Is the thought of going to the gym dreadful to you?
Or do you feel extremely exhausted and bored while weight-lifting?
I was under the same impression, that is, till the time I joined Zumba.
A Zumba routine provides an excellent work out of the full body.
Zumba converts dance, physical training, and fun in a different way of doing exercises.
This fitness discipline has become fashionable because of the subtle way in which it adapts to your physical requirements.
These exercise routines are incredibly fun and easy to follow.
You can also practice them at home if you do not have the time to go out.
Needless to say, the benefits of Zumba are only felt if you are consistent in your practice.
Let us check out exactly what Zumba is all about!
What Is Zumba About?
It is a very entertaining and energetic discipline that combines aerobic exercises and choreographies of different rhythms.
Created in Colombia by Alberto Pérez around the 90s, this sport is suitable for people of all ages and genres.
The main objective of practicing this routine is to shape your body, tone your muscles, increase your physical energy and burn fat.
Benefits of Zumba For Your Body
The Zumba dance gives great positive body results.
It works as a natural antidepressant while lending you physical well-being.
Dancing in conjunction with aerobic movements requires good coordination, and this leads to discarding the negative energies you may have.
In this context, we will highlight the most remarkable benefits that this discipline offers to your body.
Let’s check them out!
Eliminates Body Fat
With only about 35 minutes of this new routine practice, you can burn an average of 800 calories in each session. [1]
When your heart rate increases above the normal capacity, you burn calories simultaneously.
Hence, Zumba helps you burn as many as 500-800 calories a day without getting bored to tears.
What could be better than that?
Strengthens the Cardiovascular System
Irrespective of the dance you practice, Zumba is a cardiovascular exercise that indicates that several organs of the body enter into a rhythmic movement. [2]
Dancing sets in motion the heart, the lungs and the circulatory system in general.
By enjoying cardiac well-being, you will be able to reduce the levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood glucose levels, which, in turn, will help you in maintaining a strong cardiovascular system.
Tones Muscles
By exercising to the rhythm of music along with the movements of aerobic exercises, you will be contributing to tone, mold and strengthen the muscles of arms, legs, abdomen, and gluteus. [3]
Likewise, your physical resistance will increase, which will make you feel more energetic during the day.
This is one of the best advantages of Zumba.
It takes away the tiredness and fatigue, and you can enjoy a consistent level of energy throughout the day.
Releases Stress
Practicing this physical exercise will make you segregate endorphins, which are hormones that promote happiness. [4]
Therefore, you will feel relaxed and in a good mood throughout the length of a day.
In addition to that, this implies that your stress levels will be reduced and your self-esteem will increase.
The most faithful followers of Zumba believe that it also helps to improve the sexual life of people.
Goodbye to Boredom
If you are looking to do exercises in an unconventional way or do not like gym machines, then Zumba is meant for you.
This type of training mixes music from different genres such as salsa, merengue, cumbia, flamenco, bachata, calypso, hip-hop, and reggaeton, among others.
One of the purposes of this discipline is to have fun, and so, you can continue with the routine and fulfill the objective.
Exercising in this way completely changes the criteria of sport and encourages you to feel the benefits through a dynamic dance.
It is also a great way to spend an hour daily having fun and benefitting from the advantages of this type of exercise.
Great Results in A Short Time
The key lies in perseverance.
If you practice Zumba 3 times a week, you will keep excess weight and obesity at bay.
The most interesting thing is that you will begin to see the results in a short time, and that will encourage you to continue the training.
Reduces Lactic Acid
There are different types of exercises that produce a burning sensation when practiced, but with this sport, you will avoid that problem.
The practice of this routine decreases the production of lactic acids, which will prevent the accumulation of this acid in your muscles.
Increases Your Social Life
Following this training program will help you meet more people or make new friends.
In a gymnasium, choreography routines are done to perform this exercise in groups of 10 people or even more.
A coach directs these choreography or dance routines.
This will open up the possibility of socializing with people who are not from your shared environment.
Burns the Maximum Number of Calories
Up to 370 calories are lost in just 45 minutes when practicing Zumba.
You can expect more when dancing flamenco, salsa, ballet, tango, bolero, belly dancing or hip-hop.
The calories that are burnt depend on the class and the intensity with which it develops.
If you follow high-intensity Zumba sessions, expect to burn more calories by the end of the day!
154 Beats Per Minute
The heart rate depends not so much on the exercise as on the intensity with which you work out.
In contrast to the normal 70 beats, Zumba is a high-intensity exercise that allows raising the heart rate to 154 beats per minute.
Music Therapy
Zumba is most possibly a physical exercise where you can have the most fun and with which the training session can become something really entertaining.
In addition to that, not only in Zumba but all kinds of classes with musical support, you also have a significant benefit on the emotional and cognitive part of your brain.
Tone Your Upper Body
Although it is true that when practicing Zumba, the lower half of the body performs a greater activity and the improvement will be more appreciable from the waist down, it is a discipline that involves the action of a large part of the musculature.
Therefore, practicing Zumba on a daily basis helps tone the upper body as well as the lower body, and you can enjoy being in good shape.
You Lose 2 To 3 Kg Per Month
Being an exercise with great cardiovascular involvement, it is highly recommended for those people who seek to lose weight.
If you practice daily between 45 and 60 minutes and follow a low-calorie intake (between 300 and 500 calories), you can lose at least two to three kilos per month.
Improves Circulation
As mentioned above, practicing Zumba daily improves cardiovascular health.
Moving the body to the rhythm of Zumba is good not only for the musculature but also for the heart, the cardiorespiratory system, and the circulatory system.
Do you have a high cholesterol or diabetes problem? Zumba can help you keep them at bay.
Stimulates Your Memory
In Zumba, you usually have to force yourself to remember the movements of the dance so as not to make mistakes.
Choreographies are simple, but you have to be focused so that you do not get lost.
There are scientific studies that have found that dancing, especially in older people, helps improve memory and prevents Alzheimer’s.
Therefore, practicing Zumba not only helps in your physical health but also promoted your mental and psychological well-being to a great extent.
And do not worry, because you do not have to be an expert to practice this exercise.
Those who practice Zumba are used to seeing how their other classmates in the gym watch the class from the outside, but many do not get to enter.
“It’s just that I do not have any sense of rhythm” or “I do not know how to dance” are their excuses.
Coaches throughout the world maintain that this is a discipline that almost anyone can perform, having an approval from the doctor in case you suffer from an illness or injury.
Through the progression of the exercise and the options offered by the instructors, you will notice that it is not necessary to be a seasoned dancer in order to practice Zumba and make it a part of your life.
Therefore, while this training is quite intense, it does not indicate that you should be an expert to practice it.
This program trains people of different ages and aptitudes or physical needs.
Ideal for men, women, children, seniors, diabetics, and others, Zumba is an exercise people throughout the world can practice without any discrimination.
No matter how old you are when practicing Zumba, it is important that you enjoy each session to maintain your motivation.
Not only will you be having a good time in the company of others, but it will also improve your self-esteem and physical fitness.
So, what are you waiting for?
Join your Zumba class today!