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Angie’s August 2009 Tidbits
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“Dance Your @$$ Off!” Hello QCDQ peeps and welcome to another fabulous edition of Angie’s tidbits! It’s been a while since you’ve heard from me, but it’s only because I’m so busy jamming with all of you that I haven’t had time to sit down and give you a proper update on SEVERAL things that are going on with us. But first, I’d like to take a moment to congratulate so many of you that have been coming to class with solid dedication and at the same time have been losing some unwanted pounds as a result! Thank you so much for sharing your stories with us; you don’t know how happy it makes all of us instructors to see you just shining as you realize how great you feel and look! Many of the newcomers have been asking me, “Can you really lose weight just by dancing?”, and I’m here to tell you that “YES YOU CAN!!”, which is why I chose this Tidbits quote in recognition of the new Oxygen TV show, “Dance Your @$$ Off!. As we always say, “If you are moving, you are doing it right”. This really is true. When it comes to weight loss, any movement is better than NO movement. So if you are adding additional cardio to your schedule, and even if you don’t change anything about your diet, you will still be creating a calorie deficit which in turn will lead to weight loss. However, I’d like to give all of you a few pointers on how you can lose more weight, get more toned and feel great JUST by dancing. The following tips will help you lose more pounds because you will burn more calories and increase your muscle strength and endurance- and they will also help you to become a better dancer! 1. Maintain good POSTURE! To do this, make sure your head is upright with eyes straight ahead, your chin is parallel to the floor. your shoulders are wide and relaxed, your neck is long and stretching upward, and your chest is vertically aligned with the hips. 2. Keep your CORE MUSCLES ENGAGED! Your core muscles are primarily your abdominal muscles and your back muscles. Keeping these tight while you dance will not only help you maintain good posture, but it will help you to increase your balance! 3. FRAME yourself!! A dancer without a frame is analogous to a poster on the wall without a frame. When you move your arms, think about tensing the muscles in your arms and chest in order to create a frame for the movement. In other words, try to avoid “Spaghetti Arms”! 4. GROUND yourself! When dancing, place your feet on the floor as if you were pretending that you were standing on ice. This makes you engage your leg and butt muscles. 5. Go FULL OUT! This applies to any move that we do pretty much. You always have the opportunity to do a “baby” version of the move or a “FULL OUT” version of the move. Often we use baby versions when we are teaching a move and go “full out” after we see that everyone has got the move. If you know it, then don’t be afraid to bust out your “full out” moves! When you dance “full out”, you will bend lower, reach farther, reach higher, jump higher, pump harder, shake bigger, circle wider, squat deeper, etc. The more “full out” you dance, the more muscles you are engaging and the more calories you are burning. 6. BREATHE! While you are doing all this muscle tensing, don’t forget the most important thing- Breathe! If you don’t breathe, you are depriving your body of precious oxygen that it needs to keep going for the entire cardio workout! And if you’re not sure if you’re breathing right, just try singing! If you can sing while you dance, you know you are getting in enough oxygen! If you are just starting and this seems like just too much to think about then don’t worry- Just dance. You will still lose weight! Adding in the above mentioned tips and/or eating a healthier diet will only further accelerate your weight loss progress. Isn’t that great news? I challenge you to choose one or two of these techniques to begin with and then gradually add on as you gain practice with each one. Most importantly, just keep on coming to class and dance your @$$ off with QCDQ!
Now, let’s jump into the announcements and updates!
Back to School Blowout Friday, August 14th at First Ward Recreation Center from 6:00-7:30!!! We will be doing a school supply drive to help "A Better World", an afterschool program that benefits the Ashley Park neighborhood of Charlotte. Anyone who brings supplies will be put into a raffle to win a free class card! So join your favorite QCDQ instructors from 6:00 - 7:30 PM as we give you a taste of Zumba, Urban Shimmy, Hit It and DanceOut! in this 90 minute dancing extravaganza! Here’s a few more details on this FUN event: Cost: Punch Card OR $5 drop-in with school supply donation. As always first timers FREE with participation form preprinted and filled out!
