The closest thing to Zumba I had ever heard was Rumba, that slow, balmy, almost lazy musical genre of Latin roots. But while Rumba is a musical genre, Zumba is a group workout routine that involves swaying to the beat of the music and generally having a good time.

In fact, the Zumba tagline, "Ditch the Workout, Join the Party” captures this essence so well. 

Which is why this Thursday I chose to hit the Zumba "party” at The Manor Hotel in Nyarutarama, arguably the first establishment to introduce the popular group exercise in Kigali. 

For some reason, perhaps due to the sound and timbre in the word "Zumba”, I had thought of Zumbarinas (people that take part in a Zumba class) as something close to Sumo Wrestlers. I thought they would look big, bad and bloody, but was soon proved wrong with the first encounter I had with the class:

My first contact, Isabella Byusa is actually the Zumba instructor here and, far from being fat, is actually model-thin. 

She is dressed in such a way that she could either be going to the gym, for a jog, or to the club: really casual in sneakers, tights, and a sleeveless sweat shirt.

She describes Zumba as "a fun activity that combines dance and sports.”

"It's actually a fusion of different forms of dances from all around the world to create a full one hour intensive cardio class. Usually it's between forty minutes and an hour but my classes are generally one hour long.”

Zumba basically involves warm-ups and a mix of songs from different genres -some pop, some Zumba songs -which are specifically listed in the Zumba database, and also the cool-down.

For every class, the instructor has to create a playlist and also some choreography.

It's all about fun!

Even at a personal level, Byusa considers Zumba as both fun and therapeutic. 

"The reason I love Zumba is because it's something different. It feels like a workout without actually putting a lot of effort in it. I can get a good workout, I sweat a lot, just through dance. 

It's different from going out for a run, which is not to say that running is bad, it's different from going on a treadmill or going to the gym. Actually it feels like you're at a party and there's this really good music playing and you're going along to every single step and every single beat, and that's why I love Zumba.”

Becoming a Zumbarina

Byusa first heard about it while still at university in the US. "Zumba was a class you could actually go to instead of going to the gym. You could do Zumba, you could do Yoga or Aerobics, and that's how I first even heard about Zumba.”

She just started off as a student that really loved it, to the extent that it became her escape: ”Every time I was stressed in terms of school. I would go into my Zumba class and, after the class I would feel I now had the energy to go back and throw myself into books.”

So in love she was for the new hobby, she had to enroll for Zumba certification training in order to become a licensed instructor. Today, she is the proud holder of an instructor’s certificate from the Zumba training academy. 

This dance-based fitness program was created by Colombian dancer and choreographer Alberto "Beto" Perez during the 1990s. today, Zumba is a trademark owned by Zumba Fitness, LLC. The Brazilian pop singer Claudia Leitte has become the international ambassador for ZumbaFitness.

Bringing it home

Byusa has been at her thing since late last year when she pitched the idea to The Manor Hotel in Nyarutarama: 

"I just pitched the idea to the owner, Mr. Saeed Alam and he was very enthusiastic about it. He was very open to bringing something new to the hotel, and he allowed me to have the first two months as a trial, and I was offering free classes by then, for people to just come and increase attendance, and once the class grew I started charging a fee.”

She also teaches Zumba at the Waka Fitness gym in Kimihurura on Saturdays, while she holds classes at The Manor on Mondays and Thursdays. 

She has a mixed crowd for clients – expats, corporates, students, and the age group is generally the 18-40. 

"Zumba is a fantastic way to get fit and have fun while at it!” exclaims Cynthia, one of the Zumbarinas: 

"Our instructor is like a ball of energy -very encouraging and always has some fun dance moves to keep us on our feet, her diverse playlist and constant humor during breaks makes it more than a great work out but a great place to bond and make new friends. I have never been a gym type of girl so this has definitely been a great way for me to stay fit and shed off some extra unwanted pounds."

"Before I attended Zumba Kigali, I had never understood what it was all about. I thought it was just a dancing class which made me nervous since I don't consider myself a dancer!” explains Lisa, another Zumbarina: 

"When I heard there were classes being offered, I decided to give it a try. I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

The instructor is super talented and professional, the playlist is so diverse, the moves are intense but not difficult to learn, and it is quite a simple workout. It is so much fun that I decided to make it a part of my workout routine. I'd encourage anyone who wants to get fit, without long (and possibly boring) hours on the treadmill, to give it a shot. You'll not only get fit and healthy but also make some friends with some awesome zumbarinas."

What you need

Part of Zumba’s appeal actually stems from the fact of its simplicity. All that you need, really, is a music playlist, sound system, and an open space to act as the dance floor. The space is usually enhanced with mirrors, as these encourage the students to watch themselves as they dance and to follow the instructor's moves as well. 

Dress code is free-fall really, and anything should essentially do, as long as it’s not a suit for the guys, or high heels for the ladies. 

Talking of which, Zumba is largely favored by ladies than men, a fact that Byusa explains:

"Many women think that workout is for men and that if they work out, they will become more masculine and lose their beauty. So you find people in their late 40s already struggling with diabetes and knee failure because they're becoming too heavy. Zumba is just one way to fight that. It's one way to tell people listen --you can still do sports as a woman, and even have fun while doing it. Because of how cardio-intensive the activity is, you actually can lose weight by simply dancing Zumba. The other thing is that it's extremely therapeutic. A lot of people feel good after the class and after a long day it gets you to relax and be in the right mood to sleep or do some other thing.”

She adds: "It also makes you flexible, because you are not doing the same moves, but various moves that work on different muscles.”

Byusa is convinced that Zumba has the potential to get really big in Rwanda, "and it would be great if in every town there was a Zumba instructor simply because in Rwanda women especially have a negative attitude towards sports.”

To that end, she plans on staging the first Zumba festival in the country sometime next year, if all goes well. 

She holds a basic instructor’s license, although there are other categories like Aqua Zumba (a license specifically for teaching Zumba in water), and the Zumba Gold, which is for teaching strictly those 60 years and over.