As the grey skies hover, winter winds howl and temperatures plummet, the new, Latin-inspired Zumba® classes at the Athletic Centre are providing a welcome dose of heat for an unprecedented number of students and members looking to shake up their work-out regimes with these high-energy sessions.
Brittany Knight, an OISE student, is one such participant. She tried Zumba® for first time on January 4th and found it a refreshing way to break a sweat, unique to many other classes that she’s tried. “What I love about this class is the cultural diversity of the workout and music,” says Knight. “For a university like Toronto that has ‘equity, diversity’ as its promotional rhetoric, it was uplifting to see that taken seriously right down to a student’s personal health and fitness in a gym class!”
Zumba® instructors must certified to lead this unique class which combines easy-to-follow, Latin-inspired moves with toning and sculpting exercises that target glutes, legs, arms and abdominals. The music is also Latin inspired and sure to get hearts pumping.
“The instructor, Candace, was outstanding,” Knight says. “Her energy, passion, sensitivity, and smile added so much to the positivity of the experience.”
Zumba® classes are offered on a free, drop-in basis Mondays at 12:10 (in the dance studio) and 7:10 p.m. and Wednesdays at 6:10 p.m. (in the field house). Each class is 50 minutes.
Check out the Zumba-thon on March 5th!