Back in 2008, I wanted to know too. I attended my first Zumba Fitness training with instructors I had never heard of - Tanya Beardsley and Janie Roberts.
Turned out to be very different than any other training I had attended over my ten-year fitness career.
What made it different? These people were seriously focused on fitness, but most importantly, seriously fun.
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I learned that the Zumba® program is a fitness-party with a contagious blend of Latin and international rhythms that provides a fun and effective workout.
Tanya and Janie made it crystal clear. No one wants to work out, but everyone loves to party; and an instructor's mission is to help you want to work out, to love working out, and to get hooked.
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I was already in a long-term relationship with fitness, but now I was in love with Zumba and sharing that experience with others.
I was given the opportunity to create a live Zumba class blending upbeat world rhythms with easy-to-follow choreography, providing effective, total-body workouts. It was so much fun.
Up until 2008 I had lost about 30 pounds and stopped. Since sharing Zumba (and some yoga too) at our studio, I dropped another 20, for a 50-pound total weight loss.
The last 20 shook off my body in Zumba classes - I am convinced of that. My yoga practice helped me to stabilize my thoughts, thus letting go of the compulsion to overeat. My students experienced the same success.
Zumba changes people’s attitudes from “I really should work out,” to, “when is the next Zumba class?”
It is impossible to leave a Zumba class in a bad mood. My Zumba people (I call them my “Zeeps”), just like to have fun.
An average Zumba Fitness class burns 742 calories – no wonder Zumba people drop so much weight.
Over the years, Zumba has evolved into the largest branded fitness program in the world -- reporting more than 14 million weekly class participants, in over 140,000 locations, across more than 150 countries.
The two ladies that taught me the basics, Tanya Beardsley and Janie Roberts, turned out to be international Zumba superstars - inspiring thousands of new Zumba Fitness instructors and appearing in infomercials and Zumba DVD's.
So yes, Zumba is pretty serious. Seriously fun.
Finding a class is easy - go to zumba.com and search by your location or by an instructors name.
Join the party!