Early morning work dance parties gaining popularity

SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU) -- At 7 a.m. on Wednesday morning, around 200 people poured into a five-story office building on an alley in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood. However, they didn't come for an early start to their work day; they came to dance!

"I love to dance. It's like my favorite thing in the world! I just realized this recently," Nate Walsh said as his feet kept the beat. "It's a great way to start the day!"

Walsh is a tech writer and event planner. The morning dance party at Galvanize -- a tech start-up and education work community -- is filled with techies who don't usually roll out of bed before 9:00 a.m.

"I got here this morning expecting to go my regular work here," electrician Tony Dedrick said as he looked at the dancers from his second floor perch. "And then all of a sudden, there's a big rave going on! So it's like, people with a bunch of energy early in the morning."

The idea of early morning work raves started in New York and has migrated to San Francisco. Instead of cosmopolitans, there's coffee. The event is part dance party, part networking and all fun.

"I think it just pumps you up," Mark Saldana of Galvanize explained. "It's important to go to work with a lot of energy and I think this is a great way to just, like, go to work in a good mood, you know?

"It just stimulates so much," dancer Courtney Armani said smiling. "When your body's moving, I feel like it gets your brain moving, gets more thoughts moving everywhere. It makes you more creative. Makes you happy!"

In fact, studies have shown dancing can make you feel happier.

"Our lives are pretty constant and they can be monotonous at times. So this is very different," said Chris Russell has he hit the floor, backpack and all. "An hour of dancing in the morning, which I would probably be doing while getting ready for work, is like totally ok!"