Young at heart

Li Qian, co-founder of the dance genre known as pop dance, is now working with multiple fitness chains including Hilefit and Keepland, as well as some primary and middle schools, to offer the dance in more than 30 cities nationwide.

"Most of our members said the classes help them blow off steam and cheer up," Li said.

She is surprised that many men and middle-aged and senior people have joined the pop dance classes.

Li believes most people can easily learn the dance moves and feel like a "superstar" while burning off enough calories to stay in shape. She believes this combination of factors is why the dance is growing in popularity.

"Pop dance covers diverse styles and updates every three months to incorporate the latest trendy music and dancing elements," Li said, adding that all the moves they include in the lessons are based on class members' preferences.

The full measure of the public's enthusiasm for the dance genre was witnessed at recent dance promotional events at Peking University and open space plazas in Beijing, Li said. "The tickets sold out within seconds after they were released," she said.

Many of the pop dance trainers are part-time. Li said she also encourages them to create their own style based on the essential dance moves and added they should enjoy being innovative.

Jiang Weichen, 35, became a full-time pop dance instructor in 2021 after quitting his medical equipment business.

He studied and trained in dance at college, but didn't choose it as a career.

His business wasn't doing well when he started dancing again at the gym. "It rekindled my passion for dance, which brought positive energy back into my life," said Jiang, who lives in Beijing and works at gyms in Changping and Chaoyang districts.

Many of his dance students have become his friends.

"They surprised me by bringing cakes to the class on my birthday, and seeing them enjoy my class has given me confidence to carry on with my new course in life," he said.

Jiang gives two to three classes a day and almost all of them are fully booked.

"I want to become a coach for trainers in the future, and I believe there's huge potential in the business, as people are paying more attention to fitness," he said.

Feng, from the Haidian gym, says he makes time every week to take four to five advanced dance training sessions for himself. "I'm still a novice in the business. Many of my teachers have danced for more than a decade," Feng said.

"I will keep exploring different dance genres and express myself through multiple platforms and hopefully evolve into a warrior on the dance floor," he said.