Busy Busy Busy!! We’ve been really busy with not only our regular class schedule, but with these fabulous events…Check it out! Dancing through the Decades. June 25th We had a fabulous time as we dressed in fashions from the ‘20s to the ‘90s at the Adult Recreation Center DanceOut! class in Gastonia. All the participants that came dressed up were entered into a drawing for a FREE 5 class card and the winner was: Anastasia Withrow who totally rocked out her 70’s style outfit! Congrats to her! Zumbathon was held on June 27th at Asana Activewear. We had a FANTASTIC turnout for the inaugural event and raised $500 for our Fitness for Everyone program. Thanks to all of you who came out to “shake your Asana” with us. Sara, Jonathan and Sammi ROCKED IT! Sweatin’ with your Sweetie week was held July 20-July 25. We were so pleased to see how many of you brought your sweetie to class. Some of you even brought your sweetie to more than one class and that is so AWESOME! Even more awesome than that is some of the sweeties you brought to class are still coming! Thanks to all of you who participated and helped spread the QCDQ love! Everyone that brought a sweetie during the week was entered into a drawing for a FREE 5 class card and the winner was: Angie Dyer who brought her sweetie Jacob to Kyle’s NYC Zumba class! WaxMama loved us and told everyone so! WaxMama is a daily e-newsletter designed to keep the peeps of the greater Charlotte region “in the know” for all that is fabulous in and around Charlotte, NC. On Friday, July 17 we were graced with the presence of the editor of this extremely hip e-magazine, Brooke Gibson. Brooke then wrote about us in her blog with this post that came out on July 28. What an honor! Check out waxMAMA.com to subscribe to this blog, and keep informed about all kinds of cool stuff from fashion to entertainment to books. QCDQ is gonna be on TV!! QCDQ instructors and a few of our jam crew members attended a taping at the Public Access Studio in July. We taped a half hour show for Channel 21 which is the Public Access Channel. We are not sure when this taping will air yet, but we will keep you posted so you can set your DVR box or throw a viewing party. Unfortunately the show that we will be presenting on “Sodun Presents” is only shown in Mecklenburg and Iredell counties. Big thanks to everyone that came out to participate in the taping. You all ROCKED!
Demos galore!! There is no better way to tell people about who we are than by putting on a demo! We love to have our participants rock it out with us, so be sure to keep these dates in mind: · Saturday, August 15 at the Tot Trade Charlotte held at Cabarrus Arena: We will be doing a 15 minute Zumba demonstration at the Tot Trade Charlotte Fall/Winter Sale which is taking place Aug 14-16 at the Cabarrus Arena and Event Center. Our demo will be this Saturday, August 15 at 2:00 pm in the main entrance hallway. Meet at 1:45 just inside the main entrance. Even if you don't want to participate in the presentation group, we'd love to have you come and support us from the audience! Plus, admission to the event is free and you might just find something you need for your little tot(s)! Thanks to Stacy Currie for helping set this up. For more information on the Tot Trade event in general go here: http://www.tottradecharlotte.com/index.php · Sunday, August 30 at The Charlotte Roller Girls Game: We’ll be doing a demo during two intermissions during the game, which starts at 6:00 and will take place at the Grady Cole Center. It is going to be so fabulous and fun! Besides our demo (which will obviously be a highlight of the show) I hear that the Roller Girls are a sight to see themselves! Space is limited so if you are interested in participating please email Sara as soon as possible. · Saturday, September 19 at the Southern Women’s Show: The SWS will be held at The Park, formerly known as the Charlotte Merchandise Mart right off Independence Blvd. on September 19. The time of our demo will be announced soon, but it will probably be around noon. Stay tuned for more information!
Dress code for each of the demos is QCDQ wear to the max. If you don’t have any QCDQ wear, don’t sweat it, a solid shirt will work fine with some black pants. We’re not picky-we just want you to come jam with us!! And if you are shy about performing, we’d love to have you come and cheer us on from the sidelines. Click here to purchase your ticket to the Roller Derby and click here to purchase your ticket to the Southern Women’s Show. And finally, thanks to all of you who came out to participate in the demo at Winget Recreation Center in Steele Creek. We had a great crowd and the turnout was amazing! It’s because of you all that we keep growing so THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart!
Class Updates. We like to keep a consistent schedule as possible, but some things are just not in my control. So, here’s the latest on the schedule changes. We work super hard to find and negotiate new locations for you and we do our very best to keep in mind your wants and needs. Thank you for your patience as we make transitions and adjustments to the schedule.
Where’s the fire? Due to circumstances beyond our control, we had to stop holding Nicole’s Monday and Thursday classes at the Fire Station 9 in Concord. I trust that you all know by now that the temporary location is NYC Dance on Branchview. We are working on finding another location close to Poplar Tent Rd. again and we appreciate your patience while we adjust to this transition. In the meantime, you can continue to jam with Nicole on Mondays and Thursdays at 6:30 at NYC Dance & Tumble. We understand that NYC Dance is a little far for some of Nicole’s regular jammers, so if this has created a problem for you with respect to your Dance Fanatic card, please don’t hesitate to let me know. While the class cards are non-refundable, I would be happy to extend your Reward window so that you will not be penalized if you have not been able to use your punch card at the new location due to distance. If you know of a place big enough to house our classes, send me an email and we will check it out!
