Zumba Instructor Finds the Perfect Rhythm for Fitness
By Inga Kimple
Jennifer Gildenblatt is just a shadow of the woman she was before and she’s ‘blaming’ it all on Zumba. What started as yo-yo dieting and weight loss/weight gain, ended when she discovered the Latin-inspired exercise craze that is sweeping the fitness world.
Gildenblatt, 30, says she has lost 90 pounds so far and is hoping to lose at least another 10. “Actually, I don’t know exactly how much weight I gained overall. I quit getting on the scales when I became 100 pounds overweight.”
A cardiac nurse at Jewish Hospital, she said her normal weight began to increase during the pregnancies of her two children, now 7 and 3. “I would gain weight, then lose it but it became harder to lose each time. Plus I work the night shift at the hospital and that routine makes it harder to diet,” she said.
“When I was overweight I didn’t feel like myself. Even my facial features were different. I didn’t feel like doing anything. It was like I always had on 30 sweaters.” Then two years ago she signed up for her first Zumba class at Countryside YMCA and from the beginning, she says she was hooked.
“In the first class I felt very awkward but that just motivated me more. Everything is harder when you don’t feel comfortable but I really wanted to lose weight,” she said. “You get out of Zumba what you put into it, whether it’s losing weight, becoming more active, or building muscle mass.”
As Gildenblatt began to lose weight, she took on another goal, becoming a part-time Zumba instructor. “I’m addicted; I admit it. I passed the certification and became an instructor a year ago. I just love learning the routines and teaching others. It’s a great support network to keep working out, not just with my students but with the other instructors.”
Zumba was developed in the mid-1990s in Columbia when fitness instructor Beto Perez forgot his regular DVD workout and improvised with his personal music collection. The students loved it and gradually Perez developed an idea for a new fitness empire. In 1999, Perez brought the idea to the US, where it was first launched in the Latino market. Today there are 40,000 certified Zumba locations in 75 countries, and every week over five million participants dance, jump and jiggle their way to a healthier lifestyle. Beyond classes, his DVDs, clothing line, and new diet book have exploded into a new fitness frenzy.
“The music is divided into four basic Latino rhythms: cumbia, meringue, salsa, and reggaton. Within that, we do interval training, combining and switching fast and slow rhythms, and resistance moves,” she said. “This is the best way to burn calories, from 500 to 900 an hour.”
Gildenblatt urges everyone to try Zumba, which is offered at several times, and with several instructors, at Countryside YMCA. “Any age, shape, size, everyone can excel. No one is looking at you—they’re too busy concentrating on their own feet. It’s upbeat and everyone is friendly and happy. As they say at Zumba, it’s not exercise, it’s a party.”
I am writing today in order to re-new my family’s scholarship passes and to express my gratitude to the people that make the scholarship program possible. Over the last year my daughter and I have truly enjoyed being able to use the facility for classes and spending healthy time together. My daughter is 7 and she has been taking gymnastics for the last year and swimming when it fits into our schedule. She loves being able to see her friends and learn new skills, and I love that she can get some good exercise while having fun. I had also been using my pass to swim laps each day, until I had to stop for medical reasons, but once I am released I plan on returning to the pool in an effort to take control of my weight. I cannot express how beneficial it has been to my family to be given the opportunity of taking advantage of your scholarship program, without it we would not be able to engage in all the enriching and educational programs you have to offer. We live rurally and it is very difficult to find a safe place to exercise and have my child taken care of as well. Thanks so much for the amazing gift we were given over the last year and I hope we will again be considered for the opportunity to be a scholarship family.
I would like to thank you for the wonderful program that was available to me so that I was able to become a member of the Countryside YMCA.
I am currently under going the process of getting a kidney transplant due to kidney failure. For the past two years I have been in a wheel chair due to the calcium deposits in my knees. My doctor says he would like to see me up and walking after the transplant, but not near as much as I would like to be able to.
Because of the scholarship program and all of the other wonderful programs that the YMCA has to offer, I believe that I will be able to work my upper and lower body to build the strength that I will need to be able to stand and walk again. Not only will the membership help me rebuild some of the muscles that I have lost it will also promote to my good health and my self-esteem. Taking advantage of this opportunity will without a doubt get me heading in the right direction.
Once again I would like to Thank You for the opportunity of being a member of the wonder facility that is offered.
I would like to share the benefits I have received from the membership Scholarship program.
I joined the Countryside YMCA in 1993 and applied for the scholarship program at that time.
It was my privilege to volunteer in the Senior Center and have been volunteering in there since 1993. I have enjoyed my experience there and hope to continue.
