Zumba

Zumba is a dance fitness program created by Colombian dancer and choreographer Alberto "Beto" Perez during the 1990s.^[1]

Zumba involves dance and aerobic elements. Zumba's choreography incorporates hip-hop, soca, samba, salsa, merengue, mambo and martial arts. Squats and lunges are also included.^[2] Zumba Fitness, an organization that sells Zumba videos and products, does not charge licensing fees to gyms or fitness centers.^[3] Approximately 14 million people take weekly Zumba classes in over 140,000 locations across more than 150 countries.^[4]

Origin

In the 1990s, Beto Perez forgot his tape of aerobics music for a class he was teaching. He went to his car, listened to music – consisting of traditional salsa and merengue music – and improvised a class using this non-traditional aerobics music. After finding initial success in Colombia, he moved to the United States in 2001, where he teamed up with cofounder Alberto Perlman and a childhood friend, COO Alberto Aghion. The trio produced a demo reel, and the concept was discovered and licensed by a company called Fitness Quest to create a direct marketing campaign and a line of home videos.^[5]

Classes

An instructor coaches a Zumba class in a fitness center.

Zumba sessions are typically about an hour long and are taught by instructors licensed by an organization called Zumba Academy.^[6] The exercises include music with fast and slow rhythms, as well as resistance training.^[7] The music comes from the following dance styles: cumbia, salsa, merengue, mambo, flamenco, chachacha, reggaeton, soca, samba, hip hop music, axé music and tango. There are eight different types of classes for different levels of age and exertion.^[4] Zumba Gold mainly targets the older population. It is specifically designed to the needs of the elderly and includes the same kind of music as the Zumba fitness party class. Zumba Toning is for the people who do their workouts with toning sticks. Zumba Toning will target the abs, thighs, arms, and other muscles throughout the body. Zumba Toning is adding sculpting of body and cardio. Aqua Zumba is Zumba in a swimming pool. The instructor is on the ledge of the pool instructing while participants mimic his/her moves while they are submerged waist high in water. Zumba in the circuit is the dance combined with circuit training.^[8] These classes usually last 30 minutes and features strength exercises on various stations in timed intervals. ZumbaKids is a class designed for children between the ages of 4 and 12. It has the same dance and music styles as a regular Zumba Fitness class, but has routines designed specifically for kids. Zumba Gold-Toning is a toning class for older participants with goals of improving one's muscle strength, posture, mobility, and coordination. Zumba Sentao is a chair workout that focuses on using body weight to strengthen and tone the body.^[9] Zumba instructors have the option to become a ZIN (Zumba Instructors Network) member to receive bimonthly training DVDs to assist with the creation of music and choreography for their personal Zumba classes. ZIN members are the only instructors allowed to register for the new Zumba Core training class which helps to incorporate more core training into any type of Zumba class.

Because Zumba offers different options, proponents of Zumba claim that it is safe for all ages.^[10] At least some of the classes are specifically aimed at elderly people, to help them build strength, improve motion and posture, and socialize.^[11]

Products

Zumba sold DVDs via infomercials in 2002.^[12] In 2005, the Zumba Academy was launched to license instructors for teaching Zumba classes.^[13] In 2007 the company launched a clothing line called Zumba wear.^[14] In 2010 Zumba released its first fitness video game on November 30, 2010.^[4] As of August 2011, it has sold 3 million copies.^[15] In July 2012, it released the compilation album Zumba Fitness Dance Party.

Zumba Fitness 2 video game was released in November 2011. A similar game was released on the Xbox 360 as Zumba Fitness Rush in February 2012.^[16] Zumba Fitness Core was released in October 2012 for the Wii and Xbox 360. The game includes new features such as nutrition tips and ability to set personal goals.^[17] Most recently, Zumba Fitness: World Party was released on November 5, 2013, followed by Zumba Kids on November 19, 2013.^[18] Zumba Fitness: World Party features the new World Tour mode that unlocks songs from seven global destinations as you progress, exposing you to authentic customs, local rhythms and native dance styles. It also keeps you motivated with various rewards as you explore the globe: behind-the-scenes videos, passport stamps, postcards, souvenirs, fitness tips and achievements.^[19]

Zumba also has a line of fitness gear. Zumba Shirts, Zumba Pants, Zumba shoes etc. the fitness gear is hip hop inspired and optimized for high energy high impact classes. Zumba instructors are required to wear Zumba gear when teaching. Zumba gear is not a requirement to take the class, but many Zumba goers enjoy working out in Zumba gear to add to the fun and excitement of the class. Zumba gear is not sold in retail stores but is available through instructors, at Zumba.com, and limited online stores such as Amazon and eBay ^[20]

Charitable causes

Zumba Fitness has raised millions of dollars for charitable organizations, including Susan G. Komen, Augie's Quest, World Food Programme, Feeding America and the American Heart Association.^[21]

Celebrity trend

Part of the Zumba programs' popularity can be explained by its adoption by celebrities. Jennifer Lopez and Kirstie Alley are known to take Zumba classes as part of their workout routines,^[22] while Jackie Chan has been caught on video while performing the exercises.^[23] Other celebrity fans of Zumba include Eva LaRue,^[24] Jennifer Love Hewitt,^[25] Natalie Portman,^[26] Emma Watson,^[27] Victoria Beckham,^[26] Halle Berry, Toni Braxton,^[28] Nicky Hilton,^[29] Shakira ^[30] and Wyclef Jean.^[31]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Zumba.