Just add water

Zumba in the Water!

That’s right! Zumba isn’t just for you landlubbers anymore. Aqua Zumba is here offering you the same fun workout in the comfort of the water. Enthusiastic participation has been through the roof since Ho’ola Lahui Hawai’i began classes in April.

Ranging from 20 to 40 participants, classes have been enjoying instructor Anna Velasco and the benefits of working out in the water.

Aqua Zumba has the same up-tempo Latin American beats we all know and love from Zumba Fitness, but unlike our land-based Zumba classes, Aqua Zumba has the protective quality of the water to cushion our joints and support our bodies.

The various Latin American rhythms and dances are modified and adapted to the aquatic environment without losing the basic identity and flavor that makes a ZUMBA class so enjoyable.

Anna, who performs the workout on the pool deck, visually demonstrates what our bodies should be doing below the water’s surface. The water acts like a veil hiding our body pumps and hip shakes allowing participants to “go for broke.”

Another favorable benefit is that movements are performed slower in the water leaving out all the quick jerky movements that scare people away from the land classes. The water adds resistance to all body movements through the full range of motion, thus increasing intensity.

In each Aqua Zumba class, the objective is to get a training effect or adaptation in each of the five fitness components: cardiovascular endurance, body composition and muscle strength, endurance and flexibility all in an energized Zumba party atmosphere. Anna has been a certified group fitness instructor through the American Council on Exercise for 10 years and has been a licensed Zumba instructor since 2009.

Her vibrant personality and passion for getting people healthy and moving makes each class an invigorating low-impact Zumba pool party you won’t want to miss. Join us every Thursday at the Kapaa Pool from 5:15-6 p.m.

Aqua Zumba — just add water and shake!