Release your inner Zumba!
What is an activity that intrigues you but is way outside your comfort zone?
For me one of these activities is dancing. Having not being born with the rhythm stick (thanks mum and dad!) I have always avoided going to dance classes or public dancing by day. Last year I attended a conference where they had a spontaneous dance break and being on the front row was like a bad nightmare. That being said I love to jump around to music with friends and after a few drinks. Who doesn’t love singing at the top of their lungs and releasing some endorphin’s through movement?
So on a break to Golden Door Health Spa last week I decided to fight my dancing demons and try Zumba which appeared on the schedule. For those who are not familiar with the Zumba craze it’s described as combining ‘Latin and International music with a fun and effective workout system’ (Zumba.com). I have a few dancing fans at work who often go to Zumba and Salsa, which I politely decline. This time however I thought a new year, new possibilities, what the heck! So I went along and the result……
I had a ball! Lots of laughing, no one taking themselves too seriously and an amazing full body workout. The music was a mix of old and new, instructor vibrant and fun, one of the best activities of the week! It is on my list of things to build into my life in 2015 from time to time. A Golden Door takeaway was it’s great to vary our activity form every so often to obtain benefits from different primal movement patterns.
The lesson for me here is being prepared to be vulnerable as the result can be extremely liberating. Brene Brown explores this in her highly viewed TED talk ‘The Power of Vulnerability’. Rather than worrying about what others are thinking of you (trust me most people are just concentrating on themselves) just go for it and have fun.
On the subject of having fun, another Golden Door take way was the power of laughter. I heard an anecdote there that adults on average laugh 12 times a day whilst young children can laugh up to 400 times! We need more laughter at home, at work and during everyday interactions. That’s why one of my new year goals is to laugh even more 🙂 As my great friend the Fonginator says “If you’re not having fun, you’re not doing it right”.
For you releasing your inner Zumba may be having a go at tennis or golf thinking you have no coordination, learning a language, public speaking…..
By pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone we continue to grow and develop. I love the notion of disruption for progression and for me Zumba was an example of disrupting my exercise routine leading to more fun which I definitely see as progression.
On another note I’d like to thank those who filled in my 2014 blog survey, I read all the responses which were very humbling and encouraging. I have created a wordle (image below) of the words that came to mind for you when reflecting on my blog which I will print as writing inspiration.
Create your own wordle for free at http://www.wordle.net/create
Having digested the responses my commitment to you is to post at least once a week/fortnight which were the most popular frequency responses. I will also cover your great blog topic suggestions in 2015:
*How to become less reactive to bad situations
*Life transitions
*Work life balance
*Social networks
*Woman power
*Motherhood vs career – one or both?
*Teachers/mentors/coaches/parents
*What we value vs. what others value – acceptance not judgement
It was a very useful process to obtain feedback and I highly recommend others to request feedback on things they’re working on. There is wonderful power in collective wisdom. Thanks again to those who took the time to provide feedback. Your unique strengths article will be with you by the end of the month.
To finish, in 2015 I will be starting virtual coaching and mentoring sessions. If of interest to generate insight and action please click here to see a list of topics available.
Happy New Year all! Zumba anyone?
Zumba image citation: http://www.theholbrookclub.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Zumba.jpg
Dani Matthews 