When Good Fitness Goes Bad
2012
From technical breakdowns to wardrobe malfunctions, we look at the many faces of the group fitness snafu.
Whenever you put a large group of people in a room together for a fitness class, there is bound to be something that goes wrong. Whether it’s an injury, wardrobe malfunction, or act of God that causes the problem, it’s important to have a plan in place for how to handle the situation. The best instructors not only have their choreography ready to go but know how to think on their feet so that if things do go wrong, they are prepared. And it doesn’t stop there. Students have their own responsibilties when it comes to keeping the class in check. Let’s look at three areas that are ripe for complications — and how to avoid them.
TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES
Anyone who has experience with group fitness has a story about that moment in class when the stereo gives out or the A/C breaks down. “A too-hot classroom is never a fun thing,” says Debbie Thomas, owner of Flavor Fitness in Albuquerque, N.M. It’s a good idea to arrive early for class to assess the room temperature and adjust it as necessary. No one likes to work out in a room that is too warm or too cold, so instructors should make sure to know how to use the thermostat … or know who is in charge of changing the temperature. The same goes for students. Speak up! What’s comfortable to one person may not be to another, so let someone know if you want a change.
The stereo is a similar bone of contention, especially on the instructor side. General wisdom? When trying out a new location, instructors should make sure that they fully look over the equipment well before the scheduled class; that way, they can get set up in a flash the day they teach. It’s also a good idea to have a backup CD or iPod with your playlist; you never know when you might need it!
WARDROBE MALFUNCTIONS … AND MORE
It’s never fun when your clothing turns on you, especially while exercising. ZIN member Alma Clemons had just that experience. “One night while teaching, I turned around so my back was facing everyone,” says the El Paso, Texas–based instructor. “All of a sudden, one of my clients from the front row had jumped up on stage and was behind me trying to pull my pants back up because they had fallen to the floor while I was shaking it — talk about embarrassing.”
The best way to avoid flashing the crowd? Road test workout gear before class: jump around in your sports bra to make sure it’s holding you in; throw your hips around in your new cargos to see if they need a belt, and definitely check out your look from the front and the back; it’s important that you’re not unknowingly showing too much.
Another wardrobe issue many encounter is the, er, odiferous classmate. Maybe they didn’t have time to do laundry or just like to wear the same outfit for multiple workouts, but whatever the reason, it’s a tricky situation to handle. “In group classes, space is often tight, and with body heat making the room warm, there is nothing worse than a fellow gym-goer who smells like she bathed in her perfume or whose foul body odor is permeating your nostrils,” says Certified Business Etiquette and International Protocol Consultant Melissa Leonard. “The truth of the matter is that while others can smell and may be nauseated by these wafting scents, the guilty person in question is usually clueless to [it], and would probably be mortified if they knew how offensive they smelled. If there are many complaints by fellow class members over a few weeks, the situation should be handled discreetly by the instructor.”
Leonard suggests keeping it light and using humor to address the situation. Her suggested script? First making it clear that a great workout can leave everyone hot and sweaty with a humorous follow-up as in, “It has come to my attention that some members are wearing lots of perfume or aren’t using enough antiperspirant, me included (jokingly sniff your underarms). So I ask, in the interest of everyone, let’s all make a concerted effort to not offend anyone’s noses and keep the perfume and body odor to a minimum.”
Excerpted from the Z-LIFE Winter 2012 issue.
By Jackie Camborde / Illustration by Yuko Kondo
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Upon arriving at the studio I teach at it was soon discovered that there was no power! No lights, no music, and no class? NO WAY! I asked the class if anyone had a sound system in their car and as luck would have it someone did! We hooked up the music and took the class outside to the parking lot! We got a lot of honks from passers by and had a riot in the process! That is one of my fondest memories as a Zumba Fitness instructor, taking the negative and turning it into a positive!
Not only did my gum FLY out of my mouth, hitting some poor lady, but when I was turning, (same class) my pants creeped down, mooning everyone!
