EMZ is a non-profit, fitness organization dedicated to inspiring members of the community to unite in becoming healthy, fit, and active by providing and promoting free and low-cost fitness classes and health education opportunities.
EMZ Instructors:
Beti Tua'efe, Betsy Vakapuna, Billie Sosi, Dana Rossi, Lila Latu, Liu Vakapuna, Maki Yamagata, Meliame Vaikeli, Satomi Biggs, Sela Langi, Sela Misinale, Sinai Pauni, Sisilia Misinale, Twig Larkin
Like our early morning classes, depending on who is available to teach is who will be there that evening. Last night was our second night & our numbers doubled from the previous week. We hope to keep doing so. We appreciate the love and support.
Drop-In Fee $7
EMZ Crew Member $5
Coming soon: 10 punch card for $40
Also, we will have our shirts, bracelets, cd's, etc. available for purchase on Tuesday evenings.
Thanks again!!!
And totally separate from this -- special shout out to our very first online donation (donation link on the right hand side) we received. Thank you JC!!! It means a lot to all of us instructors!!!
Aside from finding a good shoe to workout in, here's a tip to help preserve your shoe. Wear them just to workout in. Yup, plain and simple. I always carry my workout shoes in my gym bag. Once I get to class, I switch them out. This has helped extend the life of my shoes.
Well, we made it to Los Angeles and back. We could not have done it without all the love and support from our families, class members and friends. For the nine of us that were able to attend the conference, I'm sure we would all agree that it was tiring, yet a lot of fun. We were able to connect with other Zumba instructors from all over the world. In addition to meeting new people, we were grateful to run into the ones we knew from our home state of Utah. We had a few minor bumps along the way with a few diva's, but for the most part, the positives outweighed the negatives. If you are an instructor and wonder if Conference/Convention is worth attending, I say YES it is!
Thursday: We all met at the Stake Center we teach at. Class was underway with Billie, Owen & Nicole. We did get to do some Zumba with them before we left. We left around 7 am, stopped in Sandy to fill up the van and pick up Satomi. From there we were on our way. We made a couple stops along the way. Our drivers: Dana, Twig, Beti & Satomi got us there safely. We arrived in Los Angeles around 7 pm. We drove straight to the LA Convention Center & registered. After registration, we checked in to our hotel - Holiday Inn Express. Once we somewhat unpacked, we headed back out to grab some dinner. We chose the Pantry Cafe - an old school diner that accepted cash only.
Friday: We all woke up, got dressed, ate breakfast at the hotel. It was our first day of class. Full day training. Sentao class with Pepper Von - Satomi, Dana & Maki. Sentao class with Patrice & Melanie: Sinai & Liu. Zumbatomic with Lindsey Taylor: Betsy & Twig. Zumbatomic with Gina Grant: Sela & Beti. A few of us met for lunch (lunches we packed). At the end of the day - 5 pm, we all took the shuttle back to the hotel, ordered pizza from Domino's & then got ready for the Fitness Concert. Fitness Concert began around 8 pm and ran until 10/11. It was an awesome event featuring many Zumba Instructor celebrities, Lil Jon, Mara, Pitbull and others.
Saturday: Day 2 of classes. Began with a Kick-Off Session. They gave a rundown of what to expect this year with Zumba. Keynote speaker: Suzanne Somers. Saturday's classes were two hours each featuring different "flavors". A few of the "flavors" chosen: Reggaeton Rebellion, Carribean Heat, Burlesque, Brazilian Carnival, Mexican Fiesta & some were in the LIVE taping with Beto Perez. We ate lunch at the cafe inside the Convention Center. After our classes, we headed back to the hotel on the shuttle. Dinner that evening was from Yoshinoya. Saturday night was the theme party. All except for Betsy & Twig got all dolled up and headed to this event around 11 pm. The theme for the part was "Classic Hollywood". We stayed about an hour.
