Cheers To 10 Years: Remembering My First Class


2018 promoting our 1st Newcomer’s Dance Too! Project in Flemingdon Park (funded by the Toronto Arts Council)

At the 2015 Syrian Refugee Wellness Conference, hosted by Adeena, founder of the Afghan Women’s Organization

Cheers To 10 Years: Remembering My First Class

By: Sumera Garcia-Quadri

I remember running my very first Zumba Fitness program in April 2014. It was an 8-week program at the Annex with 4 participants, all of whom saw my little flyer at a local laundromat or cafe. I had a black Denon speaker, a Nokia cell phone with my playlist on it, and a pair of colorful sneakers from Payless. I was also lucky to have the support of my grandma, sister, aunt, and a few friends who would participate in my classes as a way to reassure me that what I was doing was good.

Before instructing and organizing community group fitness programs, I was at a women's circuit gym. While it was a good start, I wanted to enter an area of fitness that made sense to me. Zumba Fitness felt RIGHT, although I had never taken a Zumba Fitness class before signing up for the instructor training. I trained in Latin dances since the age of 13 (dances like Cuban Salsa, New York Mambo, Pachanga, Cha Cha, and Merengue) so finding a dance fitness system that combined Latin rhythms and movements was a dream. I was also desperate to maintain a healthy weight and active lifestyle during the daytime, which I couldn’t find in dance. Latin dance outings/socials were usually in the evenings and in a nightclub where you would usually dress up, where pretty shoes, and hope to find lots of good dance partners. Although I left Zumba Fitness in 2015, I owe a lot to its Colombian founder, Beto Perez, as it kept me and millions of others grooving, burning calories, and inspired.

Since then, I made it a habit to pilot group fitness programs that you wouldn't usually see in a gym like Pound Fit (a drum workout), Mom and Baby Latin Dance Fitness, Kid's Fitness Circuits, Kid's Yoga Safari, and eventually, women's Bollywood Fitness. I had no idea back then that Bollywood Fitness would take off the way it did and that we would be known for our seasonal Bollywood dance and fitness programs. Fast forward 10 years, I'm now running approximately 20 seasonal dance and fitness programs a year across various health centers, women's and kid’s organizations, and community spaces, as well as a free youth annual dance and safety event in 5 under-communities.

Truthfully, I experienced a lot of ups and downs due to not being a brick-and-mortar business or about the BOTTOM LINE. It’s hard to keep members happy, maintain community partnerships, and train instructors on how to run safe, effective, and fun classes. I had taken off most of 2018 to think about whether I wanted to continue in the fitness industry or not. Then there was COVID-19 which on one hand, set back Toronto Fitness for almost 2 years, but then brought us the gift of virtual classes.

I would like to thank our regular members for giving us a class to come to each season. Without them, we would have been out of business a long time ago! (P.S. I remember the names of all of our members).

I would to thank our regular instructors for keeping us moving - Alejandra, Ceejay, Pekhna, Mithila, Cheryl, and Deepak. A thank you to Aleya, a friend and fitness mentor, who has listened to my struggles at all times of the day and has referred me to the best kid Latin dance instructors. A shout out to our oldest self-defense pals Niv Goffman, Gil Katz, and Jesse Solloum from Krav Maga Maleh Canada for working alongside me since 2019 to get more youth moving and feeling safe.

Cheers to 10 years of moving and grooving,

Sumera

The Evolution of Dance (Aerobics) Fitness: Through The Ages

The Evolution of Dance (Aerobics) Fitness: Through The Ages

By: Sumera Garcia-Quadri

Jacki Sorensen, the creator and pioneer of dance aerobics

 

Jack LaLanne Show’s Exercise Segment (1950s)

Judi Sheppard, creator of the franchise Jazzercise

80s’ Dance Aerobics (John Travolta & Jamie Lee Curtis)

Joseph Pilates, Founder of Pilates

Tony Britt’s TV workout for home viewers

Billy Blanks, founder or the martial arts workout, Tai Bo

Johnny G, Founder of the first Spinning program

Beto Perez, founder of Zumba Fitness

“It is easier to maintain good health through proper exercise, diet, and emotional balance than it is to regain it once lost. - Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper (Father of the Modern Fitness Movement and Disease Prevention)

Dance Fitness, also referred to as dance aerobics, is one of the coolest workout systems in the fitness industry. Today, dance fitness has the transformative power to meet the needs of almost any demographic (from kids to older adults) and cater to multiple dance interests (from Jazzercise to AquaFit). When Toronto gyms and recreation were forced to shut down due to covid-19 pandemic-related restrictions, I saw our team and dozens of fitness instructors across the city pivot by running online dance fitness classes to keep thousands of people staying fit and healthy for the safety of their own homes.

