The beautiful art form of modern dance has been admired and meticulously practiced by dancers for years, many of them for most of their lives. Whether you've been dancing for a few years or since you were born, every dancer knows these nine truths about the sport that was both our passion and number one stressor.

Every living and breathing free moment you ever had was spent at the dance studio.

Once school was over, it was time for dance. No questions asked. A normal night at the studio was about four to five hours long and involved many brown bag and microwaveable dinners.

When someone asked if you could do something with them, the usual response was, “I can’t. I have dance.”

It’s not that I don’t want to hang out with you… It’s that I can’t hang out with you.

You spent more time at the dance studio than you did at home.

It’s totally normal to see your family before you leave for school and when you get home at 10 o’clock at night, right?

Your backpack went everywhere with you.

But most of your homework probably didn't get done until after dance.

If you weren’t stretching, warming up, or dancing, you were taking advantage of that free time to put a dent into your homework.

Hey… That College Algebra wasn’t gonna figure itself out. There is no such thing as bedtime for a dancer with homework.

You grew up with a pound of makeup constantly on your face, especially if you were competitive.

Black smokey eye, winged eyeliner, fake eyelashes, red lipstick, pink blush…the whole shebang. The best part about dance makeup was getting to take off the dance makeup.

Dance is a sport.

It requires skill and physical ability. Competitions have set rules for competing dancers. End of discussion.

Everyone at the studio was family.

They were studio family and they were and still are great.They were there to help build you up and make you a better dancer and in turn they helped make you a better person.

All the hard work you put in was worth it in the end.

Dance might have been one of the most stressful things in your life, but it also one of the absolute best parts about your life. The countless hours spent perfecting routines with teachers and fellow students made it everything worth it when you got to perform for the people you loved and share your passion with them.