors, ages, etc. doing *amazing* things and absolutely owning the stage. It's harder than it looks.

TheSlorax

every thread of yours I have the misfortune of reading is worse than the last. who ****ing cares?

JustAboutDelicious_wechanged

Aren't they kind of required to have a high body fat percentage anyway?

Doesn't that make the belly rolling easier or something?

No.

Look at the belly RAWR! Sexy!

Excuse_less

Just an observation.

Seriously, this seems to defy odds. If they were a sample of average population, at least 1/3 of them would be normal weight.
And, it is an active job, and they work out all the time, yet, wow!

Or have your experience been different?

It's belly dancing...............not six pack dancing

I have no issue with most belly dancers :-)

BinaryPulsar

I've seen some belly dancers that are a little chubby, beautiful, lovely dancers. I've seen all different sized belly dancers. I know many that have hourglass figures with tiny waists. I know a man that is a belly dancer, he is lean.

sunglasses_and_ocean_waves

wgaf?

fitfreakymom

Aren't they kind of required to have a high body fat percentage anyway?

Doesn't that make the belly rolling easier or something?

look up Rachel Brice no body fat there and she is a knock out, and my old instructor Barb Buchannan is awesome http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EN3IyjsDAgQ she is the one dancing here

BeachGingerOnTheRocks

Must be completely different from the ones I've known. The one who taught where I last lived had a 6-pack and a squat booty. She could do some amazing things with those abs, though.

Mainebikerchick

every thread of yours I have the misfortune of reading is worse than the last. who ****ing cares?

I LIKE you! :flowerforyou:

heatherloveslifting

Rachel Brice



Jill Parker



Frank Farinaro


Dusty Paik


Linda Melani

dbmata

Was this a "Mean Girls" inspired thread?

RonnieLodge

Just an observation.

Seriously, this seems to defy odds. If they were a sample of average population, at least 1/3 of them would be normal weight.
And, it is an active job, and they work out all the time, yet, wow!

Or have your experience been different?

BELLY dancers.

If there is no belly, they are just dancers!

In my experience, these women are confident, happy and have AMAZING muscle control.

bluntlysally

have you ever taken a bellydancing class? the stereotypical shaking your mid-section/butt actually is mostly done by your legs and some glutes - not much at all by your abs or the rest of your body.

try it once with an instructor. it is major major leg work and very concentrated to specific areas. very few people will be not sore the next day.

karl39x

Every belly dancer I've ever seen is ****in' HOT!

Are you a chubby chaser?

Oh, God no!
But, something about women with big hips and sexy outfits drives me crazy.

TheSlorax

Was this a "Mean Girls" inspired thread?

you can't just ask people what inspired their threads!

tmpecus78

Every belly dancer I've ever seen is ****in' HOT!

:noway: :sick: :noway:

ldrosophila

Was this a "Mean Girls" inspired thread?

you can't just ask people what inspired their threads!

probably reading about the fact traces of water was found on Mars I found it inspiring and exciting also.

suziepoo1984

My zumba instructor is overweight, but she is such a great dancer , so lively and so beautiful! I would rather have a talented beautiful smart pleasant instructor than a slim dull doll!

fitfreakymom

Every belly dancer I've ever seen is ****in' HOT!

:noway: :sick: :noway:

Now that's HAWT!

fitfreakymom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvMcoDVoD8s wow beautiful dancers and one of my fav groups

bokchoybaby

have you ever taken a bellydancing class? the stereotypical shaking your mid-section/butt actually is mostly done by your legs and some glutes - not much at all by your abs or the rest of your body.

try it once with an instructor. it is major major leg work and very concentrated to specific areas. very few people will be not sore the next day.

Really? Undulations, figure 8s, hip circles, rib cage circles, hip drops, mayas, taksims? I mean, that's hardly an all inclusive list for ab work and belly dance is definitely not all belly but most dancers tend to develop abs of steel regardless of what covers them for a reason. I think how much play the glutes get as opposed to the legs may be style-dependent (like my studio drives shimmies from the glutes but I know some styles prefer to drive it from lower on the body) but the thought that the legs get hit harder than the abs is odd to me even if you're doing a lot of traveling or level changes.

