Cannon Fitness | 1730 Mt. Zion Rd. | Morrow | GA | 30260
|
Thursday, June 7, 2012
June 16th is the Premiere of Zumba Sentao in Georgia
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Dancing Makes You Smarter
Another Zumba Fitness Instructor posted this on her page --I just had to share it on my BLOG!!
Use It or Lose It: Dancing Makes You Smarter
Richard Powers
For centuries, dance manuals and other writings have lauded the health benefits of dancing, usually as physical exercise. More recently we've seen research on further health benefits of dancing, such as stress reduction and increased serotonin level, with its sense of well-being.
Then most recently we've heard of another benefit: Frequent dancing apparently makes us smarter. A major study added to the growing evidence that stimulating one's mind can ward off Alzheimer's disease and other dementia, much as physical exercise can keep the body fit. Dancing also increases cognitive acuity at all ages.
You may have heard about the New England Journal of Medicine report on the effects of recreational activities on mental acuity in aging. Here it is in a nutshell.
The 21-year study of senior citizens, 75 and older, was led by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, funded by the National Institute on Aging, and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Their method for objectively measuring mental acuity in aging was to monitor rates of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.
The study wanted to see if any physical or cognitive recreational activities influenced mental acuity. They discovered that some activities had a significant beneficial effect. Other activities had none.
They studied cognitive activities such as reading books, writing for pleasure, doing crossword puzzles, playing cards and playing musical instruments. And they studied physical activities like playing tennis or golf, swimming, bicycling, dancing, walking for exercise and doing housework.
One of the surprises of the study was that almost none of the physical activities appeared to offer any protection against dementia. There can be cardiovascular benefits of course, but the focus of this study was the mind. There was one important exception: the only physical activity to offer protection against dementia was frequent dancing.
Reading - 35% reduced risk of dementia
Bicycling and swimming - 0%
Doing crossword puzzles at least four days a week - 47%
Playing golf - 0%
Dancing frequently - 76%.
That was the greatest risk reduction of any activity studied, cognitive or physical.
Quoting Dr. Joseph Coyle, a Harvard Medical School psychiatrist who wrote an accompanying commentary:
"The cerebral cortex and hippocampus, which are critical to these activities, are remarkably plastic, and they rewire themselves based upon their use."
And from from the study itself, Dr. Katzman proposed these persons are more resistant to the effects of dementia as a result of having greater cognitive reserve and increased complexity of neuronal synapses. Like education, participation in some leisure activities lowers the risk of dementia by improving cognitive reserve.
Our brain constantly rewires its neural pathways, as needed. If it doesn't need to, then it won't.
Aging and memory
When brain cells die and synapses weaken with aging, our nouns go first, like names of people, because there's only one neural pathway connecting to that stored information. If the single neural connection to that name fades, we lose access to it. So as we age, we learn to parallel process, to come up with synonyms to go around these roadblocks. (Or maybe we don't learn to do this, and just become a dimmer bulb.)
The key here is Dr. Katzman's emphasis on the complexity of our neuronal synapses. More is better. Do whatever you can to create new neural paths. The opposite of this is taking the same old well-worn path over and over again, with habitual patterns of thinking and living our lives.
When I was studying the creative process as a grad student at Stanford, I came across the perfect analogy to this:
The more stepping stones there are across the creek,
the easier it is to cross in your own style.
The focus of that aphorism was creative thinking, to find as many alternative paths as possible to a creative solution. But as we age, parallel processing becomes more critical. Now it's no longer a matter of style, it's a matter of survival — getting across the creek at all. Randomly dying brain cells are like stepping stones being removed one by one. Those who had only one well-worn path of stones are completely blocked when some are removed. But those who spent their lives trying different mental routes each time, creating a myriad of possible paths, still have several paths left.
The Albert Einstein College of Medicine study shows that we need to keep as many of those paths active as we can, while also generating new paths, to maintain the complexity of our neuronal synapses.
Why dancing?
