Megz Review

Megz Review: Zumba at 2fit2quit Fitness Studio, Dubai

Two years back, when I had just delivered my little one, I had no strength, no attention on my fitness, no will to workout, no time for anything else other than my baby and her needs. Even then, one thing that I did religiously was to move my body to some peppy music, every other day, sometimes with my little one in my arms.

As time passed, I yearned to get back to my pre-pregnancy body (which mother doesn’t?), but more than that, since the time I take out to work on my body is very precious, “ me time” for me, I wanted it to be something that won’t just keep my body fit, but will also keep my mind at peace and will bring an element of fun and joy in an otherwise mundane and busy life of a mom.

And hence, Zumba became my happy hour. Over a period of last 4-6 months, I have been taking Zumba & Latino cardio classes here in Dubai.

What has really drawn me to Zumba is that, it is not only an incredible cardio workout, but it is one of the most fun and happy form of group exercise that I have ever done. You leave the studio with sweaty body and happy mind.

The music is great and the choreography is matched very well. Now when I hear certain songs outside of class, my muscles start to twitch and I want to get up and start doing the moves we do in class. It’s that fun! So, when I got invited to attend a Zumba Workout at a soon to be opened fitness center in JLT, Dubai, called 2fit2quit I went for it with my dancing shoes on.

Before I give you a review of my first Zumba class at this place, let me introduce Zumba for those who may not have gotten into this craze.

Zumba fitness has over the years grown to be one of the most popular group exercise classes on the planet. In fact, the Latin-dance inspired workout is reportedly performed by more than 12 million people at 110,000 sites, in 125 countries around the world. Isn’t that massive?

Zumba Fitness is a Latin-inspired cardio-dance workout that uses music and choreographed steps to form a fitness party atmosphere. While many of the types of dance and music featured in the program are Latin American inspired, classes can also contain everything from jazz to African beats to country to hip-hop and pop. Zumba is truly for anyone who can stand up and dance. And “dance” is a very liberal term here, as no dance experience or skills are necessary. People of all ages, shapes and sizes are welcome and encouraged to attend classes. I’ve taken Zumba classes and had a blast with everyone from a 60 years old grandma to an obese woman starting her weight-loss journey, to sexy models. If you can shake your booty and like fun music, this class is for you.

Megz Review of Zumba at 2fit2quit fitness studio
Megz Review of Zumba at 2fit2quit

Anyway, back again at 2Fit2quit  and this time for Megz Review of Zumba!

The Instructor: Maira Lorena. One look at the coach Maira Lorena, and you mentally visualize yourself getting that body, someday, somehow. Yup, that’s what I did. She is sexy and just full of energy. How can one person have so much energy?! I am told, she will be the visiting Zumba instructor and I loved that she was having so much fun teaching Zumba to the women who were all almost the “First Timers”. You can tell that Zumba is just one of the feather on her cap, as she moved through the class at an advanced pace, which was a bit taxing for the newcomers. So, in my opinion, her steps went by a little too fast for the rest of us newbies. It was almost overwhelming watching her. However, what I appreciate is that she began the class with the disclaimer saying, “Dance at your own pace and have fun”. I wish, she would also mingle more with the nervous dancers at the back, during the class to bring their confidence up as well. That’s my 2 cents.

Fitness instructor
Maira Lorena – The Instructor

The Class: I like the walls, the quote saying, “Winners never quit” , and I told myself, this place seriously demands sweat. I think three minutes in, I knew my coach was not just having fun but was planning to give us a good core, hips, legs & upper body workout, all while we move to the music. Some bits towards the second or third songs were particularly intimidating and I thought it went by a little too fast for my preference. Leave it to the other ladies to make me and my bestie stand in the very front of the class, but we stuck it out. There were parts that were a little easier for me to catch on (the Latino part, since I have been doing Latino cardio for 2 months now), but I was pretty much having a good time, even when I was off!

The room was warm and almost like Bikram Yoga towards the end. I understand that the studio is not launched yet and the walls smell of fresh paints, but I do hope, the air conditioning will get better , and there will be lockers, towels and water for the participants to use.

Megz Review of Zumba at 2fit2quit fitness studio
Zumba at 2fit2quit

The Music: Maira played a mix. It started with Latino music, there were spurts of some belly dancing and maybe one or two hip hop/modern songs. I wish there were some latest hip-swingers too, considering I am a Mom and I don’t get to hit the club to dance the night away that often, but that’s not really a critique though.

