Zumba!

If you know me in real life, or have been reading this blog for any extended length of time, you know that I do not like to exercise.

I know, it's awful and it's unhealthy, and how is it possible I hate to exercise so much when my husband is a triathlete.

I blame it on genetics. Sorry, Dad. :) My mom loves to exercise and so does my sister. My dad... well he would rather build things in his garage. Or watch a good episode of Ax Men on TV. Which is why I would rather do just about anything creative instead of exercising. Or watch a good episode of NCIS. [Or Unforgettable, or Grey's, or Private Practice........]

I played lots of sports growing up, but I am introverted and non-confrontational, so competitive sports make me nervous. The one sport that I did the most of throughout my childhood was dance. I danced from K-5th grade, took a break for basketball and tennis, and then joined the dance team in 9th grade. My high school memories are full of times as a Brainerd Kixter. I'm not sure why I loved competing in dance more than any other sport but I did.

After graduating from high school though, I stopped dancing. They had a dance team at the college I went to, but it was drama filled, or so I heard, so I focused on my classes instead. I went through phases where I would go to the gym; usually the 3 weeks leading up to seeing Matt after a long gap, or before going to CA or Hawaii to see him. But after that, my gym-streak would fizzle and I'd go back to my sedentary lifestyle.

I like to take walks and go on bike rides in the summer; I like to be active without feeling like I'm exercising. But the gym and I just aren't friends.

I think Matt's been secretly praying for an exercise intervention because enter... ZUMBA!

Through the grapevine, I'd heard of this Zumba thing. Zumba is latin-inspired dance. A few weeks ago, I was taking photos for an upcoming magazine article and I found myself at a Zumba class. While I photographed the instructor and the participants, listened to the latin music and watched them dance, I found myself thinking, "I might like this. I should try it."

Fast forward a few weeks and I am now added onto Matt's YMCA membership and I have been to THREE Zumba classes.

I KNOW!

What happened to Laura???

I am so sore today after Monday and Tuesday's classes, I can barely lift my arms or sit down. I've forgotten what the soreness is like after my long exercise-hiatus. I love to dance and Zumba allows me to dance to music, get my heart rate up and start to sweat, all in one 45 minute class. I really like it.

Have you tried Zumba before? Here's to turning over a new leaf and embracing our own 'flava'!

P.S. If you haven't heard of Zumba before or want to see what it's like, there are tons of videos on Youtube. Check it out - and then try a class!