Not long ago, I was a couch potato or maybe you can recognize the Swedish word sofftpotatis. I used to put my physical health on the last shelf of the drawer. It was my least of priorities. Why? This is a question that lately I´ve been reflecting on because apparently, I’m not the only one. There are several people out there repeating this pattern over and over and this can due to several factors that perhaps we can talk more about it in another blog post. For the purpose of this piece, I will mention my own excuses or what I used to say to myself.
I don’t have time.
Who is going to take care of the children?
I hate gyms.
The gym is too far.
It’s cold.
I will start tomorrow.
I’m fat.
I don’t like the class.
I can’t follow this instructor
This choreography is hard
I don't have clothes or shoes
I hate the music
Did I miss something on my list :)? What are your own excuses? It will be amazing if you share it with us and we can add more statements (excuses synonymous) to the catalog.
However, If you read all the excuses again, we come down to the beginning; my health was not my concern. What happened in my life to change this? My daughter happened and I started feeling pretty low. I was lacking the energy not only to play with her but to be just me. I was feeling pretty bad physically and mentally. Perhaps, it was postpartum depression but in my situation, It felt different. If I think about it further, I can count that for almost 2 years, I didn't do any regular exercise activity. I needed to find something to stimulate me enough to be active and filled my day with energy.
In this dilemma, I started to think about what physical activities made me happy and motivated me enough in the past. I made my list, and I began to recollect all the group training activities that existed nearby where I lived and three classes emerged: Zumba®, STRONG Nation™, and SOMA MOVE®. I used to do Zumba® and SOMA MOVE® but STRONG Nation™ was totally a new training to check out. Coincidentally, these classes were going to have a trial week and I could test them for free. Hurray!
The funny thing was that trial week was cold and dark. If I recalled right, it was the beginning of the year and the snow was very deep and everywhere. It was the perfect week not to begin training. However, I was finally determined to leave my excuses behind and start.
As I said before, I tried #SOMAMOVE, and even though, I really liked it, the class was only on Mondays and pretty late so I decided not to continue. The next day, I tried #StrongbyZumba which was super good but my condition was not there yet so I gave up because of how frustrated I felt, and finally, on Sunday, I did #Zumba in the evening. This class was fully packed. My teacher was young and energetic and her playlist was filled with a great variety of world music. I felt comfortable and eager to continue. Finally, I have found the class to get my groove back and that's how #Zumba became part of my healthy routine.
My Zumba Class on Sunday in 2018
Zumba has been around since 2001 and more than 14 million people have joined in more than 186 countries. In my personal experience, there are several amazing benefits that made me choose Zumba as my workout and I really hope it will motivate you too.
Fun while your exercise. The classes promote body positivity, with an emphasis on having fun and feeling good about yourself because you are moving to the beat of the music. The idea is that you don’t have to look or move like others in the class, because there is no right or wrong way to dance.
Improves coordination: As with most forms of dancing, the limbs are moving in different directions, and that takes coordination. You might feel awkward doing it at first, but the more you practice, the better you’ll get at following the dance steps and developing a sense of rhythm.
Boosts self-confidence: Zumba involves self-expression through dance and a deeper sense of your body’s abilities. After doing it for a while, people began to feel better about their overall health as they built up their cardiovascular fitness and toned their bodies, which in turn boosted their self-confidence.
Keeps the brain sharp: The dance patterns of Zumba challenge your hand-eye coordination and right-left brain activity. Similar to dancing the Macarena, your arms are doing something entirely different than your legs and these movements require good memory skills to repeat the sequenced steps correctly.
Unveils a variety of world music: There are different music rhythms in every Zumba Class, so it’s easy to find your favorite music on the dance floor. As an Instructor, you have the opportunity to introduce new tunes.
Encourages social interaction: This has been one of my favorite parts of Zumba. I’ve met a lot of fun people who share the same passion for dancing as me, and I’ve started to make friends as well.
Reduces anxiety, stress, and tension: because Zumba is a full-body workout that combines dance and aerobics movements, it allows us to cope, and reduce anxiety, stress, and tension. It allows us to express ourselves, and to communicate without barriers of language or culture, age, or types of bodies. It's all about joining together and having fun while staying physically active.
So, are you ready to incorporate Zumba as part of your training routine 👍? Check my classes schedule here