Take Zumba, add water

Aqua Zumba is new version of the popular fitness program

The slogan says it all: Ditch the workout, join the party.

It's that kind of light-hearted mentality that is inspiring people in the Valley and the rest of the world to burn some serious amount of calories while having fun.

Zumba has become a standard at Lehigh Valley gyms, with about 545 classes found within 25 miles of Allentown. Since the fitness style was popularized in 2001, it has acquired new shapes. One of the most dashing: Aqua Zumba.

Offered in a handful of locations in the area, it takes the dazzling music and energy of Zumba and brings it to the pool. It's made of seductive dance moves, laughter and endurance-building choreographies that thrive on water's resistance to make you sweat without you realizing it.
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"It doesn't feel like you are working," says Karen Burger-Lewis, a South Whitehall resident who recently participated in an Aqua Zumba class at the West End location of the 24-7 Fitness Club in Allentown. "You are sweating but you are not sweaty."

Aqua Zumba is also an asset for people who suffer from joint conditions that keep them from high-impact exercises on the ground. Playing in the water allows them to build strength without straining. It is also a good way to defy the sweltering summer heat.

"I only do aquatic stuff 'cause I hate to exercise," Burger-Lewis admits. "It's good exercise. And it's fun. You punch the water instead of the boss."

In just a decade, Zumba has grown from a happy accident to worldwide phenomenon. One day in the mid 1990s, Albert "Beto" Perez darted off to teach an aerobics class in his native Colombia and forgot his traditional aerobic music. He improvised using a mix from the salsa and merengue tapes that he had in his backpack.

People could not stop smiling as they followed him in the class. The energy electrified the room. That energy is still reverberating in gyms around the globe.

The concept exploded later in Miami thanks to the business savvy of entrepreneurs Alberto Perlman and Alberto Aghion. The three Albertos created Zumba Fitness in 2005 and have not stopped innovating. First came the DVDs, then the apparel and now you can find Zumba for Wii, Xbox and PS3.

The Zumba promoters attribute its success to its vivacious Latin music and dance moves. This was likely indispensable for its initial success in Miami, but what's interesting about this style is that it seems to ring true to everyone irrespective of culture. It invigorates that universal human yearning to move and to play.

Laura Warmkessel teaches her own version of Aqua Zumba. While she follows the standard Aqua Zumba choreography, she doesn't use the recommended Latin Zumba music playlist. And it still works. Short of a J.Lo hit or Lou Bega's "Mambo No. 5," her music has little Latin influences. But her students dance, splash and smile to Rihanna's songs with the same excitement that salsa aficionados display when they are dancing to the original Zumba music.

The beat is contagious and boisterous enough to trigger the desired response. A few minutes into the class, and people forget the water temperature — cold enough to make you shiver at the beginning of class. Inhibitions slide off and in little time you find yourself dancing in the water, looking like a fool and enjoying every minute of it.

The water movements make you feel like you are dancing in slow motion. While the effort might not seem evident at first, people soon begin to take small breaks, showing that the party also takes its toll. Amid all the spraying, the swerving and the dives, you can burn around 400 calories in an hour-long class. Regular Zumba classes are said to eliminate between 500 to 800 calories.

"If you don't sleep well," Warmkessel says, "I'm not doing my job."


Source Milton Carrero

Posted in 24-7 Fitness Club , aqua zumba , Aqua Zumba class , latin dance , salsa dance , zumba classes , zumba fitness , zumba music