The presents have been opened and the mince pies have been eaten: Christmas is over but for some of us, the little extra Christmas weight still remains. January brings with it the bitter cold making many of us want to hibernate in bed and watch movies with some tea and toast; the idea of a workout at the gym is a distant, dull and daunting option. But what if we told you that getting into shape could be as easy as grooving on the dance floor on a night out with the girls? For a chance to meet new people, to break away from the monotony of the gym or to simply let loose, try Zumba.
Zumba (translating from Spanish as slang for “to buzz like a bee”) is a total-body cardio dance workout, encompassing a combination of Latino, Salsa, Samba, Mambo, Reggae, Hip-Hop, Bollywood and other international dance genres. It was founded by Alberto “Beto” Perez, a Columbian fitness instructor, who didn’t realise that when he forgot his tape for his aerobics class and so instead used a spare tape consisting of traditional Latino tracks, a fitness dance craze would be born. Zumba classes are now fashionable in over 150 different countries, with celebs such as Jennifer Lopez, Emma Watson and Victoria Beckham being fans. And because of its low-impact and adaptable nature, it is popular with all ages.
So last week I, like the other 14 million Zumba-lovers worldwide, let my curiosity take over and booked myself into a Zumba session. I was keen to see whether I indeed would catch onto the trend and “buzz like a bee” or whether it would be more of a wasp sting.
Izzy, our instructor, led us through a variety of upbeat, exotic tunes by performing dynamic, colourful dance moves. We were pumping our arms to Pitbull, jumping around to JLo and shimmying and shaking our hips to Shakira. I felt more like I was on the top floor of Timepiece rather than in any calorie-burning environment. Izzy grinned and whooped, encouraging us to join her (“it burns more calories!”). The awkward, anticipating silence that had permeated the room prior to the instructor’s arrival was no more. Looking around me, I saw smiles, bright eyes, even some singing (the odd “Arriba!”): I was in a room full of girls who, for the 1 hour duration that the Zumba beats played, were a confident unit of girl power and positivity, thoroughly enjoying ourselves and working out. Quite different from the somber, humourless, unrelenting atmosphere that of which fills the gym, abundant with blank faces and silent apart from the heavy hits of feet to treadmills or strained groans of people in pain. I know where I’d rather be.
As the session ended, I was left feeling tired and sweaty and almost slightly guilty: burning calories isn’t usually fun so how come I’d had such a good time? Baffled at how I hadn’t tried this before, I grabbed Izzy to have a quick chat. I asked her how she had heard about it: “My mum!” she said. “She used to go and one day she took me with her. From then on I was addicted and would go four or five times a week!” I went on to ask her why this form of exercise in disguise stood out as opposed to other dance-based fitness classes. “Zumba is actual dancing, not just monotonous routines. There’s no right or wrong; the point of it is to get lost in the music and work out. I love seeing people come out of their shell and gain confidence as they’re dancing, it’s like one big party!”
We know that working up a sweat during Zumba burns calories, helping us to keep fit or lose weight but Izzy told me that there were other health benefits too. “My cardio endurance has obviously increased since doing Zumba- it sometimes takes me 45 minutes to work up a sweat- but I have also become much more toned and flexible. My New Years resolution is to be able to do the splits: I used to be nowhere near but thanks to Zumba it’s getting easier.”
As previously mentioned, Zumba is a great option as it can be varied and altered easily to fit certain levels of fitness, making it popular with women of all ages. Izzy told me about Zumba Gold, the Zumba class open to people aged 40+. “Some people develop arthritis or soreness as they get older, simply because they aren’t using their joints enough” Izzy said. “In the Middle East, for example, less people tend to have knee or lower back problems due to the fact that many toilets are simply holes in the ground so people have to squat more daily. Zumba is a great option as it helps to strengthen joints and use parts of your body you wouldn’t usually. Zumba Gold especially focuses on this too!”
Finally, I asked her for her favourite Zumba move. “Probably the Beto seven” she grinned, and then demonstrated a squatting body pump, moving her arms out in front of her and then to different parts of her body, kind of like a more complicated version of the Macarena. “That’s another health benefit- moving different parts of your body so that they do different things actually helps co-ordination and the connection between the left and right side of your brain!” Another reason to take it up!
Overall, I was really impressed with my Zumba session. Indeed, for the body-builders or fitness fanatics, it may be slightly tame but for those of us looking to shed the Christmas pounds or to tone up, it’s perfect. You may not have the high-impact intensity workout you get from hitting the treadmill for the same length of time, but it’s a cracking start with triple the fun factor and so I highly recommend it.
Image Credits: pinterest.com