We know it, and now an American College of Sports Medicine shows it: Zumba fitness has experienced a huge surge in popularity in the past year, and is expected to keep goin' strong in 2012!

A survey that started in 2007 focused on finding trends that could help the fitness industry make smart business decisions for the future.

More than 2,600 fitness professionals were surveyed to come up with the top fitness trends for 2012.  Out of 37 potential trends given as choices.... 
 
Top 10 fitness trends: 
1. Educated and experienced (instructors/trainers/coaches) 
2. Strength training
3.  Fitness programs for older adults
4. Exercise and weight loss
5. Children  and obesity
6. Personal training
7. Core training
8. Group personal  training
9. Zumba and other dance workouts
10. Functional fitness (for older adults)
Source: American College of Sports Medicine

Zumba classes are now offered in 125 countries in 110,000 locations!  More than 12 million people take classes every week!

Listen to how ZUMBA fitness is helping people to enjoy happier, healthier lives!
http://www.foxcharlotte.com/news/health/Zumba-Into-The-New-Year--136352938.html

Can color effect our mood, and increase the success of our workouts?

Color is light, and light is energy---many psychologists believe that kind of energy can have a powerful effect on us--allowing us to better power up, or relax.  

Different colors have different wavelengths and frequencies, which have been shown to affect specific parts of the brain.  People in ancient Egypt, Iindia, and China actually used color therapy to treat people with mood and sleep disorders.  Some still practice those therapies today.  Many fitness experts tap into the power of color energy to increase their overall health and well-being.

The bright, fun colors we wear in ZUmba classes certainly help to make us feel happy and energetic. Experts say we can experience those feelings by looking at certain colors, but also by simply visualizing the colors!

It's interesting to find out about the feelings associated with various colors:

Red:  Stimulating symbol of life, strength, and passion. Studies have shown seeing the color red increases blood pressure, heart rate, and temperature!

Orange:  Gets more balance and warmth from its yellow component.  Thought to fuel creatvity, socialization, and opportunity. May also help to relieve depression, and create positive, happy thoughts.

Yellow: Brings bright confidence, love, and light. Good to visualize during exercise for a positive mood and energy boost.

Green: Healing, and soothing to body, mind and spirit.  People who meditate sometimes visualize "breathing in the color green" to bring feelings of balance, and focus.

Blue: Cooling, and calming...helps with relaxation, and a spiritual connection.  

Purple: Can promote deep relaxation and improve sleep, boost self-esteem, and help in creating life changes. 

Next class, wear one of the colors that has a connection to something important to you...or open yourself up to visualizing it as you work out, and see if it helps to heal, energize, or relax your body and brain.  

Before long many will  be thinking about New Year's resolutions...why not beat the crowds, and start thinking about it now?! Creating a personal wellness strategy makes all your efforts even more meaningful, and productive. 

Maybe your vision is to exercise for stress relief three times a week.  Maybe it's to lose 25 pounds next year.  Maybe it's to get yourself to all needed check-ups. 

What will truly bring the most positive force to your life?  When setting up those goals it's important to connect those goals to your personal stategy.  Identifying and giving some planning to your goals boosts your chances of succes, in fact many goals are not met due specifically to a lack of strategy.  

So take a few minutes to think identify your "big picture."  What do you really need? What do you really want? What's most meangful for you? What would most make you feel happier and healthier?

Use those kinds of questions to come up with specific wellness goals. Then, for each one:_

---picture how you will feel/look/behave when the goal is reached.

---find specific motivation---what's fueling you to get there?

---think about what obstacles may be in your way, and how you can plow through them.

---share it with friends/family.  Recruit loved ones to hold you accountable and keep you on track (bring them to class with you!)

as you move forward, re-evaluate, re-vamp (if necessary)and renew your goals.

celebrate successes in baby steps!

Once you have your list together, go over it again and sort based on highest priority.  Let go of the things that really don't matter.  Tackle the things you most want to acheive first.  Think of the time needed to do so as an ealy holiday gift to you, from you. On a psychological level, planning in this way fuels a sense of confidence, and control that will spread into other areas of life, and also help to increase your feelings of overall health and wellness.