Also, does OP live in alternate universe NYC? I've studied with a couple studios and taken workshops with a number of visiting dancers and the majority have not been overweight. I'm not sure I get why it matters, though. Most instructors I've worked with have clearly been hired for their technical expertise and ability to teach. The dance looks different on different bodies but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Alluminati

every thread of yours I have the misfortune of reading is worse than the last. who ****ing cares?

^^

Alluminati

Also, does OP live in alternate universe NYC? I've studied with a couple studios and taken workshops with a number of visiting dancers and the majority have not been overweight. I'm not sure I get why it matters, though. Most instructors I've worked with have clearly been hired for their technical expertise and ability to teach. The dance looks different on different bodies but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

I wonder this too, OP. For someone with the worldly NYC in her screen name you act like you never been there before, judging by your past posts.

Izanami66

Sooo... where are you seeing all these overweight instructors? Are you taking classes? Workshops? Anything?

In any event, I don't see that it matters. I have met very overweight dancers who can move like nobody's business, and I have seen extremely thin dancers who can't dance to a simple beat. I have also seen the reverse. Belly dance is for all shapes, sizes, races, ages, etc. None of these factors have any bearing on a dancer's skill, stage presence, or grace.

Yes, you use a lot of different and deep muscles performing the various moves, but dancing alone is most likely not going to make you thin. Moreover, most of the instructors I have met have a day job as well and just teach in their off time.

I think what you have said is a broad generalization and is simply inaccurate and pointless. Go take some classes and get back to me.

Kamikazeflutterby

have you ever taken a bellydancing class? the stereotypical shaking your mid-section/butt actually is mostly done by your legs and some glutes - not much at all by your abs or the rest of your body.

try it once with an instructor. it is major major leg work and very concentrated to specific areas. very few people will be not sore the next day.

It really depends on the move, and probably some on the style of belly dance (cabaret is not tribal is not Egyptian). Most of the stuff I've tried to do has called for muscle isolation--controlling one part of your body in a specific way, so you can later layer another movement with another muscle group. It's distinctly odd to have just your lower abs or obliques sore because you drilled a specific move for 15 minutes.


Edited to add:
As many people have said, belly dancing is inclusive. One of the things that's so attractive about it is that there's no one body type required to do it. It's the difference between fat shaming or skinny shaming and just saying "hey, we have these bodies that are great toys, let's go move them and be happy about it."

Belly dancers and runners are the two nicest and most inclusive IRL exercise groups I've ever met. And, as with running, it's only the people on the sidelines who have some need to comment on the participant's body type.

WarriorCupcakeBlydnsr

Bellydance is a very accepting group, I have been dancing for 10 years with dancers of all sizes and ages (the oldest dancer in our troupe is 75.) It can be difficult (my trainer didn't believe me until I gave her a ten minute lesson, she called me the next day in shock that she was sore), because of having to learn to isolate body parts and body movements to be able to layer them and sometimes do them all at once.

As my instructor (who has been teaching for over 30 years and dancing even longer) told us, traditional bellydancer in the middle east are not thin, they actually have a bit of weight on them and actually tend to be more covered, however we only see the Americanized version of bellydancers which is that they are thinner and wear next to nothing (thanks Hollywood for that portrayal!).

I am not knocking thin belly dancers I have seen and danced with them, some of them were good with their moves, some not so much, but what I saw every time was the heart they put into it and that's what makes a bellydancer good: their heart!

I have one friend who is a fabulous bellydancer and I love to watch her dance, she is slim and muscular and a wonderful dancer (and she's been dancing a lot longer than I have). We did a show together last year at Christmas time and several ladies came up to me after the show and told me that of all the performers I was the best, I showed the most grace and control (and apparently gave a couple of them chills when I did Silent Night with candles). I am not thin or as in shape as my friend and I was totally floored because she did such a beautiful performance compared to mine (especially since one routine I hadn't practiced because it was a last minute show).

dcglobalgirl

They like a bit of roll on that jelly in Persia what can I say

I've traveled quite a bit in the middle east (Kuwait, Bahrain, UAE, Yemen, Egypt) and many of the belly dancers I saw did have a voluptuous shape with extra belly fat. Historically, that was considered very attractive in the middle east.

I noticed that many of the photos of the extremely in shape belly dancers did not have traditionally Middle Eastern names and may reflect a more American or Western aesthetic.

RivenV

Despite the poor beginning of this thread (namely the title and the first post), I'm pleased with the direction this thread has taken.

Also, I'm quite pleased with the inclusion of all of the pictures.