Happy Hour

So, I already gave you all a little taste of what my day consists of, correct? Well, now I really need to share a little more about one of my passions: Z-Z-Z-Zumba! Every afternoon I drive over to a nearby small town and teach a one hour Zumba class. Everyone has that one thing that they do to unwind and remove some of the days stress, I truly and wholeheartedly believe that mine is this amazing one hour of class where I can physically just shake the problems off. No alcohol needed here!

In all honesty, I need to let you know, I used to not like Zumba at all. I was one among the many that thought: how will shaking my booty for an hour help me in any way? And how embarrassing would that be!? Plus I had tried it before, and the teacher and ambiance was not very good. I felt self-conscious and the instructor didn't really "instruct" per-se. One day, however, in a different fitness class many of my peers there asked me to come with them to one class taught by another instructor who had taken the class of the previous instructor. Let me tell you - that day changed my life! It was so fun, everyone was encouraging, and the instructor actually taught and engaged with her students! That is all that it takes! The one instructor who will really make you love yourself, and everyone around!
After getting certified last fall, I began teaching it. Like all things new many come into my class and don't know what to expect and and truthfully I was this way during my first couple of classes also! I'm pretty sure I was sweating more from being nervous than from the actual workout! Time works its' course, however, and it starts becoming like a small family group and you show up once a day to support, encourage, and keep each other accountable. Are there days when people just do not want to workout, including myself? Of course! Isn't everyone human, though? I just keep reminding everyone not to give up, because if anything most of my students are hard working moms who do so much for everyone else. They really deserve an hour for themselves to be able to focus on no one but their own person, and what better way than with a group of other people who completely understand you! In a way it can be very therapeutic!
I don't think I will ever find a workout that will energize me as much as Zumba does, and really it may be that I feed off of everyone else's energy also. It can be the worst day and walking out of that class full of wonderful people just switches up my mood! Sure, I still love plenty of other workouts and weights are a great focus session too, but nothing has met the energy levels after a Zumba class!
What do you do as a get-away? Do you workout, run, or simply meditate? Have you attended a Zumba class you love, or have you even heard of it? Let me know! I would love to hear about how you spend your happy hour!