Zumba Instructor Workshops

Learn How To Become A Zumba Instructor!

Zumba® Instructor Workshops are held all over the country and the world. These workshops are designed to teach people, who are interested, to become Zumba® Instructors. There are different types of Zumba® Instructor Workshops for different types of Zumba® Classes. These include Zumba® Basic, Zumba® Gold, and the NEW Zumba® Basic Steps Level 2, Zumba® Toning, and Zumba® Aqua (to be unveiled at the 2nd Annual Zumba Convention in Orlando this fall).

Zumba® Basic: The first and most popular right now is the Zumba® Basic Instructor Workshop. This workshop will allow a person to teach Zumba® classes to the general public. Most Zumba® Basic workshops are a full day long and usually held on weekends all over the United States and the world. There are also two day Zumba® Instructor Workshops which are the best to go to because you will retain more as the class goes a bit slower and you have more time to practice and ask more questions. These workshops are taught by Zumba® Educational Specialists or ZESs. If you are fortunate enough to, you should try to attend a Zumba® workshop that Beto, the founder of Zumba®, conducts himself. Be sure to wear comfortable workout clothing, take lots of water, a towel and of course your "ready to party" attitude! At the workshop you will receive a bag of materials including a manual, usually a few yummy snacks, and if it is your first Instructor workshop and you are not a member of ZIN (Zumba Instructors Network), you will also receive the Zumba® Fitness 4 DVD set along with the Original Zumba Soundtrack CD.

The Basic Zumba® Instructor Workshop will consist of many different elements. Usually the first hour is a “Master Class”. For instructors to keep current and be able to continue to teach Zumba®, they must attend a master class each year or be a member of ZIN (Zumba® Instructors Network). Master classes last an hour and the rest of the workshop is dedicated to instruction, choreography, steps and anything new.

Subjects that are covered include how Zumba® Fitness was developed and its background. The physiology, psychology, and benefits of Zumba and how to monitor exercise intensity of participants is also discussed. In the Zumba® Instructor Workshop you will learn in depth how to format and structure a class using interval training. You learn why warm ups and cool downs are so important along with Instructor safety tips.

Zumba® Instructor Workshops also teach the basic dance steps used in Zumba® like the Merengue, Salsa, and Cumbia. You are taught how to create a dance, what arm movements work better with certain dance steps, and other Latin rhythms. You will be taught and given suggestions on how to create, choreograph, cue, and teach your class. Zumba® Instructor Workshops will also teach you about the wonderful hip swinging, toe tapping, get up and move Latin music that goes along with this FUN workout. You will learn how to identify different Latin rhythms and where the best music resources can be found.

Zumba® Gold: A Zumba® Gold workshop is for people who want to teach Zumba to active older adults or the true beginner. The same basics are covered in the Gold program as in the Basic program with the main difference being your target participant. A Zumba® Gold Instructor Workshop is very much like Zumba® Basic only on a less intense fitness level. The workshop is still a day long and like the Zumba® Basic Workshop, the first hour is a Master Gold class. Most participants in a Zumba® Gold class will be active older adults, senior citizens, people who are not used to exercising or the de-conditioned participant or even people with some type of physical limitation. You will also learn how to teach a Zumba® Gold Chair Class aimed toward seniors or those who may have a physically challenging disability. Having taken both workshops myself, I would suggest anyone interested in becoming an instructor to begin with the Zumba® Gold workshop. It is a bit slower pace and give a wonderful foundation for Zumba® Basic.

Zumba® Basic Steps Level 2: Zumba® Fitness has just released a new workshop called Zumba® Basic Steps Level 2. There will only be a few of these workshops held before the big October Zumba Convention and will only be available to members of the Zumba® Instructor Network (ZIN) for now. Zumba® Fitness will add additional Basic Level 2 Step workshops after the convention and those should be available to ZIN and nonZIN members who are current Zumba® Instructors.

This workshop consists of learning and/or concentrating on 4 more basic steps; the Tango, Flamenco, Belly Dance, and Samba. Some instructors already teach and use some of these steps in their classes. This specific workshop will allow Zumba Instructors to dedicate more time to these rhythms and reinforce the Zumba® Fitness formula to take them to the next level of Zumba!

These first few workshops will be available in September and October. Focus will be placed on professionalism, style, technique and useful teaching tips. These workshops are a full day long. You will also receive; a Basic Steps Level 2 music Cd and a Review DVD, a Level 2 instructor manual, and a certificate of completion. The Level 2 DVD will not be ready for the workshops in September and October but ZIN members will receive these at a later date. AFAA and ACE trainers can receive CECs and CEUs for taking Zumba workshops.

As of right now, those are the only types of Zumba® Instructor Workshops available. But keep a close watch for new types of workshops to come. There are many new and exciting things happening with this program! I will keep you posted on this website as I learn of them. If you are interested in attending a Zumba® Instructor Workshop, go to the Official Zumba® Fitness website at www.zumba.com for a list of workshops in your area. There are more added each week!

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