Last Class and my upcoming audition!!!

I can't believe how much this class has changed my life. When I started teaching the free class in November it was on the stage and two people came. I botched every routine and I was sweating by the first song (purely out of nerves.) I planned on offering the class to try and get some practice as a teacher in order to build confidence and work out the kinks.

After teaching this class for eight months and the class size swelling to as big as 54 people, it became so much more than that. I had supporters from every facet of my life; family, friends, co-workers, derby sisters, ward members, strangers that found me on Zumba's website, and everyone that all those people brought with them. It was amazing.

I felt so buoyed up by every person that came. I know each person had their own reason for coming but I think we all shared one common bond, we enjoyed it!!! I would see smiles throughout the whole class, even when we were all exhausted! I had so many people coming up and telling me what they liked or how much fun they had and it meant so much to me every single time.

I have never been an athletic person or very good at any type of organized dancing but Zumba tapped into my love of music, moves, and people. It was always such an uplifiting experience. With my busy life I would feel so worried if I hadn't gotten a new song worked out one week or my playlist was a bunch of repeats or if I was tired or feeling gross, but you guys always made me feel so validated. I never left that class feeling anything less that amazing, exhausted, and thrilled.

Sometimes I would get emotional while we were doing a routine that I had worked hard on and I saw everyone enjoying themselves. It is SO rewarding to know that people really love something that you have thrown yourself into. I know we had our speedbumps with this class from time changes, audio problems, heat, crowding, or just getting into the dang building, but we always had a great time no matter what!!!!! Thank you. Thank you for coming. Thank you for bringing your friends. Thank you for making me feel loved. You guys mean the world to me!!!!

Here is the photo I grabbed of some of the people who attended my last class--thanks ladies!!!!

Onto the future---

I am still trying to figure out if I'm going to work at Ideal Shape or if I want to set-up my own shindig. I did receive a text from the boss-lady at the Orem Fitness Center and I have been invited to audition to teach there!!! I am SOOOO excited!!! The OFC was where I initally discovered Zumba back in November 2009. I have always loved teaching there and I have met some amazing women there. If anyone wants to come and cheer me on so that Nina just can't resist hiring me, I'll be teaching two songs in the Wednesday morning class at 9 am this week. I am nervous but I can't wait!!!!

What two songs do you think I teach the best? I need to bring my A game here!!!! (Not warm-ups, toning, abs or cool-downs. Just songs for the main body of class). Hit me!!!! I love you guys and I already miss you! I'm going to have major withdrawals this Thursday.

Let's do this!

It's Thursday!! I am completely exhausted and have a million things to do, but I can't wait for class tonight! When I feel like I am too tired to teach or that I haven't prepared a new song for tonight you guys still make me feel so good at class. I love when we have an awesome time rocking out to new stuff or just oldy-but-goodies. You guys keep me going and I love it! If you have a request for tonight or a song you would like me to choreograph, let me know. See you tonight!!

Let's ZUMBA!

The Great, the Good, and the Bad

First of all-the great:
I have my first paying gig!! I'm subbing for two classes next Saturday and the week after. I am really excited! I can't wait to see how I do in a foreign environment with new people and actually getting paid for it. I feel like I'm a good instructor and that I make it fun, but I'm still really nervous. I hope this leads to something more regular. I'm looking forward to actually finally making some money on this. I've been teaching for free for five months and I love it, but a little $ will be nice.

The Good-well it's still Great, I just wanted a clever title:
Class was really fun tonight! I wasn't feeling well tonight and took a 2 1/2 hour nap after I got home from work. I ended up not having time for dinner so I chugged a breakfast drink and then my stomach was upset. This ended up with me at class, groggy and with a stomach ache, but excited for class. You guys totally came through for me! I love seeing every smile and feeling your energy. It makes me so happy to know people are enjoying my class. It's also amazing to hear the feedback that people give me. Our record so far for the number of people in one class is 54! That is beyond my wildest dreams!

