Bigger Woman wanting to becoming a Zumba instructor

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  • upgetupgetup
    upgetupgetup Posts: 749 Member
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    Just the other day I saw a class happening (not Zumba) near the weights area at my gym. The instructor was overweight. People in the class looked really into it. She had a really great, motivating energy.

    I think doing it now would be awesome. Might make the class feel more accessible to people who might shy away otherwise. Do it!
  • BadOneEarMonkey
    BadOneEarMonkey Posts: 24
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    I do Zumba lots!
    It's a passion and I am super excited now that I seem all these responses.
    I have done a form of dance since I was little to early teens which might explain why I like Zumba so much.
    Zumba makes me happier and more motivated.
  • PattiBear85
    PattiBear85 Posts: 24 Member
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    I just went to Zumba tonight and my gym instructor said (whether its true or not) that her gym instructor was a rather round girl and she made her first day hurt.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
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    I do Zumba lots!
    It's a passion and I am super excited now that I seem all these responses.
    I have done a form of dance since I was little to early teens which might explain why I like Zumba so much.
    Zumba makes me happier and more motivated.

    Yay!! :drinker: :heart:
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    I PERSONALLY wouldn't take fitness advice or training from someone I didn't think was in better shape than me.. Even if they were certified, studied for years, etc. I just couldn't. =|

    My opinion is that if you are going to be any kind of fitness instructor you should be physically fit.

    Just my thoughts, nothing personal.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
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    I PERSONALLY wouldn't take fitness advice or training from someone I didn't think was in better shape than me.. Even if they were certified, studied for years, etc. I just couldn't. =|

    My opinion is that if you are going to be any kind of fitness instructor you should be physically fit.

    Just my thoughts, nothing personal.

    Zumba instructors are not there to give out fitness advice, they are just there to lead you in some fun, shake your booty dancing. If they have rhythm, style, and grace, I'm happy. I weigh 100 pounds, and I am a dancer. Being a good dancer is much more important to me than anything else in a zumba instructor. I find it intolerable when they are not good dancers and do not have grace and rhythm and oomph. I dislike stiff, jazz, cookie cutter dancing that lacks real grace and rhythm and is fake "sexy" instead of actually sensual. I prefer the Brazilian and African inspired styles. But, I guess I know I am in charge of my own fitness and if I go to zumba it's to dance and move. The weight of the instructor does not influence my fitness improvement as long as she is doing it right.

    But, I also don't understand why people are saying that slender instructors intimidate them. Being fit does lead to slimness for some people, as does dancing. Slender people are not judging you. We are all just people, of all different shapes and sizes. And everyone has faced many challenges in life.
  • ChristyRunStarr
    ChristyRunStarr Posts: 1,600 Member
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    Go for it! You love it so go have fun. Honestly, it might help you get some clients-kind of the "if I can do it, you can do it" type of thought.
  • Melissa22G
    Melissa22G Posts: 847 Member
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    Go for it!

    My Zumba instructor is over 200 lbs. I'm 179 and going through training in July- Zumba is a fun class, as long as you're able to keep up with the class (or the class with you:) ) GO FOR IT.

    The training for me is my 30 down fitness reward for me.
  • LaurenAOK
    LaurenAOK Posts: 2,475 Member
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    My zumba instructor is a bigger girl, my hip hop cardio instructor is as well. I love them both. I have a super tiny instructor for kickboxing and she mainly just intimidates me. It's not as fun :P

    you allow yourself to be intimidated for whatever reason.

    i took some muay thai classes. they were beginner classes, but i knew there would be people there of greater skill. the instructor was 5' 5" skinny indian guy, with 8% body fat. and he could totally kick my *kitten* three times before i hit the ground.

    was i intimidated? no.

    i was alert, mindful, attentive, and eager. i was not intimidate. of what? of a martial arts class? of people that know more then me, or have more experience then me?

    that is going to exist every where. i am like most people, and will never achieve a level of understanding where i know everything about any particular subject. to feel intimidated just because i go to a class with others.

    hell, i even went up to a student that was obviously more advanced than me, and introduced myself and asked him to show me how to properly wrap my wrists. guess what? new friend.

    get over what ever intimidates you about some "fitter" instructor teaching a class. you don't know that she wasn't once overweight herself. maybe she was always afraid of speaking in public. maybe she over came some physical ailment and is know teaching classes after not being ever able to.

    It's more her personality that intimidates me than the fact that she's fit. I was making a joke :tongue: I consider myself pretty fit, I'm not intimidated by fit people and I love classes that challenge me.
  • dixiewhiskey
    dixiewhiskey Posts: 3,333 Member
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    I think some people may find it difficult to relate to a instructor who is lean and cut.. just thinking of myself as an example, I'm not sure how to relate to someone who hasn't had children OR an instructor who has had children but no sagging skin/stretch marks across her belly. Just a thought. I go to a variety of different types of non-Zumba classes and always go back to the teachers who are able to lead me regardless of age, size, etc, though.
  • LavenderBouquet
    LavenderBouquet Posts: 736 Member
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    It's all in your head!! Do your research and go for it!!!

    :drinker:
  • iBreatheMusic88
    iBreatheMusic88 Posts: 115
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    I actually attened a Zuma class before and the instructor actuallys started out really big (As the instructor...) I had no clue until someone told me that she lost over 100 pounds and decided to do this full time to keep it off. So I say go for it!!!
  • midwesternwind
    midwesternwind Posts: 20 Member
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    I would feel more comfortable having a fuller figurer instructer. Just my opinion.
  • So_Much_Fab
    So_Much_Fab Posts: 1,146 Member
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    I'm not a bigger woman - and I would never entertain becoming a Zumba instructor.

    Why?

    Because I don't have the requisite rhythm!!! :sad:

    If you have the moves, go for it!!
  • sabbrown40
    sabbrown40 Posts: 41
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    I am so glad that you are getting positive feedback on this matter. I love zumba myself. And though I have a lot of weight to lose, it is sitll something that I enjoy doing and can hang with. I wish you the best in your endeavor. Put your mind over the matter and the rest won't matter. You can do anything you believe you can do. Go get it.
  • Cr01502
    Cr01502 Posts: 3,614 Member
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    DON'T LET ANYBODY TELL YOU THAT YOU CAN'T!



    hitch-dance-o_zps7dbc3479.gif

    ^^ Look at this guy.
  • laarae
    laarae Posts: 332 Member
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    Just go for it-if you have the passion then let it carry you to your dreams. I too have lost 100+ lbs with Zumba and a change in eating. Keep the faith and to H w/those who say you can't because inside you know you can.
  • karenyg
    karenyg Posts: 79
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    Please don't let size distract you from doing what you feel in your heart you want to do. My Zumba instructor did weigh over 300+ pounds, but through Zumba she has brought her weight down tremendously. Her love for zumba and what it has done and still doing for her incourages others to do the same. :happy:
  • emmymcq
    emmymcq Posts: 278 Member
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    I used to teach spin class 3 times per week. I'm 5'3" and at the time I was around 180ish lbs. knowledge is way more important than size. I say go for it!
  • Raynne413
    Raynne413 Posts: 1,527 Member
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    One of the instructors I had that I enjoyed the most was heavy. Go for it and have fun!

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