Guest Post: A Short history of JAZZercise

People dance when they feel good.

People workout because they want to feel good, to have a good look.

What do these two activities have in common? They both make people feel better about themselves. They both provide a sense of wellness.

From ancient times, when people were physically working every day, fighting, or hunting to survive, people were running, exercising and this would keep them in good shape, having good health. Nowadays people workout because they don’t do any physical activity and they have to lose weight. Sedentary life is not suitable for health as many diseases can occur: gaining weight, back problems, slow metabolism, constant fatigue feeling, and many others.

Time has passed, and now we live busy lives. We run from one place to another, but not by foot. We invented vehicles so that we don’t make any effort. We created technology so that we don’t move anymore. Everything has to be effortless. By doing no physical activity is why we gained weight and we aren’t feeling so good anymore. This is how we come to search for a gym on the weekend. We try to work out, but it is so hard.

People in 70’s were trying to exercise even the way they did it was hilarious. Working out had an ancestor called Jazzercise. Jazzercise is a mix of Jazz and exercise. It brings together peaceful music and physical exercises. How did Jazzercise concept appear? Well, once upon a time there was a student at Northwestern University named Judi Sheppard Missett. She was teaching in a dance studio when she noticed people were dropping out every day. When she found out people were more interested in physical fitness than in professional dance, she got a fantastic idea: adding music to her classes, so she introduced a Jazz part into her classes.

Noticing that people were responding well to this initiative, she renamed the class “Jazzercise”. And this is the moment that made history. Jazzercise has evolved, and now it involves cardio, strength, Pilates, hip-hop, yoga, and kickboxing. In just one hour, you can burn up to 800 calories. This working out has a high intensity, and it is tonnes of fun.

During first years, Judi was teaching people from all over the world this new type of exercises through VHS videos. Now that we have internet you can learn it at home, without any instructor to show you how to do it. All you need is a device with internet connection, cross trainers, and the desire to workout in a new exciting fashion. The good part of this sports category is that it continues to develop every day. You will never get bored.

What do you say about Jazzercise? Will you try it out?

Author Bio: 

My name is Oana Pauna and I live in Romania. I am a 25 years old marketing specialist. In my own time, I enjoy freelance, writing on my blog and traveling. One of my dreams is to become full-time digital nomad traveling the world.

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