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Fitness while having fun
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| Members of M&M Fitness Center work up a sweat performing the latest Latin-style dance — Zumba. Zumba includes music from several genres — including cumbia, merengue, salsa, reggaeton, hip-hop, pop, mambo, rumba, flamenco, calypso and Salsaton. Currently, there is only one class offered at 4:30 p.m. on Mondays, but the gym hopes to expand to another day and time. JASON MATTHEW WALKER/Lake City Reporter |
Zumba incorporates dance-style moves into an areobic fitness workout.
By TROY ROBERTS
troberts@lakecityreporter.com
Gyrating hips, stomping feet and outstretched arms are all part of a new exercise craze that is sweeping the nation.
Zumba, an aerobics fitness program that combines Latin rhythms and easy-to-follow dance moves, is one of the newest and most popular exercise programs across the world, and the newest aerobics class offered at M&M Fitness Center in Lake City.
Inspired by Latin dance and music, Zumba uses a variety of styles in its routines, including cumbia, merengue, salsa and reggaeton, and various music styles that include both fast and slow rhythms to help tone and sculpt the body while burning fat.
“It’s a lot of fun, and you dance your way into fitness,” said certified instructor Mary Fuller. “It’s not just a regular old routine, but more like a dance party. Basically it’s exercise in disguise. It’s a Latin-based cardio dance fitness workout, designed for everybody — any age, any fitness level, any background.”
Fuller is one of more than 20,000 instructors in more than 35 countries worldwide and teaches a weekly class at M&M Fitness every Monday. She has taught the program for approximately six months since it was introduced at the fitness center.
“We knew it was out there and that it was extremely popular and requested across the country, so we thought we would offer it too,” said M&M’s Carrie Doppler. “It’s something that is new and exciting for our members.”
While Zumba currently is a growing craze, its roots trace back to the mid-1990s when creator “Beto” Perez was teaching aerobics in his native Columbia. When he forgot his dance tapes and had to make do with his Latin salsa and merengue tapes, Zumba was born. The class soon became his most popular and has continued to grow.
It’s easy-to-pick-up nature is likely one of the reasons Zumba has taken off as it has, Fuller said. She said classes consist of people of all ages, from teenagers to seniors.
“You don’t have to be a dancer to do this,” she said. “You don’t have to be a fitness guru — you just have to have fun. It’s easy to follow and appeals to all audiences.”
Fuller said new routines and music are added monthly so the program never grows stale.
“I think that people just need to come try it,” she said. “They’ll find out they don’t need a lot of expertise. When you’re doing Zumba, you’re standing on the floor, there is no equipment to deal with, just yourself.
It’s cardio, it’s dance, you’re using your core and your arms and your legs and it’s really an amazing workout.”
Currently, M&M offers one class of Zumba at 4:30 p.m. on Mondays but is looking to add other classes each week with a Sunday afternoon class, possibly on tap for the beginning of the year. And with those New Year’s resolutions of weight loss likely on many people’s minds, Zumba could be the fitness activity that many are looking for to break from the traditional norm of exercise.
For more information about the program, call M&M Fitness at 752-0749.
Zumba, an aerobics fitness program that combines Latin rhythms and easy-to-follow dance moves, is one of the newest and most popular exercise programs across the world, and the newest aerobics class offered at M&M Fitness Center in Lake City.
Inspired by Latin dance and music, Zumba uses a variety of styles in its routines, including cumbia, merengue, salsa and reggaeton, and various music styles that include both fast and slow rhythms to help tone and sculpt the body while burning fat.
“It’s a lot of fun, and you dance your way into fitness,” said certified instructor Mary Fuller. “It’s not just a regular old routine, but more like a dance party. Basically it’s exercise in disguise. It’s a Latin-based cardio dance fitness workout, designed for everybody — any age, any fitness level, any background.”
Fuller is one of more than 20,000 instructors in more than 35 countries worldwide and teaches a weekly class at M&M Fitness every Monday. She has taught the program for approximately six months since it was introduced at the fitness center.
“We knew it was out there and that it was extremely popular and requested across the country, so we thought we would offer it too,” said M&M’s Carrie Doppler. “It’s something that is new and exciting for our members.”
While Zumba currently is a growing craze, its roots trace back to the mid-1990s when creator “Beto” Perez was teaching aerobics in his native Columbia. When he forgot his dance tapes and had to make do with his Latin salsa and merengue tapes, Zumba was born. The class soon became his most popular and has continued to grow.
It’s easy-to-pick-up nature is likely one of the reasons Zumba has taken off as it has, Fuller said. She said classes consist of people of all ages, from teenagers to seniors.
“You don’t have to be a dancer to do this,” she said. “You don’t have to be a fitness guru — you just have to have fun. It’s easy to follow and appeals to all audiences.”
Fuller said new routines and music are added monthly so the program never grows stale.
“I think that people just need to come try it,” she said. “They’ll find out they don’t need a lot of expertise. When you’re doing Zumba, you’re standing on the floor, there is no equipment to deal with, just yourself.
It’s cardio, it’s dance, you’re using your core and your arms and your legs and it’s really an amazing workout.”
Currently, M&M offers one class of Zumba at 4:30 p.m. on Mondays but is looking to add other classes each week with a Sunday afternoon class, possibly on tap for the beginning of the year. And with those New Year’s resolutions of weight loss likely on many people’s minds, Zumba could be the fitness activity that many are looking for to break from the traditional norm of exercise.
For more information about the program, call M&M Fitness at 752-0749.
