MY PERSONAL STORY

I first heard of ZUMBA on an infomercial when I was up one night breastfeeding my oldest daughter.  I remember thinking to myself, "I would love to just be able to take a class like that!  It would be like dancing again."  I had tried attending step-aerobics classes but could never stay motivated any longer than 2 weeks.  In 2003 my then husband was transferred to Naples, Italy and I immediately got pregnant with our second child without even losing the weight from our first one.  By the time that I delivered I was 234lbs!!!  Although there were not any ZUMBA classes on the military base, I always had the idea of ZUMBA in the back of my head.  I knew that if I ever had the opportunity to attend a class like Beto's, I would be motivated to keep going.  Even after delivery and MONTHS of breastfeeding, I was still very overweight.  Although I was a very positive and happy person, full of life, smart, successful at work....I was miserable with my appearance which I believe made me more tolerable of negativity around me.  My husband was very verbally and emotionally abusive and the abuse was increasing daily.

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In Sept. '04, my fellow Latinas and I performed a salsa and merengue routine for the multi-cultural celebration at the Naval Hospital.  Even though I was very uncomfortable with my appearance on stage, my love for dancing and performing helped me to overcome my fears.  We were a hit!!!  The audience loved our show and many approached us asking for lessons.  We also noticed how much exercise we were getting from just the rehearsals and we wanted to continue with something similar.  All of us being moms, we couldn't just go to the club every night.  I mentioned ZUMBA to them but none of them had ever heard of it.  Being overseas (with no infomercials) I went online to see what I could find and discovered the ZUMBA instructor certification!!!  At that moment my dream of becoming an ZUMBA instructor was born.  But there were no certifications in my area??  I obtained a basic Group Fitness Certification but was too scared to do anything with it.  I felt that I was too out of shape and overweight to teach a class....who would want to take my class????  But I was SO wrong!  That is exactly what everyone wanted....someone they could relate to!!

Although it took me all the way until Feb 1, 2005 to build up the courage, we started our 'Latin Flava' (ZUMBA) classes with my beginning weight of 219lbs.  My students immediately began to see the results in me and themselves.  My classes got bigger and bigger, but my clothes got smaller and smaller!  By July, I had lost 65lbs.  During that time the verbal and emotional abuse from my husband continued to increase and he became even more controlling and jealous.  While my classes were making me feel more confident and attractive, they were making him more insecure and he began to get more physical with his abuse.  With my success at work and the support of my students, close friends and family, I became much stronger and realized that I could do anything that I wanted and I deserved so much more.  In Sept. '05, I got on a plane with my two daughters and moved back to Tampa to start a new life.  I finally got my dream of becoming an officially licensed ZUMBA Fitness Instructor in March '06 and ZUMBAflava was born!  My dreams are coming true everyday.  Within one year of obtaining the instructor certificate, my classes had grown to the point that I decided to resign from my full time job and pursue my dreams more.  Six months after my resignation I opened FlavaFitness Studio!  And I am not going to stop here, I am a dreamer and everyday I set new goals!