The One Thing Zumba Does Better Than Any Other Workout

Sandhya
Sandymonium
Published in
7 min readJan 2, 2020

When I was 23, I had this manic drive to go dancing every weekend. I was addicted to booty popping. How did I voluntarily spend a good 2–3 hours on makeup, outfits, commuting only to wait in line for god knows how long and then dance and take the train (not even an Uber) to get home by 1am?!? HOW? (Also why, but that’s another post). The other day I tried on one of my old bodycons and I was IRRITATED. It fit me fine but lawd the discomfort and impracticality of the damn outfit. It might have been a combination of things — the prospect of the perfect winged liner caught on selfie, goofin’ with my gal pals, the excitement of hitting it off with a cute stranger (this happened only never) but more than anything, the actual dancing. If the music was good, I was mostly getting my own cardio session in heels for a good couple of hours.

During weekdays, I found the time to worry about how I was going to keep this up while also adulting some day. Could I handle one weekend without dancing to the same trap music and hip hop classics? I was concerned that I had a lifestyle problem and yes, the late nights were probably not very good for my sleep quality. I never needed alcohol for the clubbing experience. Yes, we exist. A minority that just gets off on adrenalin, loud music and crazed movements. Sort of like your average Zumba tribe.

Person on the dance floor who thinks they’re in Step Up, going OTT, sweating it out, expressions + exuberant choreography. It me.

Dancing has always brought me joy, even during the short period when I was formally trained. In my late teens and early twenties, I continuously sought ways to make dancing happen — be it flash mobs, stage shows (good ol college fests) or like I mentioned, night clubs. For the longest time, I saw it as just an itch but the few times that a night out did satisfy this itch, it was pretty darn awesome. Every once in a while, a kindred spirit walks into the same club and you engage in dance battles and a kind of camaraderie that never continues once the music stops. In those moments, it really clicked and I couldn’t wait until the next time it would all come together like that.

I needed a more reliable, foolproof strategy to get that kinda high because your average person wouldn’t dare to even head towards the dance floor unless they were on their tenth round of shots. The sober-er ones had the decency to dance at least a bit uncoordinated and keep looking at their phones. I was always the only person who was in it TO DANCE. Where were all the people who wanted to dance just for fun as an expression of joy?

*birds caw, waters separate, a merengue beat is heard in the distance*

I first gave Zumba a go in 2010.

It was in a studio in Chennai and I remember it being really well choreographed, fast paced and satisfying. I loved the mix of music genres and dance styles and of course, the feeling of working out. Before I continue, lets just get this out of the way: Zumba is dance fitness. Energetic dancing to Latin inspired rhythms. 70–30 split. Reggaeton, salsa, cumbia, merengue (70) to any other dance style (rest of the 30%).

The next vivid Zumba memory was in Boston, when I signed up for a semester of morning classes in the winter. I would take the T at 6.30am to get to the uni gym, de-layer into gym wear, dance my butt off, shower & layer back before making it to my 9am class. It was a fantastic way to start the day. Our instructor was an upbeat undergrad — really good dancer with a wicked playlist. Another great Zumba memory is when my bestie and I would brave rush hour crowds on the train to get to a Friday evening class at the YMCA.

When I discovered that there was a whole lot of consenting adults dancing exuberantly just for FUN, I should have run in that direction and never turned back. But I was always non committal with Zumba. At the time, I had my own internal body image/fitness journey going on and the thing is,

Zumba is typically looked down upon by the fitness fraternity

It is dismissed as not really being a workout. Moreover, a Zumba class typically has people of all shapes and sizes. Very rare to see washboard abs and chiseled legs in this jam. Even the clothing is random and loud in Zumba as opposed to the mauve and teal of Lululemons. The inclusivity and uninhibitedness of Zumba don’t make it very…. aspirational. A hot yoga class or a Crossfit session makes you feel like the chosen one. Like you’re a premium kind of fit to even be there. There is a whole classist aspect to it too, which I picked up on during my time in LA. Zumba classes only happened in low income neighborhoods. Gyms wouldn’t include Zumba in their roster because it brought down the “image” of the studio.

Photo by bruce mars on Unsplash

I started Zumba when I wasn’t even going to the gym and for a lot of people that’s what it is — a gateway to a more active lifestyle. After years of being a gym rat and unconsciously developing a flawed, highly visual metric of progress, I recognize the lack of performance goals, aesthetic ideals or ‘peer pressure’ that comes with Zumba.

Zumba is the one workout that really helps me mentally.

You can’t be sad when you dance. You can start off with low spirits but a few minutes in, the body loosens up, the mind is free, the face breaks out into a smile. While any form of working out releases endorphins, I find that it can also lead you down a road of PBs and challenges that bring their own pressure before a breakthrough. It isn’t always about bringing out the fighter in you. Sometimes, bringing out the child in you is even more important. Something that encourages you take yourself less seriously, to be impulsive and silly, to literally express yourself through movement. It is Latin rooted so there’s a lot of shaking and shimmying, leaving you flushed in the best way!

Moving to Australia in June this year, I had some trouble finding my mojo at the gym. It just was not doing it for me. I tried a couple of classes and my big takeaway was that I have zero upper body strength in comparison to everyone else. Running alone for hours was getting a bit masochistic (sorry runners, its probably me, not your sport). I wanted to just do something that felt easy, fun and familiar. That’s when I landed on the Zumba website, looking for a class to go to. At the end of that class, not sure what got over me but I blurted out to the instructor that I wanted to teach. It had been on my mind on and off earlier this year and in that moment, clarity just came through. What followed was a pretty surreal sequence of events fueled by this deep desire and the Universe’s nod to it. There was little hesitation and procrastination for once in committing. I registered for Zumba teacher training and by the second week of October, was licensed to teach and lucky to teach at the same studio where I had the epiphany.

As a Zumba instructor, I notice that here too there exists a clique.

The demographic tends to be older ladies, who flock to classes in groups. There’s usually just a couple of young people and a brave gent, every now and then. As an instructor, I’m quickly learning that my success lies in how happy the attendees are, and there’s no telling what counts as a great class for each person right off the bat, so I try to focus on an overall vibe of good. There are some who can smile through the entire hour even if they’re unable to follow steps, then there’s others who are resentful if one step’s amiss. While I personally valued newness class to class, I find that people want the same songs week after week. Memorizing steps and testing their recall is a big motivator for many. I tend to improv quite a bit in class. I’ve started modifying steps on the go if I find everyone struggling or just in need of a break. Every week is interesting as I try to discover my unique flavor while also being an understanding instructor.

The facepalm moments deserve a mention. I’m yet to have all my students ‘woo’ in unison. There was a time where I woo-ed 8 times and noone else in class was having it. Then there was the time when I got so hype that I slapped myself while dancing. If we’re talking fail moments, I should mention the time I did a Zumba Party and turned off the lights for effect but as a result had everyone blinded and confused. Those are just some quirks in the art of teaching Zumba. The business side of promoting myself and my Zumba classes… That’s a whole other dance I’m figuring out, step by step!

I lead the party on Tuesdays between 5:30–6:15pm at Worx Studios on Aerodrome Road, right opposite Aldi Maroochydore. If you’re in the Sunshine Coast, you should swing by and join me in my ‘woo’s ❤

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Sandhya
Sandymonium

I write about events in my life, which mostly have to do with creative process and understanding the world. about.me/sandhyaramachandran