If you know me or follow me on Twitter, you already know how much I love Zumba. It is such a fun way to add fitness into my week and work on my Latin dance moves at the same time. For those of you who are unfamiliar with it, " Zumba® is a Latin-inspired dance fitness program that blends International music and contagious steps to form one of the fastest growing fitness programs in the world." This year, we have weekly Zumba classes for the staff at my school and they are lead by the extremely talented Geisha Chin. You may recognize her as a top 12 finalist on the hit television series “So you Think you Can Dance Canada." A dancer for the past 20 years, she has studied ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, acro and tap, and is a recent graduate from Carleton University. She has performed on ET Canada's NYE special, danced for various artists such as Victoria Duffield, Aleesia, Keshia Chante, Massari and Blake McGrath, and was most recently seen in Shawn Desman’s “Alive” Movie. Her passion for fitness began in 2012 when she took her first Zumba® class and she is now a certified Zumba® instructor and Aqua Zumba® instructor.

Earlier this month, Geisha opened her very own fitness studio in Aurora called GR Fitness. In a few short weeks, she will be hosting a Zumba with Geisha Annual Zumbathon charity event to support the non-profit program called Angel Hair for Kids (A Child’s Voice Foundation) and to increase awareness of hair loss in children. Many kids are either born with, or develop later on in their lives, health issues that cause hair loss, such as: illness, skin conditions, medication side effects, or stress and trauma. Hair loss at any age can be devastating and difficult to cope with. Wigs can be extremely costly and put financial stress on children’s families.

The charity provides wigs and hair loss solutions to financially disadvantaged children in Canada, who have lost their hair due to medical conditions or treatments. Providing a child with a wig or hair loss solution will help the child’s self-esteem and improve their self image during a complicated and often painful time in his/her life. And since Geisha's sister has been living through a difficult time with hair loss, it has opened Geisha's eyes to the needs of others and has inspired her to make a difference by supporting a cause she truly believes in.

What: Zumba with Geisha Annual Zumbathon

When: Saturday, February 1, 2014 at 1pm

Where: GR Fitness Studio, 265 Edward St., Aurora, ON

Cost: Donations only!

I hope that you will be able to attend the event and show your support for such a worthwhile cause.

Whip your hair because you care!

For the past few weeks, a number of staff members at my school have been participating in Zumba with Geisha after school once a week. I am really enjoying it and have seen some excellent results. (Which are being countered by my inability to resist devouring a delicious bar of chocolate. But that's an entirely different post altogether.) Luckily, I have new activewear in which I can strut my stuff. Even though I like to Zumba like nobody's watching, I still want to look good. Last August, I bought this One Tooth tank top and legging capri at the One Tooth store located within the Blue Mountain resort during our Summer at Blue family blogger retreat. (The outfit just so happens to match my New Balance runners.) I also purchased a pair of plain black capris and in total I spent $168 with taxes included. The good thing is I know these pieces will last me a very long time.

Truth be told, I love wearing One Tooth activewear. If you remember seeing this outfit before, it's because I wore it near the end of the summer when I tested out the new Treetop Trekking aerial park in Brampton. The outfit is so comfortable, washes extremely well and is also very forgiving. It is a definite upgrade from my make-shift Zumba costume I was wearing when I met Jordan Knight at Blissdom Canada...

A few weeks ago, I was extended an opportunity to try out one of the vast selection of fitness classes at TYC. I could choose from Yoga, Hot Yoga, Fitness, Boxing, Cycling, Pilates, and Zumba. My first thought was to try a Zumba class since I love to dance but, having abandoned yoga a couple of years ago, I felt I should give Vinyasa Yoga a try. 

Without much ado, I needed to invite some friends for our own private session and instantly thought of bringing along my sisters-in-law, Rose (@roseprose) who recently became a yoga instructor and Lucia (@lulula), herself an avid yoga practitioner. They brought along some friends including the ultra-fit way @TooHunky Jason. (Hint: He's the only male in the photo below.)

With the lovely Shannon (@shannonstasyk) guiding us through endless flows of poses and sequences, our Vinyasa yoga session was well-paced and challenging. The room was filled with a synchronic energy as participants linked their ujjayi breath to their movements, all the while our observant instructor making adjustments to our poses. And by our poses, I mean my poses. Which was much appreciated since I haven't attended a formal yoga class in years.

At the end of the session, I could feel the muscles in my arms, legs, back and abdomen screaming at me, threatening to make me suffer for having neglected them for so long. And suffer I did. For two days, I could feel the burn and winced each time I lifted an arm to turn on the lights. But it was a good feeling, in a twisted kind of way. I felt like I had awakened my body from a deep slumber and rekindled memories of my pre-pregnancy-belly days. Being smothered by your drooping tummy whilst in a shoulder stand can have that effect, if you know what I mean.