Zen Den

This article was written by Johnell Smalls

As I approached the door I heard music blaring from inside. It was a mix between reggaeton and hip hop. Women decked out in their work out gear, their game faces on. This was not going to be easy. I love to dance so I was definitely up for the challenge. It was time to Zumba.

Zumba is a dance, fitness, exercise program. It was created by Alberto Perez whose vision was to make exercise fun. Perez’ inspiration came when he forgot music for an aerobics class he was teaching. He was forced to use some latin music tapes he had on him. From then on his class became the most popular at the gym. He combined Latin music with a variation of steps and moves and Zumba was born.

My instructor started off with easy steps. I had myself psyched that this would be a piece of cake. I found it to be very much like aerobics with a twist of Latin music. Within a few minutes I noticed I was breathing a little harder, my heart rate was going up and I popped a sweat. Tripping over my own feet, I glanced at the women around me who seemed to have it down and thought how many times would I have to come to Zumba class to dance with such ease?

Kristina Beasley, a grad student at Clark Atlanta University said,“I’ve been doing Zumba since 2005.” Beasley said every class is different and instructors like to concentrate on different parts of the body, “It really shapes the whole body and its fun.”

Zumba like many other fitness programs is an option to think about if you want to tone up your body. Even if it’s not about losing weight, it’s an fun activity to try out.

Below is a video of Zumba instructor, Marie Moore in Atlanta doing a few steps.
Zumba Atlanta with Maria Moore

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