Cultural Dancing Is a New Form of Fitness Workout | Voice of America - English
World health experts continually are stressing how important regular exercise is to good health. If you don't exercise regularly, or even if you do, you might want to try this latest form.  In fact, major corporations, such as the International Monetary Fund, AT&T, and USA Today are even offering this workout in their fitness programs.
Have you tried a fitness workout but quit because you got bored? Then, how about this? (Instructor) "Are you ready?" It's called the Kukuwa Dance Workout. In this class driven by upbeat music, you can feel the energy from the participants. Participant Jarret Christensen says, " Kukuwa's class is so much fun and it's just so different. It's different, away from the machines and exercise routine, because you never know what you are going to be doing in the class. It's such a great workout." Jarret has taken the class for a year and a half now; Ruth Garcia, three months. She says, "It's the best cardio that you can make. It's fun. It's fat burning." The instructor is . She is an African cultural dancer and came to the United States from Ghana 22 years ago. Kukuwa says, "When I came to America, I went to a gym to start to workout. It was very boring. So I decided that I wanted to introduce my type of dancing to the fitness industry." And it didn't take long for Kukuwa to find, as she puts it, that people got addicted to her unique style of muscle and body sculpting workout that incorporates Latin, African and Caribbean music and dance. "They just keep wanting more music, more choreography, and just more energy from what I bring," she said. Lisa Mitchell knows why. "I am tired but I am energized. It's a lot of fun. This is more like you are going to a party. You can dance. You have fun. You can yell, scream." Kukuwa explains how many of her class participants began the program. ?Some of them come in very tired and some of them come in with no energy whatsoever. So they gear it up because by doing this kind of workout you build your stamina. They also see the reshape of their body." Kukuwa teaches at various local gyms and corporate fitness classes in the Washington D.C. area. She also has classes taught by her 30 certified instructors in other parts of the U.S. and abroad -- in China, Japan, Sweden and Spain. She plans to spread her dance workout to many more countries. " I don't have a desire to stop teaching. I will train and I will teach and encourage and help people always stay fit. There is no end to it.