With that in mind, let’s take a walk through group and dance fitness through the ages

  • 1950s: The Jack Lalanne Show was the first TV show to offer exercise routines to keep its viewers exercising from home, making it the first virtual home workout (first video on the left)

  • 1960s: Airforce physician Dr. Kenneth H. Cooper created the book “Aerobics” when he developed exercises to help prevent coronary artery disease. His book inspired dancer Jacki Sorensen (featured at the top of the page) to create a program combining dance moves, exercises, and music. The program was geared toward women and to not feel like a traditional workout.

  • 1970s: Jazzercize, created by dancer Judi Sheppard Messet, was a dance fitness program that offered participants the fitness components of dance without training to be a dancer. Today, Jazzercize has 8500 franchisees globally

  • 1980s: The rise in celebrity fitness (Richard Simmons, Jane Fonda) and Step Aerobics. Athlete Gin Miller came up with the infamous Step Aerobics program when she was stepping up and down a milk crate to strengthen her knee injury

  • 1990s: The rise of the following group workout programs, Tao Bo (created by Billy Blanks), Spinning (created by Jonathan Goldberg), and Pilates (created by Joseph Pilates), a widely practiced workout focused on core strength, balance, posture/form and flexibility

  • 2000s: Zumba (a Latin dance workout program) took the industry by storm and is now offered in over 186 countries. Zumba was created by the Colombian fitness instructor Alberto Perez. Following Zumba came the growth of other culturally diverse dance workout programs

  • 2010s to Now: I (Sumera) have noticed a growth in the following group fitness programs: dance fitness (Bollyx, Socacize, Hot Hula Fitness, Samba Fit, Belly Fit, Salsa Babies). Yoga programs (Bikram, Ashtanga, Flow, Vinyasa, Power), kids fitness programs (circuits, Zumba kids, Pl3Y Inc Dance), and HIIT training programs (F45, Orange Theory, Jillian Michaels)

The Benefits of Dance Fitness

Dance fitness provides a platform, day and night, for people to come together and sweat under the guidance and motivational support of a fitness instructor. Dance fitness, specifically, gives participants without any formal dance training a chance to improve their coordination and memory skills as they learn different styles of dance movements and rhythms.

Group fitness exists to improve: one’s body composition (weight loss/maintenance), muscle conditioning (strength training), flexibility (to reduce injuries), and cardiovascular health (improving heart and lung function). Additional benefits include mood enhancements (reducing stress levels, anxiety, and depression), preventing high blood sugar, high blood pressure, and high/bad cholesterol, improving one’s self-image and confidence, better sleep, and chronic illness prevention.

Dance Fitness Now

In January 2022, 30% of gyms across North America shut down (CanFitPro, 2022). The devastating closures, a result of the covid-19 pandemic, impacted the growth of certain group fitness programs. Dance fitness, however, was able to thrive for the simple fact that it could take place ANYWHERE (online, in health and community centers, the park, swimming pools, etc) and required a speaker, music device, and a small group. This gives the dance fitness system the ability to thrive outside of a traditional gym setting. Our team has been providing dance fitness programs for women and kids in community spaces since 2014 and online since April 2020, during Toronto’s first Covid-19 lockdown.

Our programs will continue to be SWEATY, safe, and facilitated by friendly dancers that are fitness and health professionals, physiotherapists and art therapists, and fitness lovers. While we love trying out a range of dance fitness classes, we currently offer Bollywood dance and Bollywood fitness programs, mom and baby dance fitness, Caribbean dance fitness, Vinyasa Yoga / Yoga flow, kids fitness circuits, kid’s Yoga, and specialty dance workshops.

To join us online or in person, do check out our schedules.

Sources

  1. Fitness Formula Clubs: https://formula.ffc.com/fitness/info/the-evolution-of-group-fitness-classes/

  2. ACSM’s Health and Fitness Journal: https://journals.lww.com/acsm-healthfitness/fulltext/2014/11000/the_evolution_of_group_fitness__shaping_the.4.aspx#:~:text=Group%20fitness%20can%20be%20traced,than%20disease%20treatment%20(1).

