Forgot My Shoes

Anyone who has ever taught a dance fitness class, or been any sort of dance instructor, has a deep fear of forgetting their music.  Or their music not working (iPod stops working, CD skips, etc.).  We have nightmares about it.  We get anxious about it and check our bags multiple times before leaving (and even upon arrival) for class.  Though Zumba was founded on such an incident (Beto forgetting his music and playing Latin CDs out of his car), it doesn't help ease the stress that a dance class is based on dancing to music.

So, I regularly freak out about my iPods, CDs (yes, I bring 2 of each because I'm crazy), and all of my music.

Never, ever, did I think about worrying about my shoes.  Until I forgot them.

My Rod Lavers.  I love their soles for dancing!

For the past 2 weeks I've been subbing for a Zumba class on Wednesday morning at Nob Hill.  I taught a class there over the summer, and most of my regulars dance in this class, so it's been fun.  I also have my regular Wednesday evening class at the Fillmore Center.  Both of these are in San Francisco, and I live in Oakland.  Also, I wear the same shoes for all of my Zumba classes, since they work perfectly.

I get pretty sweaty when I'm dancing.  My plan was to wear flip-flops in between classes so that my shoes get sufficient drying time.  It keeps 'em fresh.

The amount of time between the two classes was too long for me to just loiter aimlessly in the city, and my dog was having oral surgery, so I figured I would head home for the afternoon.  I came home, hung up my wet clothes, put my shoes out to dry, and did typical house-husband things.

When the time came around, I changed, grabbed my Zumba bag, and headed to class.  It turns out that I left my shoes at home.  I discovered this an hour later, once I was deep into the city in rush hour traffic.  There was no way of me getting to a shoe store, let alone home to retrieve my shoes.  So, I danced barefoot.  I explained to my class how much I always freak out about bringing music, and how ironic it is that the things I actually forget are my shoes.  Which it's really difficult to leave your house without.

Things went well.  Socks make for good spins.  It still just cracks me up that I actually forgot my shoes for a Zumba class.  I'd recommend you try not to do that, and maybe breathe a little easier about your music.

Happy Dancing,
~RoB

Back of the Class

My first time dancing in the front of the class came the first time I taught a class.  (I guess, technically, there were 2 songs where I was up front during my Instructor Training, but I'm not counting them.)

From the beginning, I've always been a back row dancer.  Part of it probably has to do with the fact that I'm a big guy.  Zumba classes are almost entirely girls.  Rarely have I been to a class with more than one guy, which is usually me.  I have ridiculously wide shoulders for a person who only stands 5'7".  I usually dress ridiculously (hello bright maize ensemble w/ a headband).

I've just never felt like I needed to be in the front row with all of the ripped girls in their sports bras.  Heck, I'd probably block people from being able to see.  Meet me in back with everyone else that's uncomfortable with themselves (or their dancing).

Here's what a typical class feels like.  I'd be touching the back wall.

Today, I had an unusually small class at the Fillmore Center Club One in San Francisco.  The studio there is odd shaped, in that the instructor teaches from the short wall in a rectangular room.  It's not uncommon to have 8-10 rows of 4-5 people across.  (Like I said, an odd shape.)  I've never had the impression that people couldn't see, so it works, and everybody seems happy.

Since I had a small class, I decided to pull the "hey you ladies in the back, come be the front row."  I thought it'd be fun.  For one thing, there was a lady really close to me up front that I was going to ease backward a little.  Secondly, with a small, supportive class, it would be nice to let those ladies that usually hide get to shine.

You in the back, come forward and be a star!

They refused to come forward.  I should have taken the hint and moved on.  Instead I was all "no seriously.  It'll be fun.  Fine, I'll come back there, then."

I had the whole class turn around toward the back, and we did Pitbull's "Pause".  I could feel the anxiety back there immediately.  By the second chorus, I turned everyone back to the front, and we resumed the class in its normal manner for the rest of the time.

So my first attempt at the 'bring the back row forward' was an epic fail.  I wanted to apologize to them afterward.  I hope I will at least get a few emails saying, "Please, don't ever do that again" so that I can respond to them individually.  I really would like it to work out, but I'm not going to try it again anytime soon.

Has anybody seen this happen successfully?  Tips/hints/advice?

Happy Dancing!
~RoB

DOSFOUR

Leyder, the uber-popular salsa instructor at Club One Oakland that I've subbed for, just released his second CD with his band DOSFOUR.  It dropped less than a month ago.  Since I'm super cool, I got a free copy of it.

