It’s not that I don’t want to. But I just can’t dance. I’ve been known to skulk on the sidelines at parties when people decide to “burn it up” on the dance floor, and have sneakily concealed myself behind a portly aunt while everyone else twirled most exuberantly in my cousin’s wedding procession. The time my over-zealous parents signed me up for bharatanatyam classes was an excruciatingly painful experience. For the teacher. So it was with a sinking feeling that I agreed to roadtest– or rather, pool-test–an aqua zumba class at Bandra’s C’est La Vie.
The name is self-explanatory–it means doing the zumba in water. A Colombian dance fitnessroutine, created by Alberto “Beto” Perez, zumba fuses traditional dance forms like tango, calypso, samba and even a bit of bellydancing. Its name is derived from a Spanish word that means “to move fast and have fun”. When you add a swimming pool, the water’s resistance slows down the movements and they require more effort, but that is precisely why aqua zumba is considered a thorough workout. I was more pleased with the fact that it would be easier to conceal my clumsiness underwater. That, and the prospect of plunging into a cool pool after the muggy weather on my way over, cheered me up considerably.
Our group of five water-nymphs started the hour-long session with a few warm-up exercises. Instructor Anusha Sipahimalani told us to make sure we didn’t balance on our toes while doing the squats, stretches and jumping jacks. You need to stand on the balls of your feet, or on your heels. The workout can also be done in a pair of aqua shoes, available at any neighbourhood Bata outlet, Sipahimalani said. We had to stand in chest-deep water throughout the session, to ensure most movements were underwater and had the maximum impact.
The tempo slowly picked up. We twirled, jumped and wiggled to DJ mixes like “Zumba He Zumba Ha”, “Go Stop Drop Pause” and even Cocktail’s “Tumhi Ho Bandhu”. The choreography was a mix of samba, some belly-dancing and a dash of Bollywood. We were encouraged to slice and punch our way through the five-footdeep water with as much ferocity as we could muster, and play on its surface like one would with a drum. I was trying hard at first to keep up with Sipahimalani but then remembered that the water was bound to always keep us at least two steps behind her.
Our very chirpy instructor encouraged us to keep smiling, sip lots of water and finally, keep breathing out. I huffed and puffed like I was in a Lamaze class as the steps kept piling on. My calves and arms ached a little but that was nowhere close to how sore they would have been if I were on land. Because it’s conducted in water, aqua zumba has higher buoyancy but low impact. Your body is cushioned, which is why a workout in water is often recommended for people suffering from joint problems. Before we knew it, 60 minutes were up. I clambered out of the pool and hit the showers, feeling deliciously stretched out. I was also ravenous and promptly proceeded to make up for the “500 to 1,000 calories” Sipahimalani said we had burned during the workout, with a mayosoaked burger from J Hearsch and Co nearby.
With no water to cushion them anymore, I had expected to wake up to woefully aching limbs the next morning. But happily, there was no post-workout agony, aside from a slight soreness in the calves. A few full-body stretches and I was ready to roll.
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