We immediately ask two questions:
Why is dancing better than other activities for improving mental capabilities?
Does this mean all kinds of dancing, or is one kind of dancing better than another?
That's where this particular study falls short. It doesn't answer these questions as a stand-alone study. Fortunately, it isn't a stand-alone study. It's one of many studies, over decades, which have shown that we increase our mental capacity by exercising our cognitive processes. Intelligence: Use it or lose it. And it's the other studies which fill in the gaps in this one. Looking at all of these studies together lets us understand the bigger picture.
Some of this is discussed here (the page you may have just came from) which looks at intelligence in dancing. The essence of intelligence is making decisions. And the concluding advice, when it comes to improving your mental acuity, is to involve yourself in activities which require split-second rapid-fire decision making, as opposed to rote memory (retracing the same well-worn paths), or just working on your physical style.
One way to do that is to learn something new. Not just dancing, but anything new. Don't worry about the probability that you'll never use it in the future. Take a class to challenge your mind. It will stimulate the connectivity of your brain by generating the need for new pathways. Difficult and even frustrating classes are better for you, as they will create a greater need for new neural pathways.
Then take a dance class, which can be even better. Dancing integrates several brain functions at once, increasing your connectivity. Dancing simultaneously involves kinesthetic, rational, musical and emotional processes.
What kind of dancing?
Let's go back to the study:
Bicycling, swimming or playing golf - 0% reduced risk of dementia
But doesn't golf require rapid-fire decision-making? No, not if you're a long-time player. You made most of the decisions when you first started playing, years ago. Now the game is mostly refining your technique. It can be good physical exercise, but the study showed it led to no improvement in mental acuity.
Therefore do the kinds of dance where you must make as many split-second decisions as possible. That's key to maintaining true intelligence.
Does any kind of dancing lead to increased mental acuity? No, not all forms of dancing will produce this benefit. Not dancing which, like golf or swimming, mostly works on style or retracing the same memorized paths. The key is the decision-making. Remember (from this page), Jean Piaget suggested that intelligence is what we use when we don't already know what to do.
We wish that 25 years ago the Albert Einstein College of Medicine thought of doing side-by-side comparisons of different kinds of dancing, to find out which was better. But we can figure it out by looking at who they studied: senior citizens 75 and older, beginning in 1980. Those who danced in that particular population were former Roaring Twenties dancers (back in 1980) and then former Swing Era dancers (today), so the kind of dancing most of them continued to do in retirement was what they began when they were young: freestyle social dancing -- basic foxtrot, swing, waltz and maybe some Latin.
I've been watching senior citizens dance all of my life, from my parents (who met at a Tommy Dorsey dance), to retirement communities, to the Roseland Ballroom in New York. I almost never see memorized sequences or patterns on the dance floor. I mostly see easygoing, fairly simple social dancing — freestyle lead and follow. But freestyle social dancing isn't that simple! It requires a lot of split-second decision-making, in both the lead and follow roles.
I need to digress here:
I want to point out that I'm not demonizing memorized sequence dancing or style-focused pattern-based ballroom dancing. I sometimes enjoy sequence dances myself, and there are stress-reduction benefits of any kind of dancing, cardiovascular benefits of physical exercise, and even further benefits of feeling connected to a community of dancers. So all dancing is good.
But when it comes to preserving mental acuity, then some forms are significantly better than others. When we talk of intelligence (use it or lose it) then the more decision-making we can bring into our dancing, the better.
Who benefits more, women or men?
In social dancing, the follow role automatically gains a benefit, by making hundreds of split-second decisions as to what to do next. As I mentioned on this page, women don't "follow", they interpret the signals their partners are giving them, and this requires intelligence and decision-making, which is active, not passive. This benefit is greatly enhanced by dancing with different partners, not always with the same fellow. With different dance partners, you have to adjust much more and be aware of more variables. This is great for staying smarter longer.
