I've got ZUMBA Fever & the ONLY Prescription is More COW BELL! Inspired by a Stranger, My Story.

Hi Bloggie Readers :) It's been awhile, but something has happened to me that I can't hold in anymore! ZUMBA FITNESS.

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I like to dance, eat, drink my wine & be merry. I was always athletic as a child & still take dance classes, but once you hit a certain age, sports fall-out of the mix & the boring GYM comes into place. This has left me a jaded gym goer... lets face it people, the treadmill hurts my knees, the elliptical (only God knows how that's spelled) is too easy, the stair-master is TORTURE and NOBODY likes doing traditional crunches, don't lie. ;) Thus, I have lost my motivation & love for working out/being active... which isn't good for a MAJOR cheese-wine lover...

An Idea is Born:

As someone who was NOT thoozed about going to the gym- I was enticed when my best friend, Jessica, suggested I go to http://www.zumba.com/us/ to sign up for the ZUMBA Certification Workshop to become an instructor. You see, Jessica knew how much I loved Latin music & dancing, so she suggested I become a Zumba Instructor because this type of workout is packed with dance, cardio, fitness, fun & great music... all packed into a 40 minute class. She was trying to motivate me, but the price for the workshop was holding me back (about $200). I thought, could this REALLY be fun for me, is it worth that type of money, am I ready to commit to this? I had a few more friends mention that I would be perfect for Zumba, but I was still not ready to commit to the idea. It wasn't until my cousin, Gina, mentioned that she wanted to try the Zumba Workshop & asked me to try it with her that I realized this is something BIG calling my name. (I believe in signs & fate). To have so many people believe in me, finally made me believe in me.

I signed up for the Zumba Workshop & hoped that I wasn't wasting $200 bucks & a WHOLE Saturday (8:15am-6:30pm) on a workshop... Yes, I'm a social butterfly that would be pissed if I gave up my whole Saturday to do something I didn't like. Needless to say, I went out the night before for a friend's birthday & thought to myself, "Wow, I have to get up in a few hours to workout for 5 hours- what am I getting MYSELF IN TO?" The next morning I jumped out of bed with nerves & excitement, I was ready to try something new. Someone once told me that the ONLY way to make change in your life is to do things that are out of your comfort zone. The truth is, I LIKE my comfort zone, it's hard to try new things, but for some reason I was excited for this one.
 My cousin & I arrived at 24 Hour Fitness in Hasbrook Heights at 8:30am, we signed in and went to the fitness room. There were over 50 girls sitting around waiting to get started... all different ages, races, shapes & sizes (oh and 1 male- which was impressive because Zumba is 80% female). It made me comfortable knowing that ANYONE can do this, you don't have to be a super star to be a Zumba Instructor. I chugged my red bull & thought to myself, this feels right... and the day had not even started yet.

How it Happened:

Tanya Beardsley, the main instructor & teacher glides across the floor, introduces herself & says, "are you guys ready to dance?" Helllll YA I thought... (mind you, I'm some1 who is in a bad mood until about 11:30 in the morning, the AM & I are NOT friends). So the Zumba Master class begins & OH MY GOD it was amazing. We did merengue, salsa, cubia, reggaeton, belly dancing moves (& more) squats, jumps, lunges, abs, arms, legs, cardio & toning. The music was amazing, upbeat, fun & current! I noticed that the WHOLE time the instructor did not talk or yell AT like traditional fitness class.  Zumba is based on non-verbal cues and following the instructors moves (monkey see, monkey do). The instructor danced around the room, stopped & danced with students, laughed, sang to the music & electrified the room with her personality & LOVE for Zumba. I was HOOKED... not only was it FUN, I got one of the BEST workout's I have had in a long long looooong time! Seriously, my WHOLE body hurts.

After taking a number of classes & courses that day I knew I was made to be a part of the Zumba Culture. Even the lecture portion of the workshop was interesting & inspiring. Tanya B (Instructor) taught us what the blue print of Zumba is & we learn the formula of how to choreograph our routines for classes. The thing I loved the most about it is that your workout is BASED off of your music. It's ALL about the music! 70% of your music needs to be international, 30% is your own music- 35% of your class must contain a warm-up & cool down. We learned that the key is to memorized you music, it helps you memorize your routine, feel comfortable teaching & make the class a fun atmosphere. She broke down the music & showed us exactly how to prepare a great routine.  It was clear that Zumba was made to make exercise fun, not "pretend" fun like some classes you have been to... like REAL fun, REAL dance, Freedom, Great music & Non-judging atmosphere. A-MAZ-ING!

So to make a long story, short- Zumba Fitness is an AMAZING workout, that's fun & extremely inspiring.  The class is based on international rhythm dance fitness and they aren't kidding when they say "Come join the party!" On that note here is my cousin's Zumba Profile if you want to try a class: http://77673.zumba.com/  (I'm still preparing & need to find a place to teach- so if you know of a GYM or Dance Studio that needs a Zumba Instructor, please contact me).

If you are interested in trying a workshop, definitely go to zumba.com, it's worth the money! Just a heads up, there are other certifications you need to consider to be a safe/great instructor (which I am working on now).

Thanks for listening & I hope I've inspired you to get OFF the couch & Try ZUMBA, it won't let you down! I am officially ZUMBAFIED, lol.

Here's a video Clip of what ZUMBA is like: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf0q6qtThF4 (watch the whole thing to see how it's cardio, dance & toning!)

Love Always, CJ :)

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