At CrossFit Pincher Creek, Zumba is part of the daily schedule.
At CrossFit Pincher Creek, Zumba is part of the daily schedule.
Zumba is a dance-based form of exercise popularized through globo gyms and private classes. The same songs and dances are repeated each week. Steps are simple to follow and repeated many times within the same song.
Paula Szaroz is the owner of CrossFit Pincher Creek in Alberta. “We had boot camp and Zumba classes going before we became a CrossFit affiliate three months ago,” she says. “We've never had machines; we've always used a lot of free weights; we've always had a lot of wide open space.”
When Pincher Creek became an affiliate, Szaroz became aware that some CrossFitters poke fun at Zumba. “We didn't just stop offering our Zumba classes,” she says. “We have people who love to come to Zumba. We don't need equipment, and we get a lot of people smiling and moving.”
As an entry point, Zumba is helpful in attracting new clients to CrossFit Pincher Creek who might otherwise be intimidated. “It allows them to come in and use their bodies. We have a few ladies who use the 5:30 Zumba class as a warm-up for the 6:30 CrossFit class,” Szaroz says. “It gets everything moving. Do we think that it creates long-term strength gains and lifelong results? Absolutely not. But it's a really good mobility warm-up.”
Szaroz adds: “Some Zumba participants at CrossFit Pincher Creek have come to CrossFit classes because they're already there. They think, 'I might as well hop in and give this CrossFit thing a try,' and then they see more of the results of actual fitness. It gets people in our doors, and makes the whole CrossFit thing less scary. It's a gateway drug, definitely.”
Another benefit of Zumba, she says, is that people have fun with it. “Dancing is a natural movement,” Szaroz says. “Every time you do it, you feel less like an uncoordinated dork. That's rewarding to people.”
“Coordination is one of the 10 elements of fitness,” Szaroz says, adding that she isn't coordinated enough to teach the class, but enjoys participating.
“At our big CrossFit launch party, a bunch of CrossFitters jumped in and tried Zumba. Kids love it because of the music and the moves,” Szaroz says. “Everyone was smiling and laughing. It brought just so much more joy to everything we were doing. It's just fun.”
“People come here to do Zumba or yoga. They call CrossFit, 'that hard thing,'” Szaroz says. “They progress upward. CrossFit is our business, but for a lot of people, Zumba or yoga classes are their entry point.”
“We do CrossFit to enjoy everything else in our life. What we do in CrossFit helps us to be better snowboarders or hockey players or whatever else you like. We also do Zumba to enjoy things more.”