I was doing a battle with other instructor and it was fun but I got to exited and when I was shaking my butty I lost my balance and felt on my back all the way down to the floor the worst thing is they video tape it so I can see when I fall over and over my student and family did’t said anything but I can see there faces in the video
Oh yeah, have had one of THOSE moments!!!
Instructing at GHF, in Gainesville, FL to about 130 SWEATY and FULL of ENERGY ZUMBA® students, GIVING my 150% of POWER to them, didnt realize the Stage’s floor was REALLY “WET” with my own sweat, and In ONE MOVE, My back foot went OUT the stage and so did I, FULL FORCE on the FLOOR (stage has about 2 feet high)…The same way I went DOWN I came UP, as fast as light… With BLOOD down my RIGHT front leg, I OPEN the BIGGEST SMILE I could and KEPT going, with even MORE ENERGY…LOL, Off course, the ROOF was on FYAH after THAT!!!
Oh and to add few “minor” moments…I have SANG a WHOLE WARM UP because of electric trouble, taught without shoes (more than once), taught in regular clothes (long skirts), FELL on stage when teasing an instructor who was sharing the stage(right Maria Adela???), not to mention the many times I have forgotten music or that the sound system didnt work and I taught a WHOLE HOUR doing ZUMBA® fitness to “High School”, The musical… Is a ZUMBA® kind of life for sure!!!! And I LOVE IT!!! Pushes me to think OUTSIDE “that” box!!!
My new ZUMBA cargo pants kept falling down…the first time I pulled them up the whole class mimicked me! I then had to build holding up or pulling up my pants into the choreo for the whole class. It was a moment when I was thankful for my mothers encouraging words – always wear good underwear!
One day I arrived at the gym to teach a zumba class and the staff from the gym moved the stereo and was pluged wrong and disconnected. The room was full of people to get ready to start the class and half hr. pass by and my desperation of getting started to teach I was making funny moves and dancing and didn’t realize that my students were doing to same thing.
Finally the stereo worked but I only had 15 minutes left and started my class and I truly appeciate after that more than half of the class stay to support me and following my silly moves.
Ana
OMG, I have had that happen in a nightmare, more than once. For real.
Oh! I had one of those! We had Zumba Fitness DVD’s at home… I invited some friend to have our private Zumba Class… when we are in the middle of the class, my pants fell down! My friends were laughing a lot! I felt so embarrased, but no problem…! I went up stairs, change my pants and kept dancing!
I fell off the stage in the middle of a zumba routine… sooo embarassing. Everyone laughed for the rest of the class.
I had a cold. But teaching Zumba is my job so I drank some water and headed to class with a smile on my face (as well as a red nose). We were doing the 4th song and I was starting to feel less congested when I felt it… my nose started bleeding EVERYWHERE right in the middle of class with 40 women staring at me in horror. I ran off the stage as quickly as I possibly could, grabbed a box of tissues, ran back, stuffed a tissue into my nose and continued dancing.
I may have looked ridiculous, but I wasn’t going to let a little blood stop me.
So the most recent fauxpaux happened last week with a new Zumba tank. I have worn plenty before but this one totally crept up on me during the warm-up revealing my fantastic four pack of chub. And I spent the rest of the time during the second song trying to slyly lower back down into place.
I wore a shirt that I guess I left to long in the washer. Started smelling like mildew once I started sweating. Ambarrassing!
One evening I was teaching class and we were mid warm-up when my ipod became possessed – I couldn’t get it to stay on the ZUMBA playlist.. soo needless to say it was a crazy supermix of my entire library and a workout that I had to make up on the fly!
Yep, not an instructor but have issues with vertigo so usually very careful on the spins. Was doing a turn (a faster paced one) and ended up on the floor and then the vertigo kicked in so to walk over to a wall it looked like I was drunk.