But men, you can also match her degree of decision-making if you choose to do so. (1) Really notice your partner and what works best for her. Notice what is comfortable for her, where she is already going, which moves are successful with her and what aren't, and constantly adapt your dancing to these observations. That's rapid-fire split-second decision making. (2) Don't lead the same old patterns the same way each time. Challenge yourself to try new things. Make more decisions more often. Intelligence: use it or lose it.
And men, the huge side-benefit is that your partners will have much more fun dancing with you when you are attentive to their dancing and constantly adjusting for their comfort and continuity of motion.
Dance often
Finally, remember that this study made another suggestion: do it often. Seniors who did crossword puzzles four days a week had a measurably lower risk of dementia than those who did the puzzles once a week. If you can't take classes or go out dancing four times a week, then dance as much as you can. More is better.
And do it now, the sooner the better. It's essential to start building your cognitive reserve now. Some day you'll need as many of those stepping stones across the creek as possible. Don't wait — start building them now.
Use It or Lose It: Dancing Makes You Smarter
Richard Powers
For centuries, dance manuals and other writings have lauded the health benefits of dancing, usually as physical exercise. More recently we've seen research on further health benefits of dancing, such as stress reduction and increased serotonin level, with its sense of well-being.
Then most recently we've heard of another benefit: Frequent dancing apparently makes us smarter. A major study added to the growing evidence that stimulating one's mind can ward off Alzheimer's disease and other dementia, much as physical exercise can keep the body fit. Dancing also increases cognitive acuity at all ages.
You may have heard about the New England Journal of Medicine report on the effects of recreational activities on mental acuity in aging. Here it is in a nutshell.
The 21-year study of senior citizens, 75 and older, was led by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, funded by the National Institute on Aging, and published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Their method for objectively measuring mental acuity in aging was to monitor rates of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease.
The study wanted to see if any physical or cognitive recreational activities influenced mental acuity. They discovered that some activities had a significant beneficial effect. Other activities had none.
They studied cognitive activities such as reading books, writing for pleasure, doing crossword puzzles, playing cards and playing musical instruments. And they studied physical activities like playing tennis or golf, swimming, bicycling, dancing, walking for exercise and doing housework.
One of the surprises of the study was that almost none of the physical activities appeared to offer any protection against dementia. There can be cardiovascular benefits of course, but the focus of this study was the mind. There was one important exception: the only physical activity to offer protection against dementia was frequent dancing.
Reading - 35% reduced risk of dementia
Bicycling and swimming - 0%
Doing crossword puzzles at least four days a week - 47%
Playing golf - 0%
Dancing frequently - 76%.
That was the greatest risk reduction of any activity studied, cognitive or physical.
Quoting Dr. Joseph Coyle, a Harvard Medical School psychiatrist who wrote an accompanying commentary:
"The cerebral cortex and hippocampus, which are critical to these activities, are remarkably plastic, and they rewire themselves based upon their use."
And from from the study itself, Dr. Katzman proposed these persons are more resistant to the effects of dementia as a result of having greater cognitive reserve and increased complexity of neuronal synapses. Like education, participation in some leisure activities lowers the risk of dementia by improving cognitive reserve.
Our brain constantly rewires its neural pathways, as needed. If it doesn't need to, then it won't.
Aging and memory
When brain cells die and synapses weaken with aging, our nouns go first, like names of people, because there's only one neural pathway connecting to that stored information. If the single neural connection to that name fades, we lose access to it. So as we age, we learn to parallel process, to come up with synonyms to go around these roadblocks. (Or maybe we don't learn to do this, and just become a dimmer bulb.)
The key here is Dr. Katzman's emphasis on the complexity of our neuronal synapses. More is better. Do whatever you can to create new neural paths. The opposite of this is taking the same old well-worn path over and over again, with habitual patterns of thinking and living our lives.
When I was studying the creative process as a grad student at Stanford, I came across the perfect analogy to this:
The more stepping stones there are across the creek,
the easier it is to cross in your own style.
