Surviving Dance Aerobics

At age 40 plus I found myself trying to finish my college degree. Of course I had to endure the exercise classes I had put off taking earlier. Not being the athletic type, none of the offerings looked particularly exciting. I had to take EXS 177 Fitness for Living and two more classes. I chose Beginning Swimming and Dance Aerobics. I had taken swimming lessons when I was a small girl and loved swimming, so it was quite enjoyable. I also loved dancing and thought "how hard could it be?"

My first day of class was a bit intimidating. All these young, energetic, perky young students and I got dressed in our black leotards and sports shoes and sat on the long polished wood floor. The teacher was also, of course, younger than I, and she gave me a smile when she called my name for attendance. Not really sure what was implied, but soon to find out, I answered that I was indeed present.

The teacher wasted no time in getting us up of our fannies and dancing. We all stood in front of a long wall of mirrors that reflected our images. I tried hard to ignore my own reflection and the great contrast there was between myself and the rest of the class. I hoped that I would not make a fool of myself and be the only one out of step with the instructor. I tried to stay close to the back of the room so noone behind me would notice my mistakes. I noticed the know-it-alls were on the front row right beside the trainer.

We did our warmups and then the music started pumping out of the speakers. We did a little marching, the pace was pretty fast, and I actually kept up pretty well for a few minutes. One thing I could do well was count 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 8 and 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1. Then the teacher did the grapevine. Luckily, I remembered that from somewhere in my past, and I was able to pull that one off. Then we did a side-step. Not too bad! I was hoping it would not get too much more complicated though, because sometimes I can be a real klutz and trip on a line on the floor.

After a while, I started sweating profusely and my legs started getting wobbly. I tried hard to keep up with the teacher and the rest of the class. There was a moment when I realized that I needed more comfortable shoes and a sports bra. The class would no doubt be good for my heart and hopefully I could shed a few pounds, so I kept going. By the end of the class, I looked like someone had dumped a tub of water on my head. All the younger students looked like they were just getting started, except for a few that had one too many Haagen Dazs ice cream pints.

Boy, the next day I was sore all over. I guessed it was working. It took another day to recuperate and then we were introduced to the step. As if it was not hard enough trying to dance on a flat floor, now we had to actually step up and down and stay on the beat. I did not shrink from this new challenge. I went for it and ached even more after the step class.

I loved Richard Simmons, Denise Austin and Kathy Smith because noone watched while I followed them on my TV. This was totally different - out there - exposed. I had to keep reminding myself that this was good for me, and of course the two credits I would get out of it I hoped would be worth all the pain.

Well, long story short, I did finish the course, lost ten pounds, and eventually graduated. By about the middle of the semester I was really enjoying it. My body had become accustomed to the workout and I actually missed it when it was finished. My latest fitness routine is the Wii Fit which I am enjoying. They even have a dance aerobic routine on Wii Fit Plus.