I put two new songs in on the same day and when the music started for the first new song, my mind went blank!! So I started doing the moves to the other song instead. Luckily, the moves worked with the music, but I still apologized to the class after the song and explained what happened. They didn’t care, but I was soooo embarrassed and upset with myself. But, as they say, the show must go on
Well my wardrobe malfunction actually started out great! I had my totally new Zumba gear on all matching…I looked amazing in my head to toe red and grey outfit. Now comes the malfunction. I teach Aqua Zumba and I enjoy beginning my class “wet” to keep my body temperature down. So before my class begins, I spend 5 or 10 minutes in the pool practicing new routines or visiting with the participants. This day was no different from the others. Until I got out of the pool that is. These new shorts were a knit fabric rather than the nylon material in my other shorts. Let’s just say that the knit fabric is a LOT heavier when it is wet than the nylon. I spent the first 15 minutes of class TRYING, sometimes effortlessly, to keep my shorts from falling off. I actually made fun of the situation and told my class that they didn’t expect “this type of class” when they arrived. Had lots of laughs…but those shorts will be forever left to my “land” Zumba classes.
As a 200lb, 40DDD nursing mother, I REALLY should have invested in a good bra. Zumba and nursing bras are NOT really a good mix. Add to that the fact that I have NO coordination and NO rhythm (a discovery I made thanks to Zumba), I normally resemble an epileptic elephant anyway. I also have to stand in the second row so I can see the instructor’s feet and count. While shaking away one class, the instructor said “be careful–there’s something on the floor there and I don’t want you to slip on it.” Lo and behold, there was my nursing pad on the floor. I swooped it up asap and shoved it back in my bra (maybe I should have waited or left the room?) while the instructor asked “what IS that?” Scandalous!
I have two memorable moments for you:
-In the middle of class, the cabinet containing the stereo imploded in on itself and collapsed like a building being dynamited. The whole thing hit the floor, along with my jaw, and I just turned around to the class and said “Well okay then, how about you guys go take a lap!” Luckily it still worked once I got everything situated on the floor.
-One of the classes I used to teach was extremely crowded. A lady put a towel on the floor to ‘reserve’ her space, then left. I came in a couple of minutes later to get ready to start class, saw the towel, and I picked it up and threw it in the corner, figuring somebody left it behind. We’re 5 minutes into class when the lady comes back in, sees somebody else in ‘her spot’, walks to the front, and SHOVES the woman as hard as she could. They actually got into a girlfight in the middle of my warm-up. I broke up the fight, then continued with class. I felt so bad because it was indirectly my fault!
My embarrassing moment is so much a blooper that happened during a class, mine is that I lost 95 pounds doing Zumba but then I stopped and I gained 65 pounds. I NEVER should have stopped Zumba! I need to get my booty shaking again
oops I meant it’s not so much a blooper that happened during a class, guess I should have read my post before submitting it.
My black eyeliner was all over my face
Teaching a Zumbatonic class one day, I was in the middle of a routine using Pitbull’s Pause when all of a sudden I accidentally passed gas in front of the children. I was completely embarrassed and there was lots of snickering. But one little boy came up to me afterwards and said, “That’s ok, my mom does it all the time, but hers stink!”
Zumba Wardrobe Malfunction: One day I decided to teach in one of the zumba skirts and i just so happened to put on leggings under the skirt. I did a supper fast shimmy and down my skirt went around my ankels! Thank goodness i decided to wear leggings or i would have been teaching a zumba flash dance!!!
This just happened a few weeks ago. I have been teaching Zumba® for almost 2 and 1/2 years and you would think I would not forget my choreography. Well, a few Saturdays ago, I was in the midst of teaching my Zumba® Toning clas when all of a sudden I went blank and could not remember my next step. i know..everybody does that! But…my daughter, who has Aspergers Syndrome, looks at me then continues to do the next step and she ended up finishing teaching the song for me. I was laughing so hard for forgetting, that she just took over and just shook her head on me. I guess that’s not too much of an embarrassing moment for most of you, but it was for me. HAHAHAHA.
In my opinion all those problems show that the teachers didn’t prepare very well their classes and didn’t check everything before entering their classes. Nothing embarassing never happened to me and i’am a fitness and zumba teacher since many years! I’am chocked and embarrassed for zumba’s business image
This was a very long time ago, I was in junior high (which probalby makes this even worse!) and I was warming up for soccer practice. I was doing sit ups with another team member holding my feet, and I farted as I sat up. Good gravey that was embarassing!