The focus of that aphorism was creative thinking, to find as many alternative paths as possible to a creative solution. But as we age, parallel processing becomes more critical. Now it's no longer a matter of style, it's a matter of survival — getting across the creek at all. Randomly dying brain cells are like stepping stones being removed one by one. Those who had only one well-worn path of stones are completely blocked when some are removed. But those who spent their lives trying different mental routes each time, creating a myriad of possible paths, still have several paths left.
The Albert Einstein College of Medicine study shows that we need to keep as many of those paths active as we can, while also generating new paths, to maintain the complexity of our neuronal synapses.
Why dancing?
We immediately ask two questions:
That's where this particular study falls short. It doesn't answer these questions as a stand-alone study. Fortunately, it isn't a stand-alone study. It's one of many studies, over decades, which have shown that we increase our mental capacity by exercising our cognitive processes. Intelligence: Use it or lose it. And it's the other studies which fill in the gaps in this one. Looking at all of these studies together lets us understand the bigger picture.
Some of this is discussed here (the page you may have just came from) which looks at intelligence in dancing. The essence of intelligence is making decisions. And the concluding advice, when it comes to improving your mental acuity, is to involve yourself in activities which require split-second rapid-fire decision making, as opposed to rote memory (retracing the same well-worn paths), or just working on your physical style.
One way to do that is to learn something new. Not just dancing, but anything new. Don't worry about the probability that you'll never use it in the future. Take a class to challenge your mind. It will stimulate the connectivity of your brain by generating the need for new pathways. Difficult and even frustrating classes are better for you, as they will create a greater need for new neural pathways.
Then take a dance class, which can be even better. Dancing integrates several brain functions at once, increasing your connectivity. Dancing simultaneously involves kinesthetic, rational, musical and emotional processes.
What kind of dancing?
Let's go back to the study:
Bicycling, swimming or playing golf - 0% reduced risk of dementia
But doesn't golf require rapid-fire decision-making? No, not if you're a long-time player. You made most of the decisions when you first started playing, years ago. Now the game is mostly refining your technique. It can be good physical exercise, but the study showed it led to no improvement in mental acuity.
Therefore do the kinds of dance where you must make as many split-second decisions as possible. That's key to maintaining true intelligence.
Does any kind of dancing lead to increased mental acuity? No, not all forms of dancing will produce this benefit. Not dancing which, like golf or swimming, mostly works on style or retracing the same memorized paths. The key is the decision-making. Remember (from this page), Jean Piaget suggested that intelligence is what we use when we don't already know what to do.
We wish that 25 years ago the Albert Einstein College of Medicine thought of doing side-by-side comparisons of different kinds of dancing, to find out which was better. But we can figure it out by looking at who they studied: senior citizens 75 and older, beginning in 1980. Those who danced in that particular population were former Roaring Twenties dancers (back in 1980) and then former Swing Era dancers (today), so the kind of dancing most of them continued to do in retirement was what they began when they were young: freestyle social dancing -- basic foxtrot, swing, waltz and maybe some Latin.
I've been watching senior citizens dance all of my life, from my parents (who met at a Tommy Dorsey dance), to retirement communities, to the Roseland Ballroom in New York. I almost never see memorized sequences or patterns on the dance floor. I mostly see easygoing, fairly simple social dancing — freestyle lead and follow. But freestyle social dancing isn't that simple! It requires a lot of split-second decision-making, in both the lead and follow roles.
I need to digress here:
I want to point out that I'm not demonizing memorized sequence dancing or style-focused pattern-based ballroom dancing. I sometimes enjoy sequence dances myself, and there are stress-reduction benefits of any kind of dancing, cardiovascular benefits of physical exercise, and even further benefits of feeling connected to a community of dancers. So all dancing is good.
But when it comes to preserving mental acuity, then some forms are significantly better than others. When we talk of intelligence (use it or lose it) then the more decision-making we can bring into our dancing, the better.
Who benefits more, women or men?
