Martha Madison (Belle, DAYS OF OUR LIVES) has reunited with her first love. And, NO, it's not a big, strapping hunk of a man. "I was an avid dancer in a previous life, and I've finally gotten back to the studio," shares Madison. "I am dancing twice a week at The Edge in Los Angeles and loving every minute of it. It's a jazz class. We do a great warmup, a little bit of technique, and then a fun combination. The teacher is wonderful and I always feel so good when I leave."

Madison credits ons-creen nemesis Heather Lindell (Jan) with reintroducing her to the hobby she's long loved. "Heather dragged me to class. I went sort of kicking and screaming, saying, 'My dancing days are over,'" admits Martha with a laugh. "It's just an age issue after a while. It isn't fun any more, because it's painful when you're dancing at a certain level for so long. Everything hurts, all the time. But I went. I felt like I needed to, and I realized I missed it. I've really gotten into it and it's reminded me of all the reasons why the pain is worth it. I'm enjoying being back."

During her teen years, Madison used to be a dancing fool. "I danced six days a week all through high school and college and then, after that, when I lived in New York," notes Madison. "I got involved in musical theater and the dance program in high school. I was the head of the dance team at Texas A&M University and studied musical theater at the American Musical & Dramatic Academy in New York."

But when Martha learned that she was "completely tone deaf," her dreams of making it to the Broadway stage quickly disappeared. "If I could sing, I'd be dancing right now," she assures.

These days, Madison is content simply dancing for the fun of it. "It's something that I trained to do and something that has always been my passion," says Martha, noting that she's proficient in everything from ballet to jazz to tap to hip-hop. "Somehow, it fell by the wayside. I'm so happy to be doing it again. It's fun and great exercise. Plus, you can always tell, immediately, when I get back from a class. My posture is good. If I don't dance for a couple of days, I go right back to slouching."

While Madison hasn't shown off any of her new moves to her DAYS co-stars, they can occasionally catch a glimpse of her dance training on set. "When I get nervous or antsy, I start tapping," she laughs.