Belmont Class will move to Cramerton. Okay, people, hopefully this is the last change for a while for the East Gaston area. We have been happy to be at the J Paul Ford Recreation Center this summer, but unfortunately our time there must come to an end. The last class at this location will be next Thursday, August 20th. After that, we will take a 2 week break and then we will resume class at a NEW location in Cramerton on September 10th. Class will be held on Thursdays from 6:30-7:30 pm at the Cramerton Recreation Center with your most beloved Gina Moody.
The Zumba Convention will be held September 3-7 in Orlando, Florida. The majority of the QCDQ instructor team is going so there will be limited classes available during that time period. If you have an unlimited card, this is important for you to remember so that you can squeeze in your classes during the month at other times. We’ll be sure to update you with the limited class schedule when we have it completed, but as of right now it looks like we will not be having classes at the following times: Thursday, Sept 3 with Nicole at NYC (Cancelled) Saturday, Sept. 5 with Demetria at KOPA (Cancelled)
Speaking of schedules… check out the August calendar. You’ll see our full schedule of classes along with any special events we have going on.
Why should you get a Dance Fanatic Class Card? If you are in love with our classes and are coming on a regular basis you should definitely get yourself a Dance Fanatic Class Card! What level of card you get really depends on how often you are attending. So even if you already have a card, check this chart out to make sure you are using the right level card to get the best bang for your buck.
Plus if you are a member of the Jam Crew, you will receive DOUBLE THE REWARDS on any card just by wearing your Jam Crew shirt 80% of the time that you attend class (or at least 8 times in month if you are UNLIMITED). So you actually pay even less per class than in the chart above. Speaking of Jam Crew…
We are still accepting applications for JAM CREW! If you are a class regular and you feel like you know the moves for the most part, are ready to be a QCDQ ambassador, and like to bring the energy to class, then maybe you need to be in the Jam Crew. For more information on the Jam Crew, click here. Jam Crew T-shirts will be on sale this Friday, August 14 at the Back to School Blowout if you didn’t get a chance to pre-order one. So, make sure you get your hiney to class this Friday so you can snatch up your shirt.
NEW CHOREOGRAPHY! So sorry I haven’t updated the website in a while with new songs but here is a list of some new songs you may have heard in class. I didn’t realize how long this list was till I started writing it down! 1. Lagartija Azul by Fonseca. Cumbia. Means "Blue Lizard" and he sings about his pet blue lizard. Choreographed by Angie with inspiration from ZIN 2. Mi Puerto Rico by Aventura. Salsa/bachata. Has some interesting directional changes. Choreographed by Sara. 3. This is My Crew by Beck (clean). Alternative. Choreographed by Moody. Nice pumping up song for Stretch warmup song. 4. Sugar by Flo Rida. Yes, another Flo-rida, but different moves! Simple choreo. Choreographed by Sara and Angie 5. Fire Burning by Sean Kinston. Super fun- this is my personal favorite of the moment! Choreographed by attendees of the “Make It A Party” workshop. 6. Dum Tek Tek by Hadise. Belly inspired. Choreographed by Gaby. This is a stretch Warm Up song with some unique transitions in it. 7. Let's Get Loud by JLo. Cha cha inspired. Choreographed by Meachi. 8. Mi Dulce Nina by Kumbia Kings. Nice, easy does it cumbia. Brought to us via Sara. 9. Mi Chica Sexy by Alberto Flash. Merengue. Another personal favorite. Brought to us via Sara. 10. The way she moves by Zion. Reggae. Super easy and fun. Brought to us via Sara. 11. Save a horse, Ride a Cowboy by Big and Rich. Naughty Country. I like. Choreographed by Erica Butler (QCDQ instructor trainee). 12. Donde Estas by Flex. Reggaeton. Spanish 101: “Donde estas?” means “Where are you?” and he pretty much sings it over and over. Choreographed by Angie 13. Blue Jeans by Jesse James. Choreographed by Angie, but the song was suggested by Katie Bumgarner. In case you are wondering- Yes, that’s really how I put on my blue jeans. 14. Acuyuye by DLG. Salsa. I’m in love. Choreographed by Kat Rivera (QCDQ Instructor Trainee) 15. Elevator by Flo-rida. Hip Hop. Another personal favorite. Brought to us via Kat Rivera. 16. Danza de Creu by MC Creu (AKA Booty Battle). Brought to us via Sara and boy is she hot in this number. Only busted out on special occasions!!! (Hint: you better come to the Back to School Blowout to see this one) 17. Max it Up by Destra Garcia. Soca. Used as a stretch WarmUp song. Choreographed by Sara. 18. La Colegiala by Calo. Reggaeton/Cumbia. Choreographed by Arleen. Love the beat on this one- so will you. 19. La Loba by Shakira. Second Warm Up song. Choreographed by Arleen. As always, we are working on new choreography to bring you the hottest moves so keep your ears open! If you have any song suggestions that would be good for us to choreograph, please feel free to suggest them. We are always open to new ideas!