In social dancing, the follow role automatically gains a benefit, by making hundreds of split-second decisions as to what to do next. As I mentioned on this page, women don't "follow", they interpret the signals their partners are giving them, and this requires intelligence and decision-making, which is active, not passive. This benefit is greatly enhanced by dancing with different partners, not always with the same fellow. With different dance partners, you have to adjust much more and be aware of more variables. This is great for staying smarter longer.
But men, you can also match her degree of decision-making if you choose to do so. (1) Really notice your partner and what works best for her. Notice what is comfortable for her, where she is already going, which moves are successful with her and what aren't, and constantly adapt your dancing to these observations. That's rapid-fire split-second decision making. (2) Don't lead the same old patterns the same way each time. Challenge yourself to try new things. Make more decisions more often. Intelligence: use it or lose it.
And men, the huge side-benefit is that your partners will have much more fun dancing with you when you are attentive to their dancing and constantly adjusting for their comfort and continuity of motion.
Dance often
Finally, remember that this study made another suggestion: do it often. Seniors who did crossword puzzles four days a week had a measurably lower risk of dementia than those who did the puzzles once a week. If you can't take classes or go out dancing four times a week, then dance as much as you can. More is better.
And do it now, the sooner the better. It's essential to start building your cognitive reserve now. Some day you'll need as many of those stepping stones across the creek as possible. Don't wait — start building them now.
Saturday, May 19, 2012
How do you feel about Hybrid Fruit?
For Sale: Brand New Fruit Called A 'Papple'
The so-called papple looks and tastes like an apple but has the skin of a pear
11:36am UK, Friday May 18, 2012
A fruit so new it is yet to be named, but described as a pear disguised as an apple, is to go on sale in the UK next week.
Marks and Spencer says the fruit - dubbed a "papple" - looks and
tastes like an apple but has the skin and texture of a pear, and is a
member of the pear family.It is being referred to as T109 until its official name is decided, a spokeswoman said.
Some More Hybrid Fruits....
- Tangelo - A citrus fruit hybrid of a tangerine and a grapefruit
Grapple - Apple that has been specially treated so that it tastes like grapes.
Aprium - Complex crossing of a plum and an apricot.
Orangelo - A cross between a grapefruit and an orange
Plumcot - Another plum/apricot hybrid.
Pineberry - A white-looking strawberry with flesh tasting of pineapple.
"We know our customers like to try new and interesting fruit and we hope this will be something they will really enjoy."
The new fruit follows the introduction of the so-called "pineberry" to Waitrose stores in 2010.
The fruit looks like a white strawberry but has flesh tasting of pineapple.
T109 is grown in New Zealand and is a cross between European and Asian pear varieties, which resulted in a fruit similar to an apple.
Mr Rehman said: "It's got a lovely refreshing taste, perfect for snacking on, and a fun alternative to an apple a day."
M&S hopes to grow the pear in the UK from 2015. T109 will be available in M&S stores from next week priced at £1 each.
( http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news)
Friday, May 18, 2012
Zumbathon for Leukemia
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Local seniors set unofficial ‘Soul Train Line’ record
Still gettin' down: Local seniors set unofficial ‘Soul Train Line’ record
By Curt Yeomans (360)
As of Friday, May 11, 2012
© Copyright 2012 Clayton News Daily
© Copyright 2012 Clayton News Daily
Photo by Curt Yeomans Conley resident Lurlean Stewart (center) shows off her dance moves Friday in an attempted, world-record-setting, 328-member “Soul Train” line at Clayton County International Park, in Jonesboro.
The television dance show, “Soul Train,” was must-see television for Conley resident Lurlean Stewart in the 1970s.
As a young woman, Stewart, now 61, tuned in week after week to see people her age dancing to their heart’s delight, to the latest funk, soul and dance tunes, on the nationally televised show. She watched the show’s host, Don Cornelius, introduce successful superstars, including Chaka Khan, James Brown, Tina Turner, Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, and the Jackson 5 as guest performers of the week.