That's gorgeous Leyder on the cover.

In return, I'm going to be using the song "No Se Controla" in my Zumba routine for a while.  I get a little lazy when it comes to referencing songs that I'm using, or partial choreography that I'm using.  I'll try to remember to shout out his name every once in a while when we're dancing to it, but this is just the long explanation of what I'm talking about.

For now, I want to credit Vanessa W. with most of the routine to "It's Raining Men".  Courtney provided most of the choreography for "Livin' La Vida Loca" for the Truckee 4th of July Parade, which I kept using.  Also, Yeni inspired most of the choreography for "Pegate", but I don't think they look very similar anymore.  It's been a while since I danced it with her.  Finally, Wil came up with the cha-cha and addictive arm movements in the chorus of "California Gurls" which I built the rest of the song around.

I only use choreography from instructors that I very much enjoy and recommend.  I hope they see that as an honor, and I think you should try and snag a class from any of them if you find one.

Everything else I do is either completely choreographed by me or augmented by official ZUMBA routines... or from music videos like "Pause" and "Footloose".

Now my conscience is clear.

Happy Dancing,
~RoB

BORP (Adaptive) Zumba

For those unaware, I'm working with BORP to create a Zumba class that everybody, literally every body, can enjoy.  BORP is the Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program, and they are one of the main programs within the Ed Roberts Campus in Berkeley, CA.

BORP is the leading provider and promoter of accessible sports and recreation opportunities for children and adults with physical disabilities in the greater San Francisco Bay Area.

The class vision: a person in a power wheelchair will be sweating along to the music while a 20-year-old Cal student is dancing behind them.  A mother of two dances beside them, while someone with leg braces is workin' it in the back.

I'm not a licensed Zumba Gold instructor yet (though I'm signing up for a class in September).  However, I don't really want the class to be called Zumba Gold.  I don't even want to label it "Adaptive Zumba" (so I haven't).  I don't want people to think that it's only for seniors or only for people with disabilities.  I want it to be a fully integrated community dance class.  I guarantee that you can still sweat if we sit down for a song or two.  We want you to feel free to do what you can, and to try something new.

This is not a picture of my class. This is how it feels, though!

The class mantra: you are a person first, and your disability should not define you, nor should it isolate you from the community.  You should be able to dance like everyone else.  If you are a marathon runner, a dancer, have a little problem moving around, are a senior, or if you are in a wheelchair, this class is meant to make you feel included and still get you a good workout.

I've heard from my dancers with disabilities that they've been told their whole life to "keep up" or that "instructors usually get nervous or anxious when I show up to their classes".  Well, I don't.  However, I also don't want you to think that I'm going to take it easy on you.  You're going to sweat.  You're going to dance.  And you're going to have fun!

Your first class at BORP is free, and you can find out how to register on the Zumba w/ ~RoB tab.

I'd love to get some more of the community into the studio to shake their booties with me.  Plus, you'll get to use the brand new facility that's adjacent to the Ashby Bart Station in Berkeley.

Come join us Thursday evenings at 6:15 pm, and please, please, please tell your friends!

Happy Dancing,
~RoB

Truckee Independence Day Parade

For the 4th of July holiday weekend, my girlfriend and I headed up to her hometown on the north shore of Lake Tahoe in Northern California.  As it turns out, we are really good at finding barbecues.  It was at one of these bbqs that one of my girlfriend's closest childhood friends mentioned that she was going to be Zumba-ing in a parade on the 4th.  (This same friend was featured in my first official class.  Thanks for making the shirts!)

It sounded interesting, so I wanted some more details.  Her local, Tahoe City, Zumba instructor had teamed up with one in Truckee to include a bunch of Zumba dancers into the hometown parade.  There were 3 songs that were choreographed, and they had been posted online.  As she was telling me about it, she looked at me and exclaimed 'You should come do it, too!'  (Paraphrased... she may not have exclaimed it.)

My first thoughts were, 'Thanks, but I don't know the instructors, and I've never seen the choreography, and I would really feel like I was imposing.'  Skip ahead 18 hours or so, and I'm standing next to her in the parade lineup with my favorite Zumba outfit on ready to dance and sweat and cheer.

