Edessa's Spring Rolls/Ziba's Stir-Fry

Simona, EDESSA, me, Dorra, and Isabella ready to EAT!

Looking for something simple, filling and healthy to make? Try these 2 delicious recipes together for a complete meal or seperate. For more healthy dancer approved recipes: email us at mazidancefitness@gmail.com.

Spring/Rice rolls- Simple, filling, endless varieties...for your next dinner party!
-Carrots
-Lettuce
-Red, Green, Yellow, & Orange Peppers
-Green Onions
-Spicy Sprouts (Broccoli, radish sprouts)
-rice sticks
-spring roll wraps
-Cilantro

**Note: you can use pretty much any type of vegetable, you can add seafood, or cooked meat as well.

Sauce:

-soy sauce (low sodium)
-sweet n sour sauce
-spicy chili sauce
-sesame seeds
To make the spring rolls:

Cut up all vegetables julienne style. Cook the rice sticks in boiled water for a few minutes (literally took 3-4 minutes, it just depends, you want it soft but not too soft). Dip the spring roll wraps a couple times in warm/hot water, lay on cutting board. Put whatever combination of vegetables (or seafood/meat if you have it) in the center, along with cooked rice sticks and spicy sprouts. Wrap the roll and diagonally cut the roll (I don't know how to describe the rolling technique-it's very similar to a burrito roll) The best way is to cut the roll diagonally, it's better for presentation.
To make the dipping sauce:

Take the serving bowl, fill half with soy sauce, half with sweet n sour. Mix in spicy chilli sauce to taste (it depends on the person's taste and how spicy you want the sauce) Add sesame seeds to the mix.


Ziba's Quick Healthy Stir-Fry for 2 (Double or Triple up for more people!)

1 tablespoon of EVOO
PAM
1/2 cup of shred carrots
1/4 cup of scallions, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/4 of vidalia onions, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 sugar snap peas or peas
2 celery stalks, finely chopped or 1/2 of bean sprouts
12-16 ounces of chicken breast, pounded (you can also use tofu, tenderloin or go meatless!)
1/2 cup of water for cooking chicken
1 satchel of Trader Joes's frozen brown rice, defrosted (2 servings)
1 egg white, 1 whole egg
Chinese 5 Spice- (flavor secret weapon)
Crushed Red Pepper or Powder if you like SPICE!

Add first 7 ingredients to a large skillet on medium heat evenly coated with EVOO. Using spatula, keep turning veggies over until evenly browned (about 8 minutes), slightly roasted. If you like spice, this is the perfect time to add crushed red pepper or powder to taste. Meanwhile, in another pan, add chicken to PAM coated pan, and put on medium heat. Add about 1/4 of water to pan to keep chicken moist, flip accordingly for 5 minutes or until water evaporates, add another 1/4 cup and continue cooking and flipping chicken until water evaporates again. Remove from heat, set aside. To the veggie skillet, add defrosted brown rice and stir for 2 minutes, add egg white and egg and stir for another 2 minutes. Add Chinese 5 Spice to taste (this IS the SECRET ingredient) :). Finally, slice cooked chicken (or other protein) add to veggie/rice skillet and give one last stir and serve approximately 25 minutes later! Serving will be HUGE, rough calorie count.......400 calories per serving.

Happy food choreographing!
-Zi

A Love Story- Girl and Her Shoes

Lucky for us, there's a shoe for everything! For tomorrow's Valentine's Date, what better than a super high Loubi? But what is the best shoe for dance fitness? The predictable answer is: It depends.

Ballet Flats
If you want real deal/real world ballet flats, you've got to treat yourself to Repetto's, a pedigreed Parisian brand that makes the most exquisite ballet flats for real life. Visit their beautiful website for inspiration! www.REPETTO.COM

For Ballet and Ballet-inspired Classes (Ballerina Bum Series)
Ballet slippers are great, they provide support and are super cute! We like Capezio or Sanchas and can be found here: www.discountdancesupply.com.

For Dance Cardio Classes
You want shoes that both support your foot and allow you to move laterally. This usually means that you want a sole that is not too bulky so that when you move from side to side and pivot you don't feel overwhelmed by huge clunky heels. The best thing is to go try a lot of different styles and makers on and dance around (entertain a little!) to make sure you have a snug fit with some suspension. Some of our favorites are:

-Adidas & Pumas have many models that fit the mold of flat lower soles.
-Ryka are "ortho-lite" which provide a lot of stabilization to your balance and are shaped for a woman's foot. They make a "studio" model which seem popular at MaZi Dance Fitness.
-Nike are hit or miss. They have great suspension but with some models the heel gets very clunky so try lots on.

And Finally......TRUE ROMANCE- POINTE SHOES

-Zi

This Valentine's Day remember to love everyone, even if you haven't walked a mile in their shoes yet. :)

Meet Autumn!

Autumn is MaZi's Ballerina Bum Master Trainer (she teaches Ballerina Fight Club, Ballerina Bum & Ballerina Bum Cardio), her classes are all business & amped by amazing playlists. Here are 10 things about Autumn that you didn't know and COULDN'T have guessed.

Autumn during Ballerina Evolve (tm) filming.