And, of course, Stewart’s favorite part of the show was watching the dancers do the “Soul Train Line,” where the youngsters formed two lines and pairs of dancers — one male and one female — got to show off their moves as they made their way between the two lines.
“You’d see all kinds of crazy outfits — really crazy outfits,” said Stewart, as she left out a robust laugh.
Hundreds of local senior citizens, including Stewart, shook their groove things in Jonesboro Friday in an attempt to do what the late Cornelius himself might have called the “hippest trip” in Clayton County’s history. The elderly citizens set out to set a new Guinness World Record for the largest “Soul Train “ line ever — and they may have succeeded.
Although it still has to be certified by Guinness officials, 328 senior citizens, local elected officials and employees of Clayton County’s Senior Services Department participated in a “Soul Train” line during the senior services department’s annual Mayfest celebration at Clayton County International Beach. That is way higher than the exiting record of 211 people set last year at a school in California.
“Give yourselves a hand, everybody, because you just set a new world record,” an announcer proclaimed as the final member of the train made her way down the line. “We’re going to send a picture of you all to ‘Jet’ magazine, for their ‘Photo of the Week’ feature.”
Although the 2012 theme of “National Older Americans Month” — which is this month — is “Never Too Old to Play,” the theme locally might have been aptly stated as “Never Too Old To Get Down.” Elderly residents, some of whom were in wheel chairs, danced their way down the line to a plethora of 1970’s dance tunes, such as “Got To Give It Up,” by Marvin Gaye.
“We have a lot of events at the facilities, but no matter what event we have, they [the seniors] always form a ‘Soul Train’ line,” said Clayton County Senior Services Director Mary Byrd, as she explained the reasoning behind the record-breaking attempt. “We just realized the lines are longer, and longer. They just love ‘Soul Train’ ... so we just decided ‘Let’s make this thing official.’ ”
The record was actually broken when Atlanta resident Eva Whiters, 64, sashayed her way down the line. As she got to the end of the line, she held up one finger on both of her hands and waved them in the air. Afterward, she said she was ecstatic to be a part of the attempt to set a new world record.
“It feels wonderful, fantastic [to be the record-setting dancer],” a jubilant Whiters proclaimed just as she finished her dance. “I’m just elated ... That was my hobby [in the 1970’s] — dancing. Dancing was my love, and I was so happy to be a part of this.”
The potential record setting dancer, however, was Rex resident Erma Wyatt, 58, who was mobbed by photographers eager to take her picture as she got to the end of the line. “It feels really good [to set a new record],” she said. “I’ll never forget this. I’ve been a fan of ‘Soul Train’ since I was a little girl. I never thought I’d be in a ‘Soul Train’ line, though.”
The attempt to set a new world record brought out several elected officials from across the county. Clayton County Commission Chairman Eldrin Bell, and Commissioner Gail Hambrick, danced side-by-side at the start of the line. Occasionally they gave high-fives to people lined up on either side of them as they shuffled down the line.
They were followed by State Reps. Sandra Scott (D-Rex) and Darryl Jordan (D-Riverdale), and State Sen. Valencia Seay (D-Riverdale), who got down to the beat of the music a little bit more than her fellow elected officials. Clayton County Board of Education member Jessie Goree also participated in the line.
“Congratulations Clayton County, you did it,” an enthusiastic Bell yelled as he addressed an ecstatic group of seniors after the dancing ended.
Now that the dancing is over, Byrd said the arduous process of filling out required paperwork for Guinness officials begins. County officials had a professional counter present for the attempt to count, and certify the number of people who participated in the “Soul Train” line.
She added that county public safety officials, who acted as stewards for the attempt, will have to fill out and submit paperwork and a video recording of the attempt to Guinness. If it is confirmed as a new record, she explained, Guinness officials would travel to the county to make the formal proclamation.
“We’re not sure [how long the certification process could take],” Byrd said. “It could be six, to eight weeks to complete the process from here.”
And as the seniors got in their cars and left the park at the end of the celebration, they did so with a little bit of love, a little bit of peace, and a whole lot of sooouuuul.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
America's 1st general population Sentao training -MY EXPERIENCE!!
