Posted: Jan 29, 2011 4:37 PM by Erin Schermele (KPAX News)
Updated: Jan 31, 2011 9:17 AM
MISSOULA- The Zumba fitness workout has become a household name, and the Missoula community is embracing the dance workout more then ever.
With nearly a month under our belts since New Years, women of Missoula have found a work-out that is helping them stay committed to their resolutions. At least, that is the case for Missoula Resident Fawn Tuhy.
"My resolution was just to get fit, not necessarily in shape but I just want to be fit and be able to do things with my kids."
Mother and Child start teacher, Tuhy, has finally found a workout that not only works, but is also enjoyable.
"With Zumba I feel like I am working my entire body. It's definitely a hard workout. I thought it was just going to be a lot of fun dancing...it is lots of fun, but I sweat a ton."
The Zumba fitness workout has been around for 10 years, but has recently been catching on quickly in Missoula. In December, Bitterroot gymnastics added a Zumba class two nights a week to attract a new demographic to their facility.
In January, Zumba teamed up with Curves to create a specific work out that involves a combination of circuit training and dancing.
Participants spend one minute on a circuit machine and one minute dancing, then the rotation continues for 30 minutes.
Co-owner of Curves, Megan Baumann says their addition of Zumba has helped their business.
"Curves is a pretty hard work out if you allow it to be, but Zumba brings that element of cardio that people felt curves was missing, so a younger demographic is coming to curves now. It's great for our business and we love it and our staff loves it."
The influx of classes has also created an influx of need for Zumba certified teachers in Missoula. Zumba instructor Connie Heiner has only been teaching Zumba in Missoula for two months and currently teaches at least two classes a day, at three different Missoula clubs during the week.
Heiner says she wanted to bring more classes to Missoula.
"I think there were only two or three other people that were teaching at the time in Missoula, so I wanted to get in when there wasn't a lot of other people teaching to boost the market a little."
Nearly every gym in Missoula offers a Zumba fitness class, including one at the University of Montana that can be taken for credit.
Comments