1. I’m a sucker for a good young adult novel; Ender’s Game and The Hunger Games are recent favorites.

2. Three different people taught me to knit before I finally got it down. I also started ballet lessons three different times, so go figure....

3. My favorite class to teach is BBB-Cardio – the combination of dance and strength keeps my body and mind working! But I also love continuous movement of Dance Cardio.

4. Never thought I’d look forward to waking up to teach early morning classes!

5. I’m an NPR junkie.

6. My favorite weekends are when I have time to spend a full day with a complicated recipe

7.  I walk nearly everywhere. (Insider story: Once when walking to MaZi for a class, she got hit by a car and still made it to class!!!).

8.  Eating a paleo diet has changed both my outlook on life and my body.

9. My first 8 years of school were at a one-room schoolhouse.

10. I love helping people get stronger and discover that exercise can be fun!

You can catch a class with Autumn nearly everyday at MaZi!

-Zi

EAT: My 3 Power Breakfasts

Try one of my favorite breakfasts for longlasting energy, nutrition, and staying power! They are super easy to make.....I typically rotate them on weekly basis.

1) VERY FILLING
- 3 egg whites or 1 egg and 1 egg white (around 100 calories)- I like to beat mine with a fork to make them nice & fluffy!
- 1/2 cup of berries (around 50 calories)- I am OBSSESSED with blueberries for their sweet flavor and anti-oxident powers.
One of either:
- 1 7 ounce container 0% or 2% (my choice since it tastes amazing and keeps me full) FAGE yogurt (100 or 150 calories)
OR
- 1 piece of whole grain toast (around 80 calories) with a Light Laughing Cow cheese wedge (35 calories)

2) SEEMINGLY DECADENT
- Protein pancakes (Dukan Diet Recipe- around 150 calories) 3 tablespoons of oat bran (or 2 of oat bran and 1 of wheat bran),1 egg, 2 tablespoons of low fat yogurt, PAM, lemon zest and teaspoon of lemon juice
Instructions: Mix egg into a bowl of oat bran and mix well. Add the yogurt, lemon zest/juice and continue to mix. Mix should be a bit thicker than pancake batter. If it is too thick then add a drop of skim milk. Using a non-stick pan and PAM, drop couple of tablespoons into pan (or entire mix) into pre-heated pan, turn over until evenly browned.

- Tablespoon of honey OR small sliced banana with cinnamon/stevia mix (around 80 calories)

- 2 ounces of pan-fried Boar's Head maple glazed ham (around 60 calories) or 1 piece of Morning Star sausage (70 calories)

3) QUICK & DIRTY
- Smoothie: 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk (40 calories), 1 scoop of whey protein (around 100 calories)- I like Whole Foods brand,  1/2 cup of any fruit (around 60 calories)- blueberries, peaches, strawberries, or banana work well. Blend everything, and put it in a to-go thermos and viola!

- 1 KIND Bar (around 200 calories)- I like, LOVE Almond Cashew with Flax

With any of these, I try to follow-up with a Honeycrisp apple about an hour or two later and I'm simply stuffed until lunch. Try one of these for a couple of weeks without changing anything else in your diet and you might find yourself eating healthier throughout the day, not to mention lose a couple pounds. Also, none of it would be complete without my americano, splash of skim.

-Zi
Note: I'm not a doctor, but I've been eating most of my life. In other words, check with your doctor if you have health concerns.

Ballerina Finishing School Series: Class Etiquette

In my Ballerina Bum Hoodie (representing!) stretching it out and standing far from Ma!

5 Principles of a Group Class Setting

1) Silence if Golden- Once the instructor greets the class, the class has begun. Be respectful by not talking so that everyone can hear the cues, music, and instruction they're paying for. When Marisol and I take a class together we make sure to stand far apart, otherwise we laugh. HARD.

2) Be on Time- It's Chicago, being late happens. If your space in class has not been given away, and you miss the warm-up, warm yourself up inconspiciously, and then join in. In classes with equipment grab a mat if you see a space available and do what you can to gather what you need (weights, ball, bands, etc.). Don't disrupt class to have equipment given to you or expect the instructor to give you theirs. Many places lock you out if you're late, so recognize the privilage of being let in.

3) Ask Questions Before or After Class- If you need a modification for an exercise and none was given, you can flag the instructor for one during class. If you have questions about form, theory or technique, wait until after class to discuss.

4) Take the entire class- Having variety is in an important part of our culture at MaZi so utilize it wisely. If you are signed up for a class at 7 and there's another one starting at 7:30, you can't take pieces of both, you have to take one or the other. If you need to leave early, tell the instructor before class.

5) Have fun! The secret to an effective workout is finding a workout you like. Remember that no one is looking at you, they are focused on themselves. You will get good at moving, practice does make perfect!

Today Ma and I went to an open professional ballet class and as participants of a class vs instructing, we were reminded of the behavior and respect expected in group classes. To have the best environment possible for your training and results, keep these things in mind when you're in class full of people. Your peers are using class time to work on their mind/body connection, are escaping from a stressful day of being a parent or workplace, and are trying to get the most of their class.


-Zi

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