Last summer, I rushed home from my cmorning class in Pennsylvania to my evening class in New York. Since I had been away all week, I did not have opportunity to put away the laundry I left hanging to dry the week before. I grabbed a pair of Zumba cargo pants from the line, got dressed and went off to teach my class. During my third song, we were all in full swing. As we I we were doing some dance kicks, something flies out of the bottom of my pant leg and slides across the dance floor. One of my students picks it up and waves it to me… I dropped to the floor hysterical with laughter!!! It was a pair of thongs that must have clung to the inside of my pant legs!!!
I was in a kickboxing class and we were paired up, legs locked with our partners, doing sit ups. I was feeling a little bloated that day but didnt put much thought into it. After a few sit ups, my stomach started feeling worse but I decided to ignore it and push through. However, after a few more sit ups, much to my horror, I let out a very loud fart. I was mortified. Luckily my partner laughed it off, as did the rest of the class, because thanks to my luck, this gas excape happened just as there was a long, silent pause between songs on the stereo.
I was teaching a special Zumba class at a local nightclub, where we’re up on a stage and the participants are below on the dance floor. For our club events, we dress it up a bit since it’s more of a special event. I’m a very modest dresser, but was convinced by my fellow ZIN that if I wore this silver sparkly bra top underneath a see-through mesh Zumba top (two items of clothing I would NEVER wear) it would be the perfect outfit to pick up the stage lighting. I caved and wore it, despite my hesitations.
Leading the cool down, I brought my arms forward, and clasped my hands together for a nice lower back stretch and realized that my bra top had just unhooked itself. Not sure exactly what was showing, and not wanting to make it completely obvious, I wrapped my arm over my chest and completed the rest of the cool down with my other arm. After all, the show must go on (even though it almost turned into a whole other type of “show”)!
One time I wore a pretty sheer white top, at the beginning of my Zumba career before I had any Zumba wear….and I am large chested and was having a hard time getting a sports bra to keep my “girls” from bouncing. So a friend suggested I get a smaller size and it would hold them down better…..yeah not so much. In my case I flopped out of the bottom of the bra on a move where my arms where all the way up to the ceiling. In my white shirt I look in the mirror and all I can see is my one breast clear as day. So I kept trying to stick it back in while we were turning, and then it kept popping back out. That bra went in the garbage. My class has also hummed the music and danced in our socks due to sticky floors. I wouldn’t trade any of these moments for the world bcause for every crazy event that has happened I’ve had just as many ….I’m down a pants size because of Zumba moments with my zeeps…more than makes up for a floppy boob…tee hee.. <3
I was subbing a Zumba class @ LA Fitness when my ipod stop working! I wanted to run out the gym. I had to borrowed a CD mix latin music from the front desk had to teach songs i didnt know but I kept going luckily they love it!
This doesn’t have to do with Zumba but I had just purchased a wii fit around Christmas..on Boxing day I thought I would try it out for the first time..I was stepping off the board and actually badly sprained my ankle..as we all know the board isn’t that far off the floor..it was quite embarrassing when people asked how I did it.
I was singing along with one of my songs and while I was singing “I love you”, I winked at a lady in my class that was having a hard time following the steps. It was her first time to my class!! I’m sure I freaked her out a little. Ha!
While Doing exhilarate DVD for the first time, I’m really into it and I didn’t my neighbor at the kitchen door which I where I workout. I tripped over my own feet and fell face down hard! All I hear is my neighbor cracking up.
I will never live this down. Everyone in the neighborhood knows.
Thinking that I could start at Mid-Class on Zumba Fit Rush? Child, I had to pause the controller in intervals and I’m 24 but overweight for MY height.
Peace, Minnie
I do dance games and have beat ggdm but makings it through mid class without 5 glasses of water, pauses, trying not to trip over my 4 year old, etc. are a few is my embarrassing moments in my daily routine /escapade in my Zumba Room.
