Let’s Get Ready To Zumba!!!!

Yes, I meant zumba; not rumba. What is zumba you ask? It’s an exhilarating, effective, easy-to-follow, Latin-inspired, calorie-burning dance fitness-party that’s moving millions of people toward joy and health. If you have not taken a zumba class, you need to try it just once; you will become hooked. This is exercise that does not feel like exercise because you are having fun.

Can you guess how many calories a person can burn by doing zumba? Approximately 600-1,000 calories (depending on a person’s current weight) can be burned during an hour class. That is almost the same amount of calories burned by a person who is 155lbs if they run for an hour (http://www.nutristrategy.com/caloriesburned.htm). If I had to choose between zumba and running, zumba would be numero uno!

Zumba is not dedicated to a specific age group, body type or level of dancing skills; anyone can do it. When I participated in my first zumba class, I started out fast, ended slow and was exhausted before the class was close to being finished. Obviously, it should have been the other way around but I was determined to keep up with the instructor. After a few classes, I learned how to pace myself so I could get the full benefits of class and not run out of steam by the third or fourth song. Now I am able to do the entire hour class without easing to the side to catch my breath.

I attend Zumba with Mia in Hillsboro, NJ. Mia (aka Sgt. Zumba) makes the class fun which in turn pushes me to give it my all. As you may recall from a previous blog, I don’t like to sweat. Unfortunately, in Sgt. Zumba’s class sweating is not optional. As Mia's music transitions through an array of Latin, Hip/Hop, and even Country music, the students in the class increase the intensity of their moves. (There goes my fresh perm that is supposed to last for 4-6 weeks).

Visit Mia on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ZUMBAMIA to find the current dates/times of her classes. If Hillsborough is a distance for you to travel, you can locate a zumba class in your area at http://www.zumba.com/.

Sister/Friends, I encourage you to try a zumba class. Trust me when I say you will be doing some of the moves in your car, at your desk or in a store when you hear one of the songs played in the class. I will close with a quote from Martha Graham, "Dance is the hidden language of the soul of the body."

Be Inspired and Inspire Someone