I have benefited greatly from the programs offered, including the Cardiac Fitness Class, the beginner weight lifting room, then advanced to the big weight room and swam in the swimming pools.
The friendliness and helpful attitude of the staff has been great and I have made many friendships with members and staff throughout the years.
I look forward to each Monday, Wednesday and Friday to going to Countryside YMCA to exercise, see my friends, keep my positive attitude and enjoy good health.
Thank you!
My Husband and I have 4 children ages 16, 12, 11 and 7. My husband is a teacher at a local Christian school and I am a part-time college student and a full-time mom. Two of our children are special needs, one daughter is hearing impaired and our son is Autistic.
We moved to Ohio about a year and a half ago. One of the first things our kids asked was if we could join the Y. When we had lived in Indiana, four years ago, we were members, and they really missed going to swimming lessons.
Obviously, in my husband’s line of work, the finances were just not available for us to join here. But the kids kept after me to call and ask about scholarships, and I finally did.
Since we have been members, my son has become involved in the adaptive swim call and adaptive gymnastics. I just recently found out that there is also a soccer program for special kids, so I plan to enroll him in that too. He knows his schedule for each day of the week, and he tells me “Today you will pick me up from school, and we will go to gymnastics,” or “Today Daddy will take me to swim, and Miss Linda will teach me.”
My girls and I come to walk two or three mornings a week, and we use the pools frequently. My husband has had two surgeries in the last eight months, so he hasn’t been able to come to do much more than swim, but hi is anxious to be able to use the fitness center to try to get back to full strength.
I truly appreciate the Countryside’s Y’s commitment to working with families with special needs kids and also your commitment to families with financial struggles. Without the scholarship program, my family would not be able to participate at the Y. We have made numerous friends here, and we have had the opportunity to communicate with parents of other special needs kids that we wouldn’t have had otherwise.
Thank you so much for your dedication to provide a Christian atmosphere of fellowship and activity for all families, no matter what the financial status.
My YMCA pass has helped me to control my blood sugar ( I am diabetic). I have a handicap child with Autism. It is very calming for her; she has a lot of emotional and mental outbursts. The YMCA is something that my daughter really likes to do. She really enjoys swimming it relaxes her and gives me a piece of mind. Taking care of her is a big Job and coming to the YMCA is a part of our day that isn’t stressful (other than bedtime)! I am a single parent that can’t work because I can’t find anyone to watch my child. It’s a blessing that you have such a program If you could see how happy it makes her it would bring tears to your eyes! It makes my Diabetes better so I can continue to care for her. Thank your so much for your kindness.
My husband and I want to thank you for our scholarship. Membership at the Countryside YMCA will provide us a way to improve our health through your programs – without financial stress. I start my 2 classes next week and I know it will help my arthritis.
Thank you and God bless you for this generous gift.
I got a letter today stating I completed my scholarship. I really enjoyed volunteering at the YMCA. One is I had a good opportunity to work out to build my immune system. But that isn’t the biggest influence it had on m being there. The biggest and the best influence I got from volunteering were working as a team with those who work at the YMCA. The people who work there really touched my heart and made me feel welcomed and at home where I can be myself. Most importantly they touched my heart spiritually.
One day I was volunteering, a group of workers got together and went around asking for prayer requests and it was their firs time gathering people together for a prayer time. At the same time I felt really lost spiritually or was going downhill. I was hitting depression. That day I knew God was talking to me telling me “I am here! Come to me! I am here!” The timing of the Lord was amazing though it didn’t end there. I joined prayer time and had the opportunity to spill my heart when I thought it wouldn’t happen.
I was lifted not physically, but spiritually and it was with I really needed and still do. Being around those who are believers is really lifting and I was blessed to work as a team with the YMCA.
Thank you for giving me an opportunity and a chance to keep volunteering. I still very much would like to continue volunteering or perhaps consider a job at the YMCA. I live right down the street on Deerfield at a walking distance.
You may share my story with others for the Annual Support Fund Drive and for others as well. I hope this letter will touch others.
Again, thank you for the blessings and for encouraging me spiritually in the Lord.
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding in all you ways acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight”
For a few years now my children and I have been able to enjoy the use of your facility thanks to the generosity of your scholarship program. In addition having my kids participate in earning scholarship hours teaches them gratitude. As a single mom raising teen, I would not have been able to afford this on my own. And your courteous staff treats us with the same hospitality as any other member.
Currently, having the new Y-Express close to us in Landen has been great for my teen daughter’s need for weight management and exercise. Sometimes she and I will go to classes there or she will take a friend on guest passes. Recently her primary work-out buddy liked your facility enough to get his own membership, to stay in shape for track.
