Cardio Rehab

Cardio is awesome, a quick glimpse around the studio after one of our cardio classes and you can see the room is intoxicated with endorphins. Along with this "happy pill", we all know the benefits of cardio; weight loss, detoxifying sweat effect, etc. But if you really want to change your body and boost your metabolism, you need to add strength! MaZi's dance-focused approach to strength will make you the strongest you've ever been, cardio will get easier. Runners you can expect to double your mileage! We use many different tools, as well as your own body strength to develop intuition about how the body works holistically. Like we say in class: "Everything working at the same time!"

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, only 21 percent of women strength train two or more times a week! These are some of the benefits of strength conditioning:

• Afterburn! A Study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that women who completed an hour-long strength training workout burned an average of 100 more calories in the 24 hours afterward than they did when they hadn't lifted weights.
• Metabolism! Muscle is metabolically active and requires calories throughout the day (unlike fat) to function. Replace 10 pounds of fat with 10 pounds of lean muscle and you'll burn an additional 25 to 50 calories a day without even trying.
• Body Design! Cardio will shrink you, but only muscle work will shape you and give you a "say" in how you want to shape your body.
• Fat/Muscle Ratio! With only 2 hour-long sessions a week  for 10 weeks, you can reduce your body fat percentage by 3% , without cutting your caloric intake.
• In Ballerina Form! Professional dancers spend most of their time training, conditioning, shaping/elongating their muscles using their own body resistance. A typical ballet class provides some cardio conditioning but the focus is on getting strong and training your body to execute your commands.

Not strong for a girl...just STRONG!

Start incorporating some strength love into your routine today and watch your body transform! MaZi strength classes: Ballerina Bum Bootcamp, Pilates Ball, and Intro To Ballet classes. Ballerina Fight Club also provides some strength intervals.

-Zi

Dance Beginner: Plan of attack for your dance fitness journey.

Question: I'm new to dance, how do I get started, what classes do I take?

This is one of our most commonly asked questions! The first thing to know about taking classes at MaZi Dance Fitness, is that you don't need to be a dancer, but you will transform into one.You may ask yourself, why would I want to dance as a form of fitness? We challenge you to find a more effective workout.

If you've never danced in a group setting or had any type of previous dance training we highly recommend that you start with Ballerina Fight Club, Ballerina Bum, B-Girl Hip Hop, Werq or Zi-Cardio. These classes are designed for all levels and as you become more experienced and familiar you will see the opportunities to add dance detail, footwork, arms....the fancy stuff! When you become more familiar with footwork combinations and start "seeing" the music patterns, we recommend that you try Dance Cardio and Jazz Funk for more of a mental puzzle. Cardiovascularly, you get what you put in. Yes, you can burn 800 calories in Zi-Cardio, but are you dancing as "BIG" as the instructor or are you barely lifting your arms and legs?

A great complement for your dance fitness journey are our conditioning classes, which are designed to strengthen you so that you can last longer in any cardio environment (running, dance cardio, etc.) and to build your mind/body awareness. These classes are NOT about isometric movements (small, isolated movements in other "barre" classes), they are about moving your entire body holistically (as dancers do). Your dancing will go so much further faster if you add these classes to your regimen. Ballerina Bum Bootcamp or Body are amazing to get you started on deeply engaging your muscles. These classes are all very challenging but the results will keep you coming back. If you can catch the Intro to Ballet session, just do it!

Finally, enjoy it. It's a journey, you'll have days where you'll feel like you are on SYTYCD, and others where you feel like you have 3 left feet (still happens to me after 3 decades). Ultimately, you'll change your body from the inside out; feeling happier, comfortable in your own skin, obtain enviable posture and develop a lifelong appreciation for the art of dance, because that's what you'll be......a piece of art!

To sum it up:
1) Pick a cardio class to take at least twice a week.
2) Pick a strength conditiong class to take at least twice a week.

3) Ask questions after class about form, maybe consider private training to customize classes  for your body.

See you in class, Zi

Ballerina Finishing School Series: Balanchine

You already walk the walk, you might as well talk the talk. :)

You may have heard of George Balanchine, founder of the New York City Ballet, and choreographer to many ballets still performed today even 20 years after his death. His ballets are famous for being abstract, many times without a story, presenting clean lines & seemingly impossible technical feats driven by musicality. "See the music, hear the dance"

The excerpts in the videos below are from San Francisco Ballet (Marisol's old stomping grounds) featuring "The Four Temperaments", and New York City Ballet featuring "Serenade". I was lucky to get to perform both!

When we choreograph for Dance Cardio, we take a lot of inspiration from the syncopation, fast footwork and crazy arms of Balanchine's ballets. Our ballet teacher growing up, Ingeborg Heuser, studied with him at the so Marisol and I were lucky to have her pass along many of his teachings and style.

For those of you starting Intro to Ballet tomorrow with Marisol, enjoy! It will change you forever the way you approach your workout forever. :)

-Zi

“What are you waiting for? What are you saving [yourself] for? Now is all there is.”

― George Balanchine

Meet Ma!

Meet Marisol, a MaZi co-founder, resident fashionista and equal parts engineer and dancer. Catch her classes for a quick 6 pack!

How do you relax?

Shopping! My faves are Love & Pieces down the street on Damen & I have a weakness for Michael Kors.

What fashion item can you not live without?

Sparkly earrings and my Michael Kors handbags!

What is your go to healthy snack?

Fage yogurt with honey.

What is your favorite indulgence?

A crush :)

What is your favorite class to teach?

Dance Cardio Escape, after I finish it feels like I did a whole runthrough of Nutcracker!

What's your favorite class to take?

Ballet

What song gets you going?

Currently, Princess of China by Coldplay/Rihanna.

Fun fact?

I'm an enginerd when it comes to cars and when I first started ballet as a kid I thought it was utterly ridiculous. (see picture below)

-Z