Zumba—Party, Party

I walked in the room and was instantly electrified with energy. Who could help it? Probably 50 people, talking, laughing, waiting with excitement for the Zumba class to start at the  in Ashdale Plaza.

Zumba is a Latin-inspired dance-fitness program that blends international music with fun, easy to follow steps. The music moves you through one song after another so you don’t even notice how many repetitions of the various steps you are doing.

I felt like I’d just walked into a dance party. Our instructor started out upbeat and only gained strength as she went on. I was glad I’d taken a Zumba class before because this was not the best place to learn steps—but even steps I wasn’t familiar with were easy to follow so long as you kept your feet moving fast. Several of the regulars in the class had scarves with jingles tied around their waists, adding a fun dimension to the hips and hops. 

Zumba was created in the mid-1990s by fitness instructor Alberto "Beto" Perez in Cali, Colombia, after he had to improvise one day with his aerobics class because he forgot his normal music. He pulled out his own music mix and spontaneously turned the class into a dance-fitness party.  In 2001, he brought Zumba to Miami, Florida, and before long it took off and was in demand across America.

Zumba prides itself on being more like a party than a workout class and this class more than lived up to its reputation. Everyone was grinning, swinging, and having fun the whole time. 

I was definitely the uncoordinated white girl in the group (why do African-Americans get all the dancing genes?), but I was consoled by the fact that we were moving too fast for anyone to be watching me.

It wasn’t just cardio work either, you got a good strength training—taking low steps with your knees bent, leaning deep out to the side and back, hops, dips, fast rolling your fists, knee lifts, kicks, even standing crunches in time to the music.

The music was the best part—all upbeat, all fun, all easy to hit the beats, and most of it with an international twist, some Latino, some Middle Eastern, some sounding almost gospel. There were short breaks in between each song as it switched tracks, but you were moving, usually fast, from start to finish of each song.

Everyone in that room was sweating before the class was over no matter their fitness level. Like on a dance floor, those at a higher fitness level simply dipped deeper, hopped higher, and swung faster.

Remember to bring:

• Water. You’ll want it on the short breaks and won’t have time to run to the drinking fountain.
• Good shoes. You’ll need to stay light on your feet, but will also want support.
• Your sense of fun. I dare you to leave without smiling.