Sunday: Day 3 of classes. Again, additional "flavors". Most of us (all except Sela & Beti) took Hip-Hop: The Zumba Remix. After our first class, we all took the shuttle back and had him drop us off at Jack In The Box. After getting our food, we walked back to the hotel. We then drove back to the Convention in our van. We all were in the very last class - African Workout - together. It was the perfect class to end our training. At the end, Beto made an appearance and we all got to dance one song with him & then we showed him what we learned. Again, LOTS of fun. After we finished up at the Convention Center, Sela & Beti had a surprise for us. They took us to see the Hollywood Stars. We ate dinner at a diner there. Afterwards headed back to the hotel. You would think after all the classes and what not we would hit the sack...instead we hung out by the pool. Some swam and some like me, just chilled on the side. We probably headed back to our around around 12:30 am.
Monday: 6 am packed, loaded and headed back home. We arrived in Salt Lake around 6/7 pm. We made the rounds and dropped everyone off at home. Sela & I were the last to get home, around 10 pm.
I wish I could go into more detail about each day, but that would be pages and pages of writing. It was an experience that I won't forget & definitely lots of good memories. We came together as a team and left as a stronger team. These are some amazing individuals! While out there, they continued to show unconditional love by sharing our food with several homeless individuals, make others laugh, make new friends and the list goes on. So proud to know & teach alongside them. Love you - Dana, Maki, Satomi, Liu, Beti, Sela, Betsy & Twig. Also love the others who were not able to go with us this time - Silia, Lila, Nicole, Billie, Ame & Souna. Florida 2014???
I wish I had the time & patience to load all of our pictures onto our blog...but I don't, so if you'd like to check out our pictures - go HERE.
We took a few video clips along the way...here you go:
Getting ready to head out to Los Angeles. Seatbelt check and all.
A few things we did to keep us busy during the drive.
Our heartfelt thanks for all of your love and support these past couple of months as we tried to raise money to fund our trip to Los Angeles for the Zumba Conference. The very thought that in a few days we will be making the drive & joining hundreds, okay maybe thousands of other Zumba instructors from all around the world sounds surreal. We are excited to go and represent our group out there, bring back what we learn and share it with all of you.
Be sure to tune into our YouTube channel: TheEMZCrew. We will be uploading random video footage and keeping you all posted on what we are up to. And of course we will be sure to post to our Facebook page as well.
While we (Maki, Dana, Satomi, Liu, Beti, Sela, Betsy, Twig & I) are in Los Angeles, here's who will cover the days we are out:
Thursday, February 14 (Valentine's Day) - Billie, Owen, Nicole & Ame
Friday, February 15 - Billie & Owen
Monday, February 18 (President's Day) - No Class / *However, if you'd like to get a workout in, visit our friends at ZAS who also offer a FREE Zumba class at 5:30 am. - 5000 West Pavant Ave (3725 South), WVC
Tuesday, February 19 - back to normal schedule & don't forget, our very first evening class at Studio Azul (2852 S Redwood Rd, Unit B13 Salt Lake City, UT) 6 pm, drop-in fee $7, but for EMZ members $5.
Thanks!
Zumba Conference is a smaller scale of the Zumba Convention held every summer in Orlando, Florida. Here's a clip from last year's Convention to give you an idea of what we will be doing in Los Angeles.
Please forgive me as I've been late posting our Tuesday Tip of the Day the past couple weeks.
Today's Tip: Take things slow when it comes to "losing weight". Sometimes we overwhelm ourselves by doing too much at one time and then give up...or maybe this applies to me only. Something that has helped me - focusing on one thing until it becomes a habit and then adding another. For example: I began by food moderation. I still ate everything I wanted, but in moderation. Once that was able to do that on a regular basis. I then added exercise. I found an exercise format that I loved & looked forward to. I kept at both and then when I felt like I was ready, changed the way I ate and cut back on the junk food & added healthier options. It's a slow process, but it is one that has helped me maintain and keep majority of the weight off for the past couple of years.
