It’s a workout for my brain!
Julie Halpin, 53, is a fashion editor from London, married to Daniel, 55. They have two teens, Rosie, 18, and Alice, 15.
Some people might challenge themselves with a crossword. But the best way I’ve found to boost my brain power is putting on my tap shoes every Monday evening. Learning a two-minute routine that consists of several complex moves keeps my memory sharp, and challenges my brain in a completely different way to the demands of my career.
It’s also my most effective form of relaxation. As a fulltime working mother I find it very difficult to switch off.
But tap forces me to forget everything else going on in my life. For one hour a week, I’m doing something purely for myself. My mother, Eileen, had signed me up for lessons when
I was five. But, as a teenager, boys and school-work took over.
However, when my older daughter, Rosie, was four, I enrolled her in tap lessons. And, arriving for her first class, I realised just how much I’d been missing it.
Together with my sister, I pleaded with the girls’ teacher, Joanna, to set up an adult class. Thankfully, she agreed.
In an ideal world, I’d practise at home, too, but life takes over and, before you know it, it’s Monday night again and I’m back in class thinking: ‘Oh God, what was it again?’ The responsibility of not embarrassing my classmates as we learn routines for our annual show has kept me going, while tap has also forged common ground with my daughters. Three years ago, Alice and I performed Top Hat, White Tie and Tails, the Thirties routine made famous by Fred Astaire. Before we went on, I was nervous. But afterwards, I wished I could do it again. Hopefully, I’ll still be dancing when I’m a grandmother – and able to tie the ribbons on my own grandchildren’s first tap shoes.