Stephanie Walsh isn’t your average hip-hop dancer. At 75, “Ms. Stephanie” is still able to hold her own on the dance floor, popping and locking with people a third her age, and she loves it.
When you see her dance—and her enviable muscle tone—you might think she’d been a trained dancer all her life. But she actually didn’t take any formal dance lessons until she was almost 30.
Walsh told Growing Bolder that she had wanted her daughter to dance when she was little, so she got her ballet lessons, which the daughter hated. Realizing that dancing was her dream and not her daughter’s, Walsh took her kiddo out of ballet and started classes herself right away.
She had always loved to dance and developing her skills only led to more and more dancing.
These days, Ms. Stephanie gets her dance moves on at Fusion Fitness, where she encourages people to “dance like EVERYONE is watching.” One video of her dancing at Fusion has gone viral multiple times, and it’s easy to see why. Check this out:
@fiercefitnessty Reposting this video of Ms.Stephanie & I since it going viral again. This video will always be a vibe. One thing Ms.Stephanie and I created was magic. We dance from our hearts. My classes are always about creating a Fierce vibe for everyone to show up and show out! . #fiercefitness #dancefit #fiercefitnessty #hiphopfitness #fyp #viral
“Reposting this video of Ms.Stephanie & I since it going viral again,” shared @fiercefitnessty on TikTok. “This video will always be a vibe. One thing Ms.Stephanie and I created was magic. We dance from our hearts. My classes are always about creating a Fierce vibe for everyone to show up and show out!”
It’s not just the dancing. It’s the intensity. It’s the full presence in the moment in her face and in her movements. She’s there for it, and she brings everybody with her.
“It’s the “I’m a badass” facial expression for me! ” wrote one commenter on Facebook.
“I dislocated my shoulder just watching that ” shared another.
“She can throw it back like the rest of them. You go girl!” shared another.
Walsh shared that dancing has helped her get through many difficult periods in her life. Watch her share her story:
Love it when people prove that age truly is just a number.
The studio set up a fan page for Ms. Stephanie on Instagram, where you can see more of her joyful dancing here.
This article originally appeared on 10.20.23