Belly dancing in the Union with the PPC

Forget the ab rollers. Dispose of your yoga tapes. Spring is just one week away, and if… Forget the ab rollers. Dispose of your yoga tapes. Spring is just one week away, and if you’re looking for a new way to get in shape while bypassing the mad rush to the Petersen Events Center, then why not try belly dancing?

“If you want to work off your freshman-15 gut, then try this,” said freshman Shannon Payne, after about 90 minutes of belly dancing.

Payne and other Pitt students crowded into the William Pitt Assembly Room Tuesday evening to belly dance — many of them unaware of the workout in store for them — thanks to the Pitt Program Council.

“The movements are muscularly intense and involve muscular isolation,” instructor Claire Litton said.

According to her and fellow instructor Neefa bint Durr, belly dancing helps strengthen and tone the quadriceps and abdominal muscles.

Forty barefooted students — five of them men — arranged themselves into several long rows across the floor where they started the stretching exercises.

“Being one of few guys here, I feel a little bit like I’m on display, but I like the pressure,” said freshman Dan Kheloussi.

Men are not discouraged from belly dancing — however, this form of dancing is usually performed by women. Originating in the Middle East, the belly dance is thought to have been derived from a type of birthing dance, which consisted of rocking movements practiced to strengthen the abdominal muscles. This strengthening of the abdominal muscles was thought to help contract the baby from the body. Today, similar moves are taught in Lamaze classes.

After demonstrating basic hip movements, Litton encouraged the participants to use their imaginations.

“Picture yourselves as being inside of a barrel. Now pretend you are cleaning out the inside of that barrel with [your] hips,” she said.

bint Durr walked around the floor, assisting students, reminding them to keep their knees bent at all times — the key factor in learning to successfully belly dance.

“If you don’t keep those knees bent, something’s gonna give,” she said.

Soon, the slow belly dancing moves sped up, and the shimmying began. The shimmy is similar to a hip twist, and is often referred to as the “washing machine agitator.”

“A good time to practice this move is while you’re brushing your teeth. Give it two minutes in the morning and two minutes in the evening, and your stomach muscles will rock!” said Litton.

The last move demonstrated by Litton and bint Durr also involved working the hips. Participants were instructed to hold their arms out in front of them in a box shape.

“Imagine you are holding a bag of groceries in front of you,” Litton said. “Now, snap your hips out as though you are shutting a car door.”

As the hip-hop, fusion-style music continued to play, the seven rows of students transitioned into one large, rotating circle, practicing this same move while walking.

“The dance moves that we teach you are like vocabulary words. We are giving you the vocabulary so that you can speak for yourself,” explained Litton before permitting the students to dance freely.

“At first, you feel kind of awkward, but then you’ve got to black everything out and get into your own groove. You have to do your own thing,” said freshman Shellyann O’Meally.