I also have an at risk teen son. We encourage him to join us occasionally. Whether it’s for working out or socializing, using you facility helps him reduce stress.
As we start approaching summer jobs, I hope that the Y-Express will be having more variety of after work classes such as Zumba, etc… We hope to try that one. After all bathing suit weather will be upon us soon!
With Sincere Thanks
I can never thank you enough for the kindness you and the YMCA showed to myself and my children in “adopting’ us for Christmas. I was both surprised and honored when you called me about it, as I had no idea the YMCA did such a wonderful thing for families at Christmas. I had already felt so privileged to be a part of the Scholarship Program, and then to hear that you had selected us for this special gift was amazing. This was an especially rough year for us, moving alone to a new state, far from relatives, little income, so many unknowns in our lives. Getting to participate in YMCA programs has been so fun. Being “adopted” for Christmas was really indescribable. My children were jumping up and down when they opened their Christmas presents – they were so excited! Because of you and the YMCA they had several things to open, and they really loved each gift. As a parent, I can tell you that you brought joy to them, and also to me because I got to watch! I also really appreciate the gifts for myself as well. I certainly would not have bought anything for myself, so it was treat to get to open presents along with the kids. As for the money, I am overwhelmed and humbled that the YMCA was so incredibly generous. I really cannot put into words what this has meant to our family, so saying “Thank You” seems so little compared to the vastness of your gift.
But please know, you bought a Very Merry Christmas to our household and I will remember your kindness and generosity for the rest of my life.
GOD BLESS!!!
I’ve been a member of the Countryside YMCA for the past 3 years. I would like to thank the Scholarship Program for making it possible for me to become a member! My grandson, now my adopted son, and I love to come and enjoy the activities and friends we meet at the “Y”. I learned about this program through another member who at that time was my sons respite provider and is still an exercise instructor at the “Y”. I enjoy the Senior Center where I can exercise, relax in the pool or just browse in the library. It is like a little respite for me, too. My son has enjoyed “being” with other children in the Child Watch room, adapted gymnastic, adapted swim lessons, and even a little half-day summer camp week! (Of course with me staying along to “interpret” since he is non-verbal Autistic).
I guess I should tell you a little more about us.
My family moved from Ohio to California in 1957 (when I was only 10). After I grew up, married, divorced, and raised 3 sons along came my 4th grandchild. He has lived with me since he was 1 week old: his mother was too ill to care for him. He had a heart defect which was corrected by surgery when he was 18 months old. We soon found that his delayed development was not caused by the heart defect: but was instead Autism. Soon after that, my mother died and left a house and property here in Warren County, OH (where I was born). I decided to move back to Ohio where I could stay home and take care of my “son”. It has been a constant battle to find the right medicine, treatments, doctors, schools, etc. to provide him with the best possible way to make ham as independent as possible. Every little step of progress is like a “gift” from Heaven!! Things we take for “granted” are so much harder for the Autistic child! It has put a lot of stress on me financially; but he will always be a “gift” to me!
I feel that I’m a better person since becoming a “member” of the YMCA and hope to continue the program!
My story began when my husband of over 30 years left me in financial ruin and left me…. devastated and still recovering from a recent heart attack. I knew I had to get on with my life.
Receiving the scholarship was just the ticket! I was given the opportunity to feel useful and needed… a teal boost to my self-esteem. It opened my eyes that I deserve to get healthy and fit.
I was asked to volunteer in the Senior Center which was a gift in itself. I love all the light-hearted banter that goes on and all the sideling kibitzing during activities. It is an environment that lifts my spirits and has helped me so much in this transition in my life.
Just listening to the stories of the other members and seeing how hard they are working to overcome physical obstacles in their lives encourages me to pull myself up by my boot straps and get moving.
It is so awesome to have choices available to me. I love the Fitlinks Machines which have helped my posture and range of motion a great deal. I love how they are set up for you reminding you what you used last and what setting to use. I am so enheartened by the words of encouragement or little cute sayings or jokes on the screen when you first log on put there by the instructor. What an incentive to do your best and of course the Christian music coming through the speakers helps me to tune into God’s power and grace. I love the treadmills and cycling machines where you can plug into the television sound. I no longer have an excuse to be a couch potato.
I have such a good time doing water exercises in the competition pool. We ladies have such a good rapport… laughing and joking and cheering each other on. They inspire me to push a little harder, move a little faster, stretch a little more. What a gift they are to me!