Had to be when a treadmil malfunctioned at the gym. I’m a big girl (280lbs). I was going at a speed of about 2.5mph, and then all of a sudden, the treadmil sped up to at least 10mph with no rhyme or reason. Nothing would stop this thing. I tried pushing the down arrows, the emergency stop…nothing. My legs have never gone that fast, ever. I was just trying not to land on my face. I finally managed to get my feet on the sides after nearly going off the thing twice. I had a death grip on the bars. Finally, two employees came over and tried to get it to stop. The only thing that worked was to pull the plug out of the wall. I never went back to that particular gym.
I had started water classes at the gym after healing from an operation to ease into fitness, me in my 30′s in a class of seniors. One day we had a guest instructor, a handsome young man I was trying not to embarrass myself in front of. At one point we were pretending to white water raft & going around moving our arms. I got lost in a song we were doing as thoughts of an impending class reunion began filling my head with nightmare scenarios. I was so determined to have a strong work-out I really got into it, flailing my arms wildly & lifting the water 2′ above the pool we were in. Sufficiently out of breath I stopped & noticed not only had the song & everyone else stopped moving, I was completely turned around to the poor horrified children at the end of the pool learning to swim, who must’ve assumed they were witnessing some poor woman drown to death before their eyes. I turned, my face beet red & everyone was chuckling, especially the guest instructor. I was too mortified to go back & decided to give “land” classes a try, it was my 1st taste of ZUMBA. That was 30 lbs ago & totally worth the humiliation. I still see that instructor occasionally on the way to class & have to laugh. What doesn’t kill us truly does make us stronger.
I have also had a few instances:-
* Ipod battery went flat and I was forced to use non-zumba music from my phone and make routines up on the fly! Clients still had a ball!
* Hall owner did not open up for us so we had to do the routines in the car park using car stereo
* I forgot to check the mirror and arrived to class wearing pink top, pink pants, pink jacket AND pink shoes. Clients had to wear shades!
* I had to change at the venue and forgot to take my zumba top, so had to do full class in my sports bra (I’m not skinny!)
In fact only last night, I had constant minor wardrobe malfunctions, my leggings kept falling down – every time I jumped up and down I was showing my undies!
Once in the middle of class I had to pee really bad. So I made a fast break for the bathroom when I heard my fav song come on. I was trying to go so fast, I forgot to lock the door and I totally got walked in on. Very embarrassing!
I was super exited that they had just done the floors at the studio were I work, Body by Soul, they looked all sparkly, colorful and pretty. I didn’t smell anything when I went in to teach, about 30 minutes of me teaching Zumba, I felt dizzy and the studio started spinning, I ran outside and threw up, all of my students were around me concerned for my health and I was just devastated with embarrassment, after I threw up I felt better. I guess what happened was the fumes of the paint were still in the air but I didn’t smell it. The next day every one was concerned for me and was asking how I was and all I wanted to do was to crawl under a rock or for them to forget that it ever happened.
I was doing a ZUmba event at a High School. I had just bought a new pair of Zumba pants and had never worn them before. I was excited about the event and wearing my new clothes. In one of my routines there was jumping. Of course in front of ALL the High School students my pants fall right down to my knees. There was a DJ behind me and of course he got a nice view of my butt. All the kids starting laughing. I was so embarrassed but I played it off like nothing happened amd kept going. When I was done I ran off because I was too embarrassed to stick around.
Fusion cargos tend to slip down on me. While teaching, I lifted my hand to cue the class and almost lost my britches! Trying to avoid the whole pants down at my ankles scenario, and now with all eyes on me (roughly 40 people), I quickly grabbed what I thought were cargos, and pulled up high and fast!
Nope—those weren’t cargos!
Instead, I had pulled up my underwear, high and fast, lace and all!!! Not only did I show the entire class my VS and who knows what else, but I had just given myself the WORST weggie that now had to be pulled down…and did I mention all eyes were on me?!?
…Yup!
…Awesome!!!
I had only been teaching for a few months and had to do a class in a new studio with plenty of new faces, when I went to play my cd for class I discovered the cd player would not play any cds. I had my cell phone with me and luckily I had a whole bunch of songs that I wanted to do someday but had never worked on yet. I was still a little on the shy side and not feeling real confident in choreography but I didn’t want to cancel and I wanted these new faces to come back so I plugged my phone into the sound system and just winged it for an entire class. Thankfully I was able to put my fears aside and was able to just feel the music. The class turned out to be a huge success and helped me to have more confidence.
