Conquering Climbs...

The last time I posted about my outdoor cycling adventures was last summer - in August...when I completed my first real outdoor ride with a group of friends from one of my CardioTone classes.  Since it was towards the end of summer when I did that ride, once fall and winter hit, I never did take my bike out again...until just a couple of months ago.  That same group of friends convinced me to sign up for a Century Bike Ride - the Goldilocks Ride - an all women cycle event.  I had no idea what I was in for.  Though I signed up for it in February, I really didn't train for it much.  But as the ride date approached, I knew I need to at least get on my bike a few times.

My friend, Tori, also a fellow fitness instructor decided to ride Goldilocks with me and she too didn't have much mileage on the bike outside (though ironically she is also an Indoor Cycle instructor like me) so we began to train together.  About 2 weeks prior to event we rode Legacy Trail (close to our homes) for an average of about 23 miles each ride.  We only rode maybe 3 or 4 times prior to the event.  Honestly we knew this wasn't enough training but we decided we would just go to the event, shoot for 100 miles but be perfectly okay if we don't make it.

The day came.  May 12th.  It was a beautiful day and Tori and I began our ride at approximately 7:45 am.  It was a fun atmosphere of female camaraderie and the event was organized beautifully.  I really didn't know what to expect.  Leading up the ride I knew I wasn't 100% comfortable on my bike - I still had issues clipping in and out of my pedals and would still tip over!   But man oh man...100 miles which include lots of stoplights definitely got me used to it - FAST!  And the hills - oh the hills...just sucked.  Though I didn't cry, I cussed - a LOT.  When you're at mile 75 and all you see ahead of you is a big hill especially after just conquering yet another one is quite disheartening.  However, we pressed on.  This poster that organizers posted on the major hills definitely helped....hehehehe...

But we did it.  It only took 8 hours...but WE DID IT. ONE HUNDRED FREAKIN' MILES.  This event definitely took me out of my comfort zone figuratively and literally (saddle soreness is NOT fun) but I've learned that OUTSIDE your comfort zone - is where the magic happens.

Tori and Me at Goldilocks!

April...a month of Celebrations

It's been a while since I've updated my blog but so much has happened over the past several weeks particularly celebrations and milestones.

In April, my family celebrated Holi, the Indian festival of colors which is a tradition ushering Spring.  Despite the rain, we had so much fun throwing colors to perfect strangers, enjoying the music, and tasting delicious Indian cuisine.  It was such an amazing experience!

'

I also travelled back to California to celebrate my cousin Theresa's wedding.  I enjoyed a girls day with my beautiful cousins at Burke Williams Day Spa and an evening of dancing at the reception.  It was so wonderful to see family I have not seen in decades.

Spa Day at Burke Williams Sherman Oaks

Cutting a rug with the cuzzos!

Mi Familia

While we never really need a reason to party, sometimes it does take major events to bring people together  whether it's a centuries old tradition that a country embraces or a celebration of two people joining their lives together.  And whether the celebration consists of strangers partying in the case of Holi or family brought together from around the world, the result is always the same - pure joy.

Zumba® Fitness Rush for Kinect Flash Mob

This isn't technically a "flash mob" in the pure sense...but this was pretty dang epic regardless - and it took place in MY hometown!!! Wish I coulda been there!

From Scowls to Smiles....

This morning I had the privilege of subbing Aqua Zumba at the beautiful Treehouse Athletic Club in Draper and while I usually won't drive that far to sub a class, this particular gym is amazing (Treehouse has won Utah's "Best of State" for gyms for 3 years straight so far) and is seriously the Zumba "mecca" of Utah since there have been some fantastic and famous instructors who teach there (Lindsey Taylor, Camilo Jimenez, Teresa Auva'a, etc.). Aqua Zumba was launched there in January by the beautiful Jenny Ford so it's a fairly new program for them.

Admittedly I was a bit intimidated to teach there today. It's always a typical dread for substitute instructors - students who see YOU rather than their usual beloved instructor...and immediately they have already decided they don't like you. When I sub Zumba on land, I usually don't worry about this because it's easier for me to greet and smile to people as they walk into the aerobics room...but for some reason, it's more challenging with Aqua Zumba as I'm on deck and the students have to get into the pool. There's just more of a physical barrier to overcome to connect with them right away.

It's been a while since I've felt THIS unsettled prior to teaching a class. Most of the ladies were senior citizens and I'm sure they were surprised to see me who just looks so different from the statuesque beautiful blonde who is their regular instructor. When I started my music, immediately I received the complaint: "It's TOO LOUD!". Oy....really? So I just smiled and turned it down a tad.