Why did I decide to do Zumba in the parade?  She fessed up to not really knowing the routines, and she waited until I was in a food coma to have my girlfriend coerce me to committing.  After all, I could look at the videos online, I was pretty confident in being able to pick up on dances quickly, and it made for a good story for you guys (my readers).  As it turns out, they were more than happy to have me.

A few minutes into the parade, I was called out by a radio station announcer.  "Hey, is that Richard Simmons?"  (I'll blog more about this often-made comparison later.)  I took the opportunity to shimmy and really show off, and the crowd ate it up.  I'm happy to take advantage of moments like that, and it was probably the best part of the parade for me.  Here are some photos that were snapped along the route:

I'm a little bit of a ham. I regularly ran out into the audience and got them to dance with me!

Shimmy-ing to 'Livin La Vida Loca' at the judges booth.

I've since added two of the parade songs to my list of go-to Zumba songs.  I also got to hand out some of my business cards to the lovely people that I danced with, in hopes they might be able to swing by one of my classes in the Bay Area if they are ever visiting.

The group that we were dancing with ended up winning for 'Best Commercial Float'.  Our superb dancing didn't go unnoticed!

So, morals of the story are: the Zumba community truly is inviting and gracious and fun, and you should take every opportunity to just go out and dance.  Oh, and Go America, too!!

Happy Dancing,
~RoB

Financial Investment

10 days ago, or so, I had a momentous occasion.  For the first time ever, I was paid for teaching Zumba!  Technically, I haven't been paid yet, but I know it's coming, and how much it is, so I guess I'll count it.

This was the first time that I added a 'positive' value to my spreadsheets that thoroughly detail the total amount I've spent throughout this process.  I was asked by someone today (a gentleman!) about the process for becoming a Zumba Instructor.  (I'm sending him your way, Joy!)  The thing that I've left out of my story so far is the financial investment you have to make before you start earning any money back.

Everything costs money, and you need to be ready to front a lot of it until it starts coming the other way:
- Instructor Training (The largest and first-seen cost.)
- Monthly ZIN Membership (You should definitely do this.)
- Promotional Posters / Business Cards (You'll want something to get your name out.)
- Zumba Gear (Become the fitness instructor, don't expect words to work on their own!)
- Liability Insurance (Get it if necessary, and I had to.)
- Zumba Classes (You'll still want to keep going to Zumba classes to continue to network and learn.)
- Zumba Music (You want to personalize your music, so have a few unique songs to stand out.)
- Parking/Memberships/Bridge Tolls/ Etc. (All those little expenses that add up if you track them.)

In general, I'd say you should expect to invest about 2.5 times the price of the instructor training before you will see any money back.  Obviously, that number varies widely depending on how long you wait to start teaching, and how much you immerse yourself in gear and promotional items, but I think that is a fair number to plan for.

Money shouldn't discourage you, but you should be serious about the investment considering the economic times we're in.  Hope this helps those of you considering starting a Zumba journey of your own!!

Happy Dancing,
~RoB

Getting to the BORP Fitness Center

So, you're interested in the FREE ZUMBA class and you've registered online by following these instructions.  You've looked for directions online, but you are still a little unsure about how to actually get to the class.

In showing up to finalize things at the BORP Fitness Center yesterday afternoon, I realized that it might be a little difficult to find.  So, below is a virtual tour showing you how to get to the studio if it is your first time.

Coming from BART
Get off BART at the Ashby Station.

After you've passed the stanchions, look up and slightly left.

Follow the signs through those glass doors.

Turn right through the doors and get on an elevator.

Go to the first floor (it is starred).

Turn left out of the elevator and walk beyond the desk.

This is where the Zumba magic will happen!

Coming North on Adeline
You'll be driving beside the BART station on Adeline.

You'll encounter this sign. Aim for BART Parking, NOT ERC!

You'll drive past the main entrance, but you'll see it on your right.

Turn right past this sign to go to Free BART Parking.  

Follow the path back to the parking lot.

Find a spot, park, and aim for this door.

Walk inside and head down the hallway, then turn left.

This is where the Zumba magic will happen! (You just came down that hall on the left.)

Coming South on Adeline
You'll be driving beside the BART station on Adeline.

You'll encounter this sign. Follow the arrow for Free BART Parking.

Follow the path back to the parking lot.

Find a spot, park, and aim for this door.

Walk inside and head down the hallway, then turn left.

This is where the Zumba magic will happen! (You just came down that hall on the left.)

I hope these help photos make finding the class easier, and I'm very excited to dance with you,
~RoB