Jazzercise, which began 38 years ago, is still extremely popular as a means of getting toned and fit and having fun while you’re at it. Judi Sheppard Missett created the Jazzercise program in 1969. Jazzercise is a dance fitness program that incorporates dance steps into an aerobic exercise routine.

Instructors for Jazzercise must be certified and are trained in dance technique, injury prevention and the science of anatomy and physiology.

Throughout the years, some transformations and additions have taken place within the Jazzercise programs. Jazzercise classes began as dance routines done to pop music but now have incorporated different fitness styles into it. Yoga, pilates and cardio-kickboxing have been integrated into many of the Jazzercise classes.

Jazzercise classes last an hour and start with a warm up. After that, there is 30 minutes of aerobic exercise, then strength training. To enhance the Jazzercise classes, the use of weights, exercise balls and stretch bands helps you to further tone your muscles.

Jazzercise classes have different formats specifically tailored to your level of fitness, age or time constraints. For a novice, seniors or pregnant women, there is the Jazzercise Lite program. Teenagers enjoy the Jazzercise Team Dance and children can participate in the Junior Jazzercise.

If you want to define your muscles more, there is the Jazzercise Body Sculpting workout that lasts 45 minutes with weights incorporated into the program. People who are always in a time crunch can sign up for the Jazzercise Express that is a 30 minute version of the traditional program.

The corporate website for Jazzercise can help you locate the classes near you. A varied range of contemporary music is used for the classes. At www.jazzercise.com, the basic aerobic movements can be looked up online to get a preview of what a Jazzercise class will consist of.

Also featured are the power legs movements, fancy footwork and side to side movements spelled out on video to view. Some general recommendations for participating in the classes are covered online. These are aimed at your posture and ways to move properly throughout the Jazzercise program. Jazzercise welcomes all different levels of fitness.

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 13th, 2008 at 5:47 am and is filed under Workout Regimens. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.