As my warm up song started, "Anthem" by Pitbull...I seriously became self conscious and worried and afraid this would be THE LONGEST HOUR of my life. I started to stress about the lyrics...I started to get concerned about my playlist...I worried about my choreography...I didn't get the usual smiles my regular peeps give me at South Davis and the U...but rather, I felt like I received -- scowls.

So what did I do?? I frickin' FAKED IT - I just put on my perma-grin...smiled the whole time - definitely made some playlist and choreography changes (had to slow down my usual tempo a bit) - and continued on.

I was about 20 minutes into my class when I realized that while I do need to make adjustments in terms of choreography and song choices, I wouldn't let what I perceived to be their dislike for me get to me - I had to keep reminding myself to just "do what I do best" and just share my love of Zumba. It wasn't easy. And although more smiles began to appear as the class continued, let me tell you, I was so happy when the hour was over.

So can I just say how incredibly SHOCKED I was when most of the ladies came up to me afterwards and told me how much they enjoyed my class?!? I was NOT expecting that at all. Maybe at best, I would receive the "polite" thank you comments but I was really overwhelmed and touched by their sincerity. Even Anne Marie, the General Manager of the Treehouse Athletic Club, met me right there at the pool after class, to welcome me and compliment me. She expressed how thrilled she is to have me on board as a fitness instructor at Treehouse (currently just on the sub list). It was quite an amazing transformation of emotions from trepidation at the beginning of the hour to just a warm feeling of acceptance and true hospitality.

The cutest lady, Maxine, came up to me in the lobby on her way out just to tell me how much she enjoyed my class and how it was great to mix things up. This gal is a young and vibrant 87 year old! Meeting her seriously made my day.

The Beautiful 87-year old Maxine and Me

Thank You, Franklin Covey Corporate Fitness!

In my continuing endeavor to streamline my class schedule, yesterday was my final official class at Franklin Covey Corporate.

It has been such a joy to teach at the Franklin Covey Corporate Fitness Wellness Center! I started there in October 2010 and it was just so fun to be able to share Zumba love with the ladies (and some men!) who would take their precious lunch breaks during their work day and spend it with me. I always am so impressed by companies who really make corporate wellness a priority for their employees as evidenced by the beautiful and huge gym on the Franklin Covey campus. Because the peeps there were always so open to various workouts I threw at them, I was privileged to teach Indoor Cycle, Boot Camp, Hip Hop Hustle, and of course Zumba. As is typical with corporate fitness during the lunch hour, sometimes our numbers were small but the energy was always fantastic!

Thank you so much for your support and friendship!

The fantastic Leslie Szoke has taken over my classes there but I'll pop in from time to time to sub!

The Biggest Losers Experience ZUMBA LOVE!

Utah's very own incredible Kass Martin led the Biggest Losers in a fantastic high energy class this week! This is truly inspirational. I love how the competitors were so uneasy and unsure at the beginning of the class but through just feeling music, the joy, and the energy of Zumba - their confidence skyrocketed by the end of class.

Celebrating Milestones

Today was a looong day. It started with a fantastic CardioTone class at the Northwest Rec Center (Class #1), followed by a few hours at the office...THEN a Zumba class back at the Northwest Rec Center at 5 PM (Class #2)...followed by an Indoor Cycle Class at 7 PM (Class #3) at the Bountiful Rec Center...followed by another Zumba class at 9 PM (Class #4) also at the Bountiful Rec Center.

At about the last 15 minutes of my class which I had split down the middle at this point doing a belly dance routine to "Shakalakalaka", my fellow ZIN and dear dear friend, Leslie, showed up and rocked that routine with me (Leslie is AWESOME at belly dance!). She also brought along our students, Gail and Katrina (who is also a ZIN and teaching her first class on Wednesday at Highland High!). Leslie subbed a class at Gold's Sugarhouse and Gail and Katrina joined her for moral support. Though Leslie had already taught 4 classes today (beginning at 6:15 am) and Gail and Katrina already took 2 full classes, they showed me some love by joining my class late this evening. It was such a nice surprise.

What made it even more special was today marked Gail's 1 year Zumba anniversary. A year ago on March 19, Gail took her very first Zumba class (with the fabulous Patti Olsen) and she always refers to that day as life changing. I have always been so impressed with her regular attendance and the fabulous energy she always exudes. It's such an inspiration to me and I'm proud of her for this milestone she has achieved. I'm especially impressed that she actually remembers the exact date she first attended a Zumba class.

Though it was already 10 pm, I needed some good "girl bonding" time, so we just headed over to Chili's for....Diet Coke (at least for me - I admit, I'm an addict). It was just so nice to sit there with these three ladies to chat, and laugh, and hang out for a bit. Even our waiter, Hugo, who is from Mexico, got into the Zumba spirit by showing us his salsa moves!

At Chili's with Leslie, Katrina, and Gail