I had just gotten the new IPhone this Christmas so I loaded my playlist onto it and decided to try it out. During class (with around 50 people) my phone rings and I can’t figure out how to get it to stop. Finally I push something and answer the phone. It’s my dad. He had no idea he’s going over the loud speaker of the entire classroom. He’s saying “hello, hello , are you there? ” I now cannot figure out how to end the call and my dad just keeps saying “hello, hello”. The whole class is cracking up! I’ve been scared to use my IPhone ever since!
Mine quite possibly takes the cake on this! I had only been doing Zumba for about 4 months & my fitness level and bladder were not totally up to snuff after having 2 (quite large at delivery) babies. With that said, when I was just starting out & had yet to build up my bladder muscles as it were, I would wear a panty liner in case of any accidental trickle ( sorry if this is TMI but I know almost ALL the mama’s out there can relate) So that particular day I was indulging in a sweaty Zumba good time when all of the sudden I felt something tickling at my lower back (you all thought you knew where this was headed didn’t ya!?!) and when I reached around to see what it was I felt something odd! I was momentarily confused until I realized that my panty liner had crept ALL THE WAY up & was ready to fall out of my Zumba pants in front of the entire class! Aaaahhh! I jetted to the bathroom immediately of course but still am not sure how many people may have seen my moment of mortification! Suffice to say that the adhesiveness of a panty liner is NO MATCH for Zumba sweat & I no longer wear them when I work out!
I was leading a routine at a fundraiser and hadn’t taken time to check out the stage. We all dance at the same level at my gym, so I’m not used to worrying about edges. I decided to turn around and give a different view so people knew what my backside was doing. I wound up sambaing right off the stage. Thankfully nothing/nobody broke (or injured), which made popping back up and finishing the song down in the crowd possible. I prefer to be down there anyways
I really think I have the most embarrassing moment to tell!
I have a class about 6okm from where I live, it takes about 50min to drive…
I arrived a bit stressed and not so in time that I like to be, so there was already students at the door waiting for me…
When I start to unpack my car, I don´t know why (you know you can get the feeling that not everything is right) but I felt I had to open the case where I have my Ipod and stuff…
The freezing cold I felt, and then red hot, it was sooo embarrassing… The Ipod was left at my office on the desk next to the computer.
I had done a new playlist and when I left I saw the small case to the Ipod in the case where all my stuff is, so I just closed that case and off I went…
Needless to say I had to cancel that class, I have never felt so embarrassed and dumb in my whole life!
I manage to do a fool of myself without even had started the class…
From that day I trippel check befor leaving, and it´s the ONLY time I ever had canceled a class. I´m not going to do that again, it was the worst.
I was wearing black blouse over my zumba top. After a few songs I got it off because it was too hot but I did not notice that it left black strands under my armpits. It looked like I did not depilate. I was emberrassed after I saw it in the mirrow after my zumba classes. If I knew I would not raise my hands. I asked my friedns who attended the zumba class this day whether they saw it and they did: but what could we tell you? to depilate the next time?
Back in the Jane Fonda days I used to wear turtle neck bra tops and briefs. One day while teaching I noticed something hanging between my legs and thought that the briefs had ripped until I realized that I had put the turtle neck top on thinking it was briefs and it was the neck that I could see hanging down between my legs. Needless to say the class had a good laugh and the story has been repeated and laughed at many times since!
FULL class. Mirrors EVERYWHERE. Black pants.
Class started and I noticed that I had a small hole in the, um, front of my pants. I noticed this because I had on BRIGHT pink underwear.
I thought “ok, just keep moving, maybe no one will notice”. Well a song or two into class, I had Zumba’d my way into a quarter size hole. At that point I figured I just needed to address the issue up front – so to speak. I said “Yep, got a hole in my pants! Thank goodness I decided to wear the pink underwear!”
By the end of class I was working with a hole about the size of an orange – front and center! Oh well, just a good reminder to never teach Zumba comando!!!!