The Bad:
A while ago I was told that someone in my stake viewed some of class as inappropriate. I have worked really hard to keep my class true to Zumba, but appropriate for the setting. There are a lot of songs I have skipped and moves I have tweaked, but Zumba is still Zumba. There are shimmys, booty shaking, and some crunches (that are pretty much like a hip trust.) These moves are very useful in toning specific parts of the body and I try to explain why we do certain moves. Apparently someone still was upset with my class and went to their high counselman. There was a meeting in my stake to see if I'm doing inappropriate things. A woman from my stake came to class tonight and thought my class was fine, which made me feel better. The main thing that bothers me is that I don't know what they were bothered by and they didn't come to me. If there is a particular song or move that bothers you, PLEASE send me an email or leave an anonymous comment and I am more than happy to tweak things to make them better. Having someone complain about me where I can't help resolve the issue or defend myself makes me feel blindsided. I feel like I put a lot of work into this class and when there are problems like this it makes me feel like throwing my hands in the air and just saying "forget it." But don't worry, for now I'm still here. :) I've gone through my stages of dealing with stuff. I 1. brush it off, 2. cry, 3. get mad, 4. move on. I'm in the move on stage and I'll be there next week with some new songs!

Thanks for letting me rant. I love you guys to pieces and thank you so much for supporting me and giving me all your feedback. You make me so happy!!


PS-there is an AWESOME event at the Orem Fitness Center on April 30th. It is Ladies Night! It is free for ladies 16 and up and no guys are allowed. There will be Zumba for 1 1/2 hours with three instructors, free food, massages, and lots of other stuff. I goes from 7-10pm, and Zumba is from 8-9:30 pm. It's going to be amazing!

PPS-The playlist from tonight was as follows:
Abusadora - Zumba
New Low - Middle Class Rut
Cumbia Arabe - Zumba
Jai Ho! - A.R. Rahman
La Vida Es Un Carnaval - Zumba
Evacuate the Dancefloor - Cascada
Na Pona do Pe - Zumba
Waka Waka - Shakira
Zeina - Zumba
Forget You - Glee Cast
Pegate - Grupo Treo
La Tortura - Shakira
Hokey Pokey - The Puppies
A La Nena Le Gusta - Zumba
Telephone - Lady Gaga
Say Hey - Michael Franti & Spearhead
Firework - Katy Perry

First night in a gym-thoughts?

First off-we had 40 people there tonight!!!! It was freaking amazing!!!! It was our first night at 9:00 pm and in the new location (a gym!). I was worried we would lose some of our crew by moving to a later time, but we grew! We had 30 people last week and added 10 more tonight. I know that Zumba by nature is amazing and fun but I am very humbled and flattered that my class is growing so quickly. You guys give me a reason to listen to my playlist at work, watch the DVDs and dance with my 4 year old, and Zumba at every red light! I love watching people come back week after week, share it with their friends, and honestly enjoying themselves while working toward a healthier them. Thank you for supporting me. Thank you for motivating me to try to and be a better instructor every time I party with you amazing people. You are my inspiration!!!

What did you think of 9pm? Will you want to move back to 8:30 when we have the chance or do you like it a little later? We'll feel it out over the next few weeks and see what we prefer.

Lastly, a little shout out here to the guys in my stake that bore the brunt of my wrath last week. I raised some serious h-e-double hockey stick let many people know that I was very dissatisfied at how ignored the physical needs of the women are in our stake. They worked out our current situation (gym, later time) and I'm grateful. There is NO way we could've stuffed tonight's class in the tiny little multi-purpose room. One of the members of the Stake athletic committee even told me they had a meeting where they specifically spoke about the needs of the women. He thanked me for offering this option to the women and asked about what other ideas I have for women to have physical outlets. I expressed the need for us to have not only a physical outlet but one that offers a social aspect, is fun, and relieves stress for us. He was very supportive and interested in my suggestions and our cause. I'm glad to know that my kicking and screaming has drawn some attention and is starting to yield positive results. You guys are my support and thank you for putting up with all of the craziness as we get established. I hope we can keep working through this and maybe even get a bigger gym (withOUT a carpeting stage!).

I LOVE ZUMBA!!!!! I hope you do too!!!!!!