Dance your way to health

When her aunt needed therapeutic activity a couple of years ago, Ana Marie Periquet immediately thought of Bykes Cafe located at the La Fuerza Building along Pasong Tamo in Makati City. She frequented their Lounge for the bands, and knew that another section was devoted to social dancing. Since Tita Noemi was like a second mother to her, Ana dutifully accompanied her to the venue thrice a week even as she served as president of four corporations, board member of three other companies, and chairperson for two committees on entrepreneurship on the national and regional levels.

It was the perfect place with clean, cozy interiors. "And the way they dim their lights is just right," she says. "You don’t feel like you’re in a sleazy place. I’d be proud to be seen at Bykes."

According to Ana, it has the best crowd: young, very hip, and of good breeding. "You end up being friends with all the guests. In three weeks, you beso-beso and in three months, you’re part of one big family," she adds.

Ilene Tecson-Limcaco’s twice-a-week visits also offer her a chance to see friends who come here. Like many of them, she has celebrated her birthday here. Why wouldn’t they? The food’s great; the prices, reasonable. And like Ana says, "The mobile sounds are good and so are the bands: Sabor Latino plays every Tuesday and Saturday, JB Band on Mondays, Rhythm in Blue on Wednesdays, Flintstones & the Gang on Thursdays, and Onda Latina on Fridays It’s nice to just hang around and have a drink." Which is exactly what Ilene’s husband likes to do.

"Yes, he dances, but only because it’s a chance to hold me," she laughs. She comes in the afternoon because he prefers her to get home before dark; that parking is never a problem only comes as a bonus.

It’s easy to see just how sensitive management and staff are to guests’ needs. First off, there’s a sofa in the ladies’ powder room that makes getting in and out of dancing shoes easy. Next, the spacious booths make a change of clothes hassle-free. Then, there’s a place to hang wet shirts. Blowing one’s hair dry is a breeze, and the attendant has little clips, rubber bands, and other emergency supplies. Guests also get a lot of personal attention, like having powder or alcohol put on their backs. The rest of the staff is just as warm. Ilene, herself a co-owner of Conrad’s Grill at the international airport, comments that the dance teachers are very courteous, attentive, and have learnt to be gentlemen. They are never fresh, too. Consequently, the clientele is not wont to look down on them and class distinctions are blurred.

"It’s a very decent, wholesome place where dance coaches are well-groomed, disciplined, and have no bad record," Ana confirms.

Several of these dance teachers are in serious dance sport competitions and many of them keep day jobs.

Ana appreciates it that Bykes has everything that a dancer would ever need, even a shoe store, "All that’s lacking is a foot spa," she jokes.

And with the recently introduced Bykes Membership Card, the minimum consumable cover charge for both the Lounge and the Dance Studio is waived. The P1,500 annual fee also gives the member a chance to win a Sanyo Massage Lounger on Dec. 30 and a 2006 Mazda 3 sedan in April next year.

Ana now realizes that her aunt’s therapy has become her passion. Having studied ballet since she was three, she shifted to jazz at 19 after a fall from the top of her GALS team’s human pyramid left her with a twisted pelvic bone. Today, it’s social dancing.

"Bykes is my sanctuary. It’s the crowd it attracts, the place itself, its level of service, food, and having everything one can ask of a dance place. There are two luxuries in my life: the parlor and dancing," the Radyo Negosyo co-anchor confides.

Contrary to popular belief, couples come to Bykes as well. Alfredo Guerrero found out about the dance venue while his wife Luisita was abroad. When she returned, he wasted no time and brought her here. Nowadays, they bring friends along. "It’s like the old club before where you can dance and eat," Alfredo reminisces.

There is one fly in the ointment though. Because he takes dancing lessons from a female DI, Luisita, a natural dancer, is not familiar with the routines he knows. So, she took a lesson from the same DI.

While Luisita claims she comes to Bykes to exercise, Alfredo has lost 40 pounds and Ana, 12 pounds, after having started dancing. Ana’s doctor noticed an improvement in health; she’s aware that her "happy cells" are out. Yet for Ilene, now a grandmother of six, dancing is more than that. She states, "Age is not a matter of numbers, but rather a matter of energy. And dancing enhances my energy."

So dance is her fountain of youth; and she may just be on to something.