Instructor News. The key ingredient to the magic of QCDQ classes… The instructors! See what’s new with your instructor team…
o Instructors in Training. You may have noticed we have some instructors in training. We are so happy to have them on our team. They are: · Katherine Rivera... Charlotte... Zumba/Urban Shimmy · Gina Acosta... Matthews/South Charlotte... Zumba · Stacy Currie... Mint Hill.... DanceOut/Zumba · Megan Paul... Charlotte... Hit it · Erica Butler... Fort Mill/Rock Hill... DanceOut · Sue McDaniel... Charlotte... DanceOut Please feel free to introduce yourself to these individuals and encourage them! While some are already seasoned instructors, some are participants just like you who are stepping up to the plate as instructors! Give it up for them! We hope to be adding some new classes for you- so stay tuned! o Congratulations to Gina Moody. Gina Moody (AKA Moody) has been named as a head instructor for QCDQ! She began taking classes with Angie about 2 1/2 years ago. She got her Zumba certification about 2 years ago and has been teaching ever since. She is also certified with the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. Moody currently teaches 3 classes a week for QCDQ, including Zumba in Gastonia, Beginning Moves in Gastonia and DanceOut in Belmont. She is an excellent instructor and participants all agree that she is very easy to follow. Plus she makes every participant feel comfortable and have a great time as she creates her laid-back party mode! Woohoo! Sidenote: You may have noticed Moody’s been sitting on the sidelines. She hurt her ankle and was following doctor’s orders- NO DANCING. But, she has inspired me with her “Sit and Be Fit” workout style and hopefully it shows you that even if you have a lower extremity injury you can still come to class and participate sitting down. Most all the songs have upper body movement that you can do instead of the legs. Think about it! o A note from Gaby to QCDQ faithfuls. With mixed feelings, I want to let you guys know that I have had been accepted to continue with my graduate studies, and August 26th will be my last day in the Queen City. I am setting off to pursue my academic passion which is Economics! While it breaks my heart to move away from such great people like you, I am sure this will be a great academic opportunity for me. My new life adventure will begin in Utrecht, The Netherlands and it is my hope that you will contact me if you are ever around that region! I would like to thank each and every single one of you for bringing me happiness & making a difference in my life. Being surrounded by all of you has been a great blessing and experience that I will never forget. I am so proud of being part of the QCDQ family and I will for sure miss you all! Gaby- we will miss you more than you can imagine, but we wish you the best of luck overseas!! We are so proud of you! Urban Shimmy participants... this class will continue without interruption with new QCDQ instructor Kat Rivera!
Just a few important reminders. . . · First class is always free to new people who fill out the participation form available from the website and bring it with them to class. Please be sure to stress that to anyone you recruit to come to class. They can print the form from queencitydancingqueen.com or click here for easy access. · Please remember not to bring people to class to watch. If someone is interested in taking class and is a bit apprehensive about it, they are welcome to watch for a few minutes only. After this, we request that they either join in the class (What better way to get a feel for the class than to participate!!) or step outside. Many of our participants are uncomfortable if they feel they are being watched, so please understand our concern and respect this request. In this same realm, we ask that you do not take pictures or videos of participants during class. Feel free to do so with willing participants before or after class though! · As a courtesy, young children are allowed to attend class free of charge with a paying adult. However, we ask that children either participate in the class beside their parent/guardian OR sit quietly on the side of the room within eyesight of the adult. For the safety and enjoyment of all of our participants, children should not be permitted to run within the room or be a distraction to the instruction. Our instructors are busy doing their best to provide a fun, safe workout environment and can not attend to the children of the class. Likewise, QCDQ helpers are volunteers who have agreed to assist with checkin and sales, and they are not expected to attend to children of participants. Please respect this request and ask your children to be mindful of these rules if they wish to attend class.
Other Tidbits…. · QCDQ online: Queen City Dancing Queen has a group AND a fan page on Facebook. We’re always posting updates and events on the wall so make sure you’re a member so you don’t miss out! All of the QCDQ instructors are on there as well. Friend us-we love it! We’re also on Twitter-follow us for updates.
Well, my dancing friends, I think that is the low down for now. I hope you have enjoyed reading the Tidbits for August and we hope to see you in class very soon!!!
Big Hugs to All, Angie
Angie Acosta
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