My new adventure

Well, it has been such a busy summer. I have not taken the time to blog. But I have something to share that I am very excited about. The first part of August, I became a Zumba Instructor and I am starting Zumba classes in Powell, Sept. 1st. This is how this all started.

I had a couple of friends tell me about Zumba, but I thought I couldn't possibly squeeze anything into my already full schedule. I was running 3-6 miles a day and I wasn't losing the weight I gained with Jenna fast enough. I nursed her for 8 months (and I keep weight on when I nurse) then I got serious about getting back in shape. I lost 10 pounds pretty fast after I stopped nursing. It was summer, so I was running outside everyday.
Well I went back to work and got a bad cold. I was still running, and I worked myself into shingles. (yes, at my age it is possible). So I needed to quit running for at least 6 months. I panicked. Exercise is my anti-depressant, but I was in so much pain I knew I couldn't possibly exercise anyway.
In January, after the prompting of a coworker, I decided to try out a Zumba class. My sister-in-law Serena and I went together. That one class is all it took. I was hooked! I have loved dancing since I was little, but David does not dance. So it is something I had given up, but with Zumba I found that I could still dance and get in shape. How much better can it get?
So I started going 5 days a week (3 times at 5:30 in the morning:) and 2 times at night. I felt weird about leaving my kids at night, but David was so supportive. He actually really likes to spend time with the kids by himself, and they would do fun things together. I lost the last 10 pounds in a couple of months, and felt better than ever. I was able to tone parts of my body that I could not doing anything else. I found that I had more energy and my days were more productive. I looked forward to getting up at 4:50 to get to Zumba, and also loved the two nights I could sneak away and workout.
I have learned so much through this phase of my life. I learned that I do need to take care of myself. When I am away from my kids during the day, I have always felt like I need to spend every other waking moment with my kids. I would only clean or do work after they were sleeping. This was dumb. Everyone helps out around my house now and we all are a team. I am so much happier and I know that has a positive effect on my children. We spend more time playing together and doing this we want to do.
I had a friend of mine ask if I would teach Zumba classes in Powell, and since I am so passionate about it I decided I would. I rented a studio from another friend of mine and spent part of my summer getting ready for this venture. I brought Powell Rec. on board and they will be taking care of the paperwork portion of the class. (I don't have time for that!) I am so excited/nervous for classes to start. I hope people like it as much as I do, and I hope it can make a difference in their life, like it has on mine and the other ladies I do Zumba with in Lovell. I am so thankful for Michelle Croft (my Instructor in Lovell) for bringing Zumba here and for helping my get established with my classes. She is a great supporter!
So here we go! I hope it all works out!