Zumba

So one thing i was looking forward to doing after I had sawyer was going back to LA fitness to take advantage of the aerobic classes.  I had done Zumba and Hip Hop there before i was pregnant, but as soon as i found out i had a bun in the oven was when i started feeling so crappy i would just have to lay on the couch as soon as i got home from work.  By the time i felt good again, it was 4 months where they have the "no jerky exercising" rule starts and that is all dancing is.  I even had a plan with my boss to do the Zumba classes pretty much daily over there (our work is in the same parking lot as LA fitness) They were also sending me emails saying "we want you back so we will waive the initiation fees and let you pay less."  One problem: Andy decided to start school and they did not offer online classes at all in the upper level classes.  That means i come home from work and it is just me and the Bean until nighttime.  Since i am pretty sure he is too small for their daycare, and i dont want to have to pay, we are s.o.l. for awhile.  A little depressing, considering my only "craving" was orange hi-c from mcdonalds (and the occasional oreo-reece's mcflurry), so we were frequent fliers there...and it all went straight to my thighs :(

Imagine my reaction when i turned on the TV last week and saw a commercial for zumba. DUH! I didnt even think about buying the DVD's.  I ran in the computer room and bought them within seconds.  They arrived a few days ago, complete with maraca weights. (Thats right, they have maraca shakers on the ends) I started this week, but today was the first day i was solid.  The first day was late so i only did the express version.  Yesterday was my first time doing "cardio party" so i spent half the time learning the movements and trying to get my hips into it at the same time.  Today was a lot better. But i realized a few things about the home DVD version:
-I will have to do the same dances every single day.  I imagine this will get kind of lame after awhile, even though it came with 5 DVD's.
-It is harder to stay motivated when you arent in a room of people that you dont want to look stupid in front of by doing anything less than full-on effort.
-The people on the DVD's are pro dancers and i feel like i am terrible compared to them...at the gym everyone was equal or worse than me including the instructor so i felt acceptable there.
-Our duplex living room is not the optimal space to move around
------the positives though:------
-I dont have to worry about people i know seeing me and laughing
-I dont have to get here early to try and find a spot away from the windows
-I dont have to try and be a "good person" by not laughing at the very obese women with no rhythm...i know that is terrible but it is hilarious to watch and i dont want to laugh because i am proud of them for getting off the couch to lose weight
-I can do it whatever time i please

So yeah, it kicked my butt.  I did not think about the fact that my larger body that hasnt exercised for a year would not be the exact same.  I also noticed i have the joints of an 80-year-old.  My knees are killing me and it just adds to my wrists that have been killing ever since i had to carry the Bean around.  Hopefully in a month or so i can see some difference :) I finally was able to put on my old non-stretch jeans, but they are too tight to wear comfortably still :(