My Zumba Story Thus Far...

"Eh, maybe I could...I don't know. I'm not that great."
These are the exact words I said when someone suggested I should be a Zumba instructor. Little did I know, two years later I would be standing in my first class of the New Year, completely filled up.
This journey has barely begun, but I want to go back to the beginning for a moment.

Zumba...what's that?

It all started the night of a health and fitness fair in my high school cafeteria. I was there voluntarily, exploring the various fitness opportunities to get involved with locally. Just then, a hush came over the crowd and five ridiculously fit people lined up in an open area of the room. Momentarily, a merengue song started to play, and they started to move. We all watched as these people started moving very fast to the tempo of the music. I had no clue what was going on, but by the time the song was over, I immediately grabbed a schedule and told my friend that we will go to a class the next day. They called the dance "Zumba". Why? Beats me. 

My first class was nothing short of crazy. We arrived late to a packed class, and we were confined the the back of the studio. At first, I thought it was a party: the room was dark, there were flashing lights and even a disco ball. I couldn't resist whipping out my camera to document this experience (thank goodness I did!) and snapping some photos of the club scene that was happening in there. Next thing I knew, I was breaking a sweat trying to follow the instructor on the elevated stage. She was very precise in her movements and cues, and I attempted to follow each one with the same elegance. Only instead of elegance, it was a workout. Before I knew it, my friend had to leave the studio to take a break because it was so much to handle. I didn't need any break, however. I was loving every second of it.

Once the class ended, the two of us went to Chevy's Mexican Cuisine for some virgin margaritas. I could not stop thinking about the epic hour that had just breezed by. I wanted more. 

Transitioning

In my freshman year of college, I was a Division III cross country runner in the top 7 of the team. I enjoyed the times I had running, but after a while something had changed. Somehow I lost the interest of competing at other colleges and I ultimately wanted to run for leisure, not for an intercollegiate team. So in February of 2012, I quit the team and decided to try something else. But what?

That semester I had to find new ways to stay in shape. I ran a lot, went to the gym and kept a healthy lifestyle. In time I heard about the Zumba classes at SU, and many of my friends suggested I take a class taught by a girl named Mandi. I thought, why not? I've done Zumba before so this can't be too bad.

After attending her class, I decided to keep coming back. Every Tuesday and Friday afternoon was booked for my therapeutic Zumba session. It made me release so much energy and burn many calories that I couldn't get enough. At some point, Mandi had me leading some of the songs all by myself! My confidence rose quicker than I had ever imagined.

Soon, many people including Mandi suggested I try to become a Zumba instructor myself. I did not ever think I could teach a class by myself, so I shrugged at the idea. But I was always curious if there was a possibility of even becoming an instructor, so I went to the main Zumba website and I found a training over the summer in Hagerstown. Without thinking it through, I signed up and I was ready to take on a new challenge.

Zumba Training

In May of 2012, I drove to Hagerstown to complete an eight-hour long training for a Basic Zumba certification. We learned everything from Maria Browning, who taught us everything from Salsa, Merengue, Reggaeton and Cumbia. After the day is over, I received my lovely certificate making me a licensed Zumba Instructor.

A Milestone Reached

Armed with my Zumba license, I was ready to start teaching. I applied to the local gym for SU students, University Fitness Club. It was nerve-wracking to think about teaching at the gym I used to take regular classes at, but nonetheless I made sure I was prepared.

A New Identity

Once I began teaching, I did not know what the turnout was going to be. My first class was nothing short of average, but I  quickly got used to teaching various students of SU. It took me a little bit to get a big group of participants but by the time winter hit, my numbers increased profoundly.

Zumbathons on Zumbathons

Over the course of the year, we as Zumba Instructors put on Zumbathons in which we each teach a portion of a one and a half hour to a two hour class. This is a great opportunity to see all the instructors at their finest, teaching a few of their songs to a huge group of people. Teaching at big events like this also help with promoting your individual classes as well as coming to all the Zumba classes as a whole.

Relay for Life One of my goals since freshman year, Relay for Life is a huge event made to raise money for the American Cancer Society. At some point in the long 12-hour evening, there is a giant Zumba session for all of the student organizations to participate in. I taught twice at this past Relay, and boy was that an experience. So many people came out to do Zumba on the lawn and I felt like the other instructors and I were the center of attention. Early into the set, someone took a whipped cream pie and hit me in the face with it in front of everyone. Despite this, I kept going, never missing a step. Seeing my students and others following me made me feel so incredible. I loved every minute of it and it instantly became the staple of my Zumba career.

Making Connections
There are many ways I like to make my Zumba classes interesting. I incorporate seasonal songs, dress-up for classes and utilize holidays so that people are always enlightened every time they come. Sometimes I perform for on and off campus events for student organizations. As an instructor, I always have to be flexible and willing to try new things.
In general, I love every second I get to teach. This has been by far my favorite job, I mean, when else do you get to shake it on a stage and get paid? (well  I can think of others...)
More importantly, Zumba has become the main reason how most of the people on-campus know or recognize me. "Oh, it's the Zumba instructor" or "Jade, I came to your class last week" or even "JADE OMG I LOVE YOU BE MY BFFAEAEAE <3" 
Okay maybe not the last one, but anywho...
Zumba has given me the power to come out of my shell and show the world my true self. No, I am not the skinniest or biggest woman out there. I haven't lost much weight with this program. I don't even get paid that much to teach. But one thing I do know, is that I don't hold back a thing. Even on my worst days, Zumba has become my way of coping with the stress and pressure of being involved with academics, Greek life, my honors society and many more things. I can put all my worries about life in the past and focus on myself in this moment.
When I teach, I like to yell to my audience. This is not because I am angry, but because I'm fueled. Every time I teach I give my all, and I want to see the same in return. I want to motivate and challenge my students to come to my classes and leave with something new and demanding. The best part about it has to be seeing my regulars memorize routines off the top of their head, and having them come up on the stage to teach a song with me. I could not be more proud of the people who go above and beyond to put everything out there in front of people they don't even know. I'm glad to give opportunities for more people to branch out and try something new, the way I did when I became a Zumba instructor.
Going back to my first quote in the beginning, I never would have guessed I would be sitting here today, typing about how teach Zumba changed my life. My main goal in life is the inspire people to make a change in their lives, and Zumba is a really great way to do just that. It does not matter if you're uncoordinated, as long as you try you will succeed. 
So why did I decided to write about this now? Well, my first class of the spring semester was already a full class. This is a first for me since it takes a few weeks to actually work up to having a packed studio filled with people. This never would have been possible without the support of my students, friends and family. My Zumba journey has only begun and I cannot wait to see more Zumba opportunities arrive in my future. 

I hope Zumba can impact your life the way it has for me.

Happy Zumba'ing!