  3. Fridman, Len, Reimagine. Refuel. Rebuild. Canadian Fitness Professionals, November/December 22

  4. Fitness Pioneer : Aerobic Dancing Grew Into a Profitable Business in San Diego: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-07-28-ca-9678-story.html

  5. Dalleck, Lance, From Ancient Greece to Zumba, Ace Fitness Org: https://www.acefitness.org/certifiednewsarticle/2224/from-ancient-greece-to-zumba-50-events-people-and-trends-that-have-shaped-the-history-of-fitness-part-2/

  6. GX United: https://gxunited.com/blog/step-aerobics-history/#:~:text=Step%20aerobics%20came%20to%20life,an%20emphasis%20on%20athletic%20movements.

  7. Great Big Story, Human Condition series on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oa-je1zux70

DIY Valentine's Card Crafts - Kid & Adult Friendly!

DIY Valentine's Card Crafts - Kid & Adult Friendly!

By: Sumera Garcia-Quadri

Kids_valentine_card_DIY_fusioncardiotoronto.PNG
Kids_valentine_card_DIY_fusioncardiotoronto6.PNG

There’s nothing sweeter than making a homemade card for someone special - especially during the extended lockdown in Toronto. So turn on your favorite song and let your creative juices flow!

NOTE: All of my shapes are made with a ruler or using kindergarten hacks - I encourage you to trace your shapes by hand as it encourages fine-tuning skills and creativity for kids. All cards are made from dollar store products and home supplies.

  1. Glittery Lips Card - express yourself

Kids_valentine_card_DIY_fusioncardiotoronto4.PNG
Kids_valentine_card_DIY_fusioncardiotoronto5.PNG

What you need: 1 page of glitter paper, 1 page of colored card paper (stiff card), a hole paper punch, string or ribbon, 1 pencil, any colored marker, a ruler, scissors, or an Exacto knife.

How: use your ruler or imagination to draw a mouth on the glittery piece of paper. Then draw a smaller mouth inside of the larger mouth about an inch or 2 below. Using the scissors or Exacto knife, carefully cut around the larger mouth. Cut out the paper below the smaller mouth. Now you have a mouth/lips. Place the stencil on the other piece of paper and trace around the larger mouth with a pencil. Then cut out. Now you have 2 mouths. Put the glittery mouth on top of the other mouth and use the hole puncher to punch holes through both pieces on any side of the mouth. Slide a piece of string through to tie pieces together. Tie loosely so you can slide the pieces up and down.

You’re done - write your message inside the mouth and decorate with any pencils or stickers.

2. Hanging Message Heart Card - playful messaging

Kids_valentine_card_DIY_fusioncardiotoronto3.PNG

What you need: 1 piece of colored card paper (stiff card), a hole paper punch, any string, a message label, any colored marker, a ruler, scissors, or Exacto knife.

How: Fold your paper in half and draw half a heart. Then draw another half heart a few inches below the larger heart. Cut out the larger heart with the scissors or Exacto knife carefully. Then cut out the smaller heart. Now you have a heart frame. Use the hole puncher to punch a hole at the top of the heart. Slide a piece of string through the hole, add a message tag, and loosely tie the string so that the message hangs down like an ornament.

You’re done - write your message along the edges of the heart and decorate with any pencils or stickers.

Happy Valentine’s Crafting!

Sumera

making a heart stencil

making a heart stencil

making a heart stencil

making a heart stencil

2020 Fall - A Glimpse Of Our In-Person Classes

bollywood_dance_workout_toronto_fusioncardiotoronto (2).jpg

We are trying hard to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus while also supporting the lives of our members, many of whom we have not seen in 5 months.

While we are offering most of our classes online this Fall, should you choose to return in-person this Fall, here’s what you can expect from us

  1. We've got zones with cones - we’re maintaining over 6 feet of distance apart

  2. we’ve reduced classes sizes from 15 to up to 8 in some spaces

  3. we will shut down registration publically after October to keep our group feeling safe

  4. all of our instructors will wear a visor or mask during instruction

  5. we’re ready to shift all of our in-person classes online if we are mandated to shut down

  6. we’re trying to keep instructors with their assigned programs to help reduce the spread of the virus while giving the class the opportunity to build a stronger connection with their instructor - our instructors miss their class too!

To see our Annex space and members in our 1st week back: https://www.facebook.com/fusioncardiotoronto/videos/1221981348157197/

To see our High Park space and members in our 1st week back: https://www.facebook.com/fusioncardiotoronto/videos/1746768725478963/

If you would like to have fun dancing away stress with our dance workouts online or in-person please send a message below.