The Dallas tap dancer who found his reason to get up in the morning

Gene Edwards, 83, of Dallas, Texas, started tap dancing lessons around 2023. He takes a weekly class at the Dallas Conservatory, and he competed in Frisco’s Got Talent. There is no medal at the end of this one. What there is, in his own words, is the thing every story on this site is really about:

“It gives me something to do; it gives me a reason to get up in the morning.” — Gene Edwards, CBS News Texas

“It’s opened up an entirely new world.”

Why dancing is quietly brilliant for older bodies and brains

Tap dancing is not what most people picture when they hear “exercise after 80”. It should be. Dance of any kind is one of the few activities that combines:

• balance and coordination — the skills whose decline leads to falls, the biggest single threat to independence in later life
• cardiovascular effort — a tap class is proper work
• learning and memory — routines have to be remembered and executed under time pressure, which is exactly the kind of challenge that keeps the brain adaptable
• music and rhythm — which lifts mood in a way a treadmill never will
• other people — a class is a community, with a teacher who notices if you are not there

Several large studies have found that regular dancing is associated with a lower risk of cognitive decline — more so than many other leisure activities. The likeliest explanation is that it demands so many things at once.

The fun test

Edwards did not take up tap because a health website told him it was good for balance. He took it up because it looked fun, and then it turned out to be the reason he gets up in the morning. That order matters.

When you are choosing something to start, apply the fun test first. Will you smile while doing it? If yes, the balance, the heart, the brain and the friends come along for free. If no, you will stop in March, however good it is for you.

Where to look

Adult beginner dance classes — tap, ballroom, line dancing, salsa, ballet for adults — run in most towns, often in community centres, church halls and dance schools with daytime slots aimed at retired people. Many offer a free or cheap first class. Go once. Judge it by whether you smiled.