IT'S A CHAIR 'THANG' --ZUMBA SENTAO
I've been waiting for this Zumba Sentao format ever since it was hinted on during the early part of 2011.. perhaps as early as 2010. Having all Zumba specialty licenses prior to this NEWEST FORMAT, was a challenging feat in itself. My sister (also a Zumba Instructor licensed in all formats available) and I actually became weary of waiting for this mystery new ZUMBA form to be released to us regular instructors. So life went on and on and on......My sister and I got busy, and busy and busier..in between requests for classes and more classes and both working demanding full time jobs.
SAY WHAT???? When we found out that Instructors were going to get licensed in Sentao during the London Convention, I have to admit, I was jealous, jealOUS, JEALous!! I was thinking---how is this happening? When will it be OUR TIME here in America? And still we waited. By the time it was announced that Crunch members would be exposed and licensed in Sentao 1st in the USA--I didnt really care about this format anymore. My enthusiasm had been destroyed by what seemed to be an eternity of waiting.
Suddenly, my sister called me and found IT on line ---that registration for Zumba Sentao with a licensing date of April 21st IN MIAMI!! This was to be the first Sentao licensing in AMERICA opened up for the general population(i.e. us regular ZUMBA instructors). My sister signed up and so did I. Now I am glad I did!!
I didn't know what to expect --I hadn't even pre-viewed the few videos clips that appeared on line about Sentao..I went to Miami for Sentao not really knowing what to expect.
April 21st --EARLY AM...RAINY...My sister and I drove from her place to reach our training location, a small studio positioned very close to Calle Ocho in downtown Miami. There was NO Parking, so we took our chances by leaving the cars around a street corner and next to an apartment complex close by.
ENTERING THE STUDIO---That sea of brightly colored apparel, hats, and shoes told my sister and I that we were in the right place-That we were amongst ZUMBA FAMILY!!. All the instructors attending America's 1st general population Sentao training were amazing--Coming from all over the USA. We were a photo taking bunch--stylin' and profilin' for ANYONE'S camera. Zumba Instructor and 'Legal Beagle' Diane Felkenes was in the house, as she is now working for ZUMBA FITNESS in its Legal department, as well as DJ Francis and many other nationally recognized Zumba talent!!
Zumba Educational Specialist Marcia Gill is amazing, fun and talented!! We started training 1st by discussing the safety aspects of Sentao (chair use, chair type, positioning etc) before starting the MASTER SENTAO CLASS. (Marcia strongly advised that Instructors use a wireless mike for Sentao). The Master Class was a blast AFTER I FINALLY decided to move AROUND the chair, to stop moving the chair back and forth, to stop bumping into the chair and into other licensees AND TO QUIT FREAKING OUT ABOUT MY LACK OF PERSONAL SPACE (there were a lot of people and chairs in this training).
Men? There were several MALE Zumba Instructors in the house and this brought that special energy to the training that only men can bring... PURE POWER!!! I need to give a special shout out to homeboy 'MIAMI ZUMBA'--who took the time to show me where to RE-park during a break, so I wouldn't get my car towed!!
After getting licensed in Zumba's latest format I know now that SENTAO (which means 'sitting' or to sit ) IS AWESOME!!
It's not the more subtle chair workout appropriately created for our precious senior population. Nor is it drop-it-like-its-hot exotic chair dance coming straight out of a Hotlanta BOOTY club.
In my opinion, I feel that Zumba students will get a lot more out of this format than any other Zumba format thus far, because Sentao incorporates in basic aspects of resistance training and stretching using ones own body weight....Pushups, leg lifts, core work,dips, squats, bicep curls, etc. UTILIZING THE CHAIR IN ADDITION TO adding in that Zumba format dance to keeps the party going...Its an aerobic and anaerobic fitness JAM...
SENTAO IS THE ULTIMATE WORKOUT... YOU'RE GOING TO LOVE IT!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)