My sons and their families have memberships here as well. It is so wonderful to be able to splash around in the pool together. I can see first hand what great swimmers the grandchildren have become and get to watch their various activities and it brings such joy to my heart.
Thank you for empowering the good that is in my life. I can have a more positive outlook on life… and certainly improved health. My cardiologist says I can run marathons now if I want to.
Thanks to the YMCA I walk a little taller, smile a whole lot more and have a bounce back in my step.
I have come to rely on our neighborhood YMCA for the last nine years. I’d heard about the YMCA daycare from a friend. She mentioned that there was help for single parents who were trying to pay daycare costs. I’ve received no child support for 13 ½ years, had no social network, and received very little support from my family.
The daycare at the YMCA had always been such a wonderful experience for my children. They had, for the most part, no in their family to support them emotionally or otherwise, but me. I was always working, trying to finish school or catching up with home chores that didn’t allow me to give the attention that was necessary. Their camp counselors and other caring workers at the YMCA worked with them, cared for them, listened to them and taught them.
I don’t think I can describe all the emotional, spiritual, and physical building the staff at the YMCA has contributed to my children.
When the children were past the age for daycare, they could no longer go to the Y for those positive experiences through activities with the staff and other children their age. They had grown up feeling as though there were painful social stigmas attached to them for our poverty and the absence of their father since they were two and three years old. The inability to continue to have positive experiences and social networking supplied by the Y were a painful reminder to them that their mom didn’t quite have it all together, and that their dad wasn’t around.
As teens, they went through some rough times, I couldn’t have gone through them alone without the care and prayers received form the YMCA staff. This prevented a potential runaway and helped steer the teen, and myself, toward making better decisions. The Y directed us to where we could receive professional counseling.
The Y has given us a place where we feel cared about, a social place to belong and a place to encourage healthy living thorough Christian values. A place where, when people make mistakes the staff of the Y forgives you, and teaches you to get up and making better choices.
Thank you for this chance to be a part of something so important in giving to our society, and giving my small family a place to go and belong.
Local Senior Olympian Takes Two Silvers
At Recent San Francisco Games
By Inga Kimple
Don’t tell Lebanon resident Rita Matz that retired women are better suited to bingo parlors and knitting argyles than pursuing an active lifestyle. Here’s one 70-year-old, fresh from the US Senior Olympics, held at StanfordUniversity in San Francisco, who is already looking ahead to the 2011 games in Houston.
Matz, who took two second place silver medals in the discus and shot put events in her age bracket, keeps a pace that would challenge many younger athletes. Almost daily at the Countryside YMCA, she cross trains, lifting weights in the cardio room, cycle spinning, playing racquetball and table tennis. Three times a week she’s playing doubles on the tennis courts at HarmonPark, and another three days a week, all year, she practices her throwing. Any free time is spent on stretching and agility exercises.
Being active comes naturally to her. “I came from an athletic family,” she said. “At school in Fairfield, where I grew up, I played basketball, volleyball, and softball. There was a strong physical education program and I took gym classes everyday in high school. I think that’s important.”
Her interest in the Senior Olympics grew when her husband began race walking and bicycling. “I didn’t want to just sit and watch,” she said. So about 13 years ago, she also began training in her new sports. San Francisco was her fifth time to compete in the games, which are held every two years, although this time her husband was sidelined with surgery.
Matz’ abilities may be a case of ‘reverse genetics’. Her daughter Suzanne Matz, 41, a former All-American in shot put at OhioState, is her coach. “Suzanne makes me stay focused. We have a good relationship; she’s a good coach and companion, and she finds me coachable, I think. She’s most concerned about my form, more than my distance, even.”
Out of 19 women competing in discus and 13 in shot put, Matz was the only person who medaled in both events. “The top eight or so are really competitive. I won my medals because throughout the competition I was able to improve, while the others stayed the same or decreased their distances,” she said.
Improving, in the short and long run, is key to winning, Matz believes, and that the biggest obstacle to many older athletes is only thinking about holding their ground.
“If I had thought like that I would have finished without a medal, because my score improved throughout the games,” she said. Matz threw 67 feet in the discus and 25 feet, 10 and a fourth inches in the shot put competition.
“I was so happy as I improved. I was elated. I said to myself, hey, I can do this. I can get a medal this time. In the past, I’ve only gotten ribbons,”
Countryside YMCA gets some of the credit for her win and her lifestyle, Matz said. “There is such a variety of sports and activities, and so much camaraderie at the Y. That’s important as you age. My health is good; I only have a few aches now and then. We’re so privileged to have such a facility here. It would have been harder to train and keep in shape without it. Throwing is an individual thing but it was so good to have the support of my Y friends.”
