Zumba is the latest global craze and it’s no wonder Australia has been quick to embrace this cool new fitness trend. Zumba is a Latin dance fitness experience suitable for anyone. As a teacher, people always have exercise questions and concerns. I say exercise, but it’s often referred to as a “party” which means it’s such a fun and easy watch you won’t even know you’re working out. Exercising doesn’t have to be boring anymore and with Zumba it doesn’t. The music is motivating, the movements are stimulating, the classroom atmosphere is stimulating. In this article, you will find the basic key points to help with your Zumba experience.
Zumba is a great way to exercise. It’s often called “the masked exercise” because it is. People who take Zumba classes always say they don’t work out, and that’s the idea behind Zumba. It takes all of your favorite Latin rhythms (merengue, bachata, cumbia, salsa, reggaeton, mambo, cha cha and other styles including belly dance and flamenco) and simplifies these movements making it easy to follow your workout. Zumba classes include everything you need to workout, lower body, upper body, and without even sitting on the floor to do sit ups, abs!
A one-hour ZUMBA class allows you to burn up to 1,000 calories per session on average, which is great considering what other exercise regimens you have to engage in in order to burn the equivalent amount of calories. Zumba is good for weight loss in both women and men.
Zumba improves coordination. The evidence is right in front of you after attending two or three classes. For those of you Zumba regulars, remember that first class you did? And how was it a bit difficult? Now if you think about how easy the moves are and how you can pick them up more quickly. The proof is there, the more Zumba you do, the better you’ll get, and therefore the better coordination you’ll feel.
Zumba is great for your overall health and fitness level. In an average Zumba class, you’ll be sweating but you shouldn’t be out of breath the whole time. There will be moments during some routines where the heart rate goes up and the workout is more difficult, but then there are the songs with the routine that allows you to get back to normal and therefore makes the workout seem easy. A lady working on the radio the other day from here in Adelaide weighed 120kg, and from doing Zumba 2-3 times a week her weight dropped to 80kg! Zumba is an effective exercise.
Zumba is a workout at your own pace, which everyone should be familiar with. This means that you do any part of the workout that you can and for those parts that are more challenging, you can take it at your own level or simply go on the spot. As long as you keep moving throughout class, you’re doing something good for your body.
The easiest way to learn more about Zumba is to take a class. The classes are informal and there is no pressure to perform the movements on the spot. As a teacher, I tell people that the first class is the hardest, it’s new and probably unlike anything you’ve done before, so you’re entitled to make mistakes. People often come up to me and tell me they are not coordinating. I watch these guys during class and they don’t seem uncoordinated at all!
The moves are repetitive so it gives everyone time to pick up the moves and then later in the routine the moves are repeated again so you have a chance to improve. After the first class, you will find that the movements become easier, your fitness levels are better and your coordination improves. What is the best way to spend an hour of your day?
