Zumba Never Gets Old

by Kris Pitcher

If Zumba had come around in the '90s I would have loved it. But some fitness trends just miss your boat. Or do they? Saturday I was waiting outside the group exercise room as the Zumba class was assembling.

The instructor was unmistakable. Her hair in pigtails, neon pink shirt, black pants with pockets everywhere (what are those pockets for?), and around her ample waist was a studded belt. She had flair.

Zumba pants take me right back to 9th grade when parachute pants were the thing to wear to the Def Leopard concert. Zippered pockets, satin fabric, they were everything important in a girls life. Maybe that's why I couldn't take my eyes off the Zumba class...it was calling me from my past.

As the ladies arrived, they all had pink or purple shirts on. It was an unwritten "uniform". They took their places in their black pants. But one participant stood out from all the rest. She arrived early. This gal took her place in the very front. I know the type...she had HER spot. Her pants were no knock offs. They said "Zumba" right on them. The pockets clad with tassels and all. Her boots were black, her shirt purple. Her flair impressive.

The class filled, the music started, the beat dropped and the hips started doing things I know mine couldn't. I was mesmerized and worried all at the same time. The pocket flair spun in the air flicking back and forth. These were no parachute pants, these were Zumba pants!

And this gal in the front, I'll call her Grandma Zumba because she had to be in her 70s shook her business along with all the rest. See, Zumba never gets old! And maybe, one day all the onlookers will actually get in there and see how it feels to shake those pants around. What have you been waiting for?