VIVA LA ZUMBA!

I just had my first live Zumba class and am in love!! I thought I would be riding the not-a-latin-dancer struggle bus, since I thought the Zumba video I found online was hard to follow, but this was so much fun! It was still crazy fast. The endorphins are still in my system, hence all the exclamation marks. It's good thing we had a basic dance class during our program's orientation, though, because there was definitely a lot of salsa hidden between the power squats. The room was filled with women - teenagers to grandmothers - shaking what their mama's gave them without an ounce of self-consciousness. In addition to the instructor, there was also one male, whose hips did not lie.

I've been a member of the Gold's Gym here for about a week now, and after several workouts, I've come to some general conclusions. In the midst of shaking my hips and cha-cha-cha-ing, I thought about how similar going to the gym is to going to a club:

1. Both are filled with sweaty people checking each other out. You all know it's true. You're on the treadmill or elliptical, and keep eyeing that person across from you on the bike or lifting weights. Same thing in the club, just replace the weights with drinks. 
2. Girls get dressed to show off their bodies. OK, seriously, the women here really like to show off their curves. Some of these tops are quite scandalous, and almost everyone wears spandex tights. I feel like a little out of place with my loose t-shirts and jogging shorts, but I'm going to stick with those. 
3. Attitudes come out when you get all up in someone else's space. Maybe this is just me - at least for the gym. Sorry, but I need to vent a little. When I got to the gym yesterday afternoon, I was SO pumped to run, but every single treadmill was taken. So, I waited for people to finish their allotted 30 minutes. One girl only had 2 minutes left, so I patiently stood by her treadmill, as other waiters started gathering around me. First of all, she was walking. You don't need a treadmill to walk. Go walk outside. She wasn't even breaking a sweat.  Second of all, once her 30 minutes ended, SHE RESTARTED THE TREADMILL. OH, NO. Not cool. Especially if you're walking! But that's enough hating. I'm sure she's a nice person and was not doing it on purpose. 
4. So far, I've enjoyed getting a good workout from both...though I have to say I was more excited for Zumba than the last time we went out clubbing. 

Next class, I'm getting a spot in the front.