Zumba is a blend of latin dance (think cha cha, salsa, rumba, etc) and hip-hop/free style set to fun music, which can be anything from latin music to Shakira to Justin Timberlake...anything! I started Zumba at my Fishers gym over a year ago, and I haven't missed too many classes since! This is partly because of the instructors at my gym who keep Zumba fun and energizing and motivating. In fact, I love Zumba so much that I was still doing Zumba the Monday before Noelle was born (on Thursday), and I returned to Zumba when she was 3 weeks old.
I love Zumba for many reasons. 1) It's a great workout. I get sweaty and hot and feel very validated after the class is over. The 55 minutes go very quickly, and I feel like I am working every muscle in my body.
2) It's hilarious at times. I'm not being mean, because I am not the world's best dancer, but sometimes the sight of 60 different people's personal styles combining and interpreting one instructor's dance moves...oh my. I love to see little old ladies or sometimes men (the brave few who come) shake their booties or gyrate in the mirror (yes...I said gyrate). I also love to observe the outfits that people wear. I have seen everything from house slippers, to jean shorts, to dress shirts, to belly dancing belts with all the jingly things on them, to full on Zumba logo apparel, to daisy duke shorts, to authentic sweatbands across the forehead. It's truly a fashion show on any given Monday or Wednesday. It's also hilarious because at one point, there were about 4 pregnant women in there (including me), and some of the moves are just NOT meant for pregos...but we did them anyway!
3) The music is fun. Most of the music is in Spanish, and I like to make up my own lyrics because my 4 years of HS Spanish and my 1 semester in college just don't give me enough knowledge to interpret all of the words. It's fun to mouth the "words," knowing full and well that you don't know what you're saying and none of it makes any sense.
4) It's great body motivation. There are some people with rockin' bods in that class, and it is great inspiration to keep it going on the SLIM chance you could EVER look like them. You also get lots of practice trying out new dance moves...and when you are a bonafide white girl like me, you need all the help you can get.
5) You make friends. Because women are women, we tend to want to stand in the same place each class and only socialize with the immediate group around us, thus creating our own Zumba cliques. I am in one that's pretty cool. In fact, another "member" in the "group" includes Ashley, who was pregnant the same time as me, who actually ended up having her son the same day Noelle was born, just 45 minutes earlier! Pretty cool! Grayson and Noelle go to the gym childcare together now, and they are destined to be soul mates! The other girls in our "group" are so nice and fun...and thoughtful, too. They made us (other Ashley and me) diaper cakes before our babies were born.
So, Zumba...thank you for my twice weekly escape from life...for providing a place where I can shake what my mama didn't give me and not feel bad about it. I look forward to you each week and know that I am guaranteed to get a great workout and have an awesome time!
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