I think Maira did a good job mixing it up and since she had a set playlist, the music went flawlessly. Since this class was full of newbie, I wish there were more concrete well-placed breaks between songs. People were taking breaks whenever they felt like, which was a bit disturbing and I personally felt a bit disorganized. Speaker system in the studio is solid.

Who Came: This class was a FREE trial class. This was a “ladies only” class so obviously only ladies came. The only man there was, was the owner of the Gym.  There were single, married, young and middle aged women but most of them were very new to Zumba and were there to have a good time while they lose some calories. The class was at 7:30 pm, so if you are a new mom or stay at home mom, that’s your child’s bedtime and hence it’s not very convenient. But if you are a working woman, it’s good time to relax after a long day and workout.

What I Loved: I really liked the coach Maira Lorena.  She seems like someone you could totally have a lot of fun with and I found her very approachable and friendly. At the end of the class, she thanked everyone and even agreed to click a picture with me and the rest of the girls for my blog. That’s sweet of her. Isn’t it?  We go to Zumba to burn calories and work our heart up in a good cardio, and that’s what I got. It was intense enough for me to break into sweat and the choreography allowed me to do some squats, standing pelvic movements and even lunges and jumps. So, I felt the happy hormones after the class ended and sweet pain in my muscles the next day, telling me that my hard work was all worth it.

Megz Review of Zumba at 2fit2quit fitness studio
Sweaty Me with the fab instructor after our Zumba session

What I disliked:  I wish there was a “what to expect” talk before the class started. And I also wish that breaks were planned to maintain a good heart rate rather than taken as and when required. And I definitely would like to get clean towels or information in advance to get my own towels to the class the next time, because wiping my sweat with tissue papers bit was a real mood spoiler.

The Takeaway: It’s a fun class and I’m glad I did it. I liked the place 2fit2quit, I liked the trainer, Maira.  I am told this place will be up and running very soon with more classes like, Aerobics, Pilates, Yoga and even kickboxing. They even have classes for children as they believe in starting them young on the path of health, wellness & fitness.

I recommend the readers who live in and around JLT, Springs, Marina, Meadows area to grab a place, in the next demo class this place offers. Keep an eye on their Facebook page here.  This fitness studio, sure looks promising.

Disclaimer: The Zumba session that I attended was free of cost for promotion of soon to be opened 2fit2quit  fitness studio. I went there on my own accord and I am not paid to review them. The views expressed here are of my own. Though, I look forward to collaborating with this gym and the coach in future if the opportunity arrives.

Megz Review of Zumba at 2fit2quit fitness studio
The ladies after a fun zumba session

Hope you liked reading my first ever review of a fitness studio. Have you ever tried Zumba? If so, what did you think? Leave a comment down below and tell me all about it! I would love to hear your stories.

Keep Dancing & don’t forget to follow me on Facebook and Instagram to check out some videos of me (& the girls) doing Zumba, at 2fit2quit. I guarantee smiles!

M

7 Comments

  1. […] I first heard of it when I met Maira (you know her from my Zumba Review) in a Zumba class. She talked to me about PLX and she asked me to come visit her and take a demo […]

  2. QueenCityMama

    I am glad you seemed to enjoy yourself. I have never done Zumba, but I love working out, especially now as a mother. It gives me a solid block of time to myself every day, and I think it helps with stress and the blues. I think it is important to find some form of fitness/exercise that you love so that you have something that makes you happy and you can stick with.

    1. Love Life And The Little One

      So happy to hear that you have found what gives you health & happiness.

  3. I started taking zumba probably about 4 years ago and I love it. I haven’t gone back since baby got here and we moved further from my office but I am considering doing the zumba classes on-line. However, I have to say that being in the group is a big part of how fun it is.

    1. Love Life And The Little One

      Yes. You are right. I wish you get an opportunity to zumba soon. Or just play youtube zumba video and dance along.

  4. madrediem

    I’ve never taken Zumba before because I can hardly walk without running into something, but I have a lot of friends who really enjoy it. I’ve also done a trial at a gym that didn’t supply towels and had to use paper towels to wipe my sweat off – not fun! Sounds like you had a good class though!

    1. Love Life And The Little One

      Yeah, we had fun. The gym is yet to open so I am told the towels will be there, next time i visit them 🙂

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