As winter break draws to a close and spring semester begins, some University of Wisconsin-La Crosse students decided to start their week with a variety of fitness activities offered by the Recreational Eagle Center (REC). REC offers free group fitness classes during the first week of classes each semester.
Third-year student and Zumba instructor Krista Mayberry discovered her passion for teaching Zumba during her first year at UWL by attending classes regularly. Although she had no previous experience with it, she quickly fell in love with this activity.
“This is something I might do more of throughout my life, but it wasn’t really planned, it just happened,” Mayberry said.
The free week attracted many new students to Mayberry’s classes.
“It’s a much larger group. Last week we had 30 to 40 people in the class, and on holiday weeks it could probably be closer to 10,” Mayberry said. “It was really cool to see so many people who had never done Zumba before, so I had to be a little more energetic than usual and sell the class a little more.”
Mayberry added that the new class sizes also come with challenges. “Normally I have a solid group of people who already know the routine and know what’s going to happen, but I needed to explain more of what I was doing. The less you have, the easier it is to remember the person who came, and the more you can connect with them.”
While preparing for the free week, Mayberry said she hopes people are ready to try something new because Zumba is more creative and the first attempt can be a little awkward. .
“It’s a little scary to get up and dance in front of people, but the group was really good. They were all very open-minded and trying to have a good time,” she said.
Mayberry credits her teaching style to her previous instructors who inspired her to start Zumba.
“The instructors I had were really, really great in a good way. It made me think, ‘I love doing good.’ [sic] It’s a very open and happy environment during class. “I want to create that kind of environment for the people who come to my classes,” Mayberry said.
She continued, “I try to make it very fun, very encouraging, bombastic, and maybe a little weird. I try to make a personal connection even if we don’t have a lot of time in person.” We try to make it more personal, even with such a large group.”
“I was really excited to see people who wouldn’t normally come to a fitness class have an experience without having to pay,” Mayberry said. “You don’t have to go to a big fitness center and work out, just be in a low-stress environment. Come dance for 45 minutes!”
Fourth grader Chloe Renzelman began teaching cycling in 2021. I currently teach a cycling class every Tuesday and Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Renzelman, who has a background in track and field and competitive dance, calls herself an avid athlete.
“It was really fun to see all the different people trying it out for the first time. I looked around the room and saw a lot of smiling faces. It was like gauging what people liked in the first week and we had a really wide variety of music. “I tried to do that,” Lenzelman said.
With the exception of the free week, Renzelman also thinks the new year may have motivated more new participants to join.
“At the beginning of a new year, people go all in on their fitness goals and motivation,” Renzelman said. She continued, “I hope those people find a niche in my cycling class and can continue to do it throughout the year.”
Lenselman takes great care to ensure that the classes are appropriate for the students. She explained that she took time during each class to ask students how they felt riding the bike and how they felt about the workout.
“When I’m done and I stand in front of the room, I usually do an energy check during class. I usually know they’re having a good time when people start heckling and yelling.” said Renzelman.
She also believes that incorporating dance into her training is a big draw for her classes. “I like to do rhythmic cycling, so I like to add a little bit of choreography to the beat of the music,” Renzelman added.
Renzelman concluded: “When you come to my cycling class, it’s a safe place, a time to unwind from the day’s stress and let go of everything that’s going on outside the room. It’s not peaceful, but we try to bring a more fun and cheerful atmosphere.”
Sophomore Anna Baxter also teaches a bicycle class. Baxter, who is majoring in elementary and secondary education (EME), said the skills she learned in the classroom were very helpful because it was her first time teaching a cycling class.
Baxter said, “For Free Week, we knew there would probably be beginner students participating, so we made the class a little less difficult, explained the movements more, and made it more like a beginner level.” said. She continued, “I knew there would be a lot of new people trying it out, but I didn’t want to scare them away. The classes on how to teach were really helpful.”
Mr. Baxter explained strategies for keeping students focused throughout the lesson. She incorporated music into her class by creating a QR code that students could scan if they wanted to recommend a song for the class playlist. She also created themes for each session.
“Today we did a boy band theme, so we played One Direction. Then on Thursday, we’re teaching a girl group, so we’ll play Destiny Child.” [and] Little Mix,” Baxter said.
“I think cycling can be scary at times, but it definitely becomes a lot more fun the more you do it,” Baxter said. “I want everyone to know how strong they are and that I’m so proud of them.”
Photo submitted by Anna Baxter