The Buzz on Jazzercise

I've been doing Jazzercise for 30 years - since my oldest was born. There are many ways to bring exercise and activity to your every day life but I have found Jazzercise to be my favorite. The combination of aerobics, core strength, stretching, and all to current music is what works for me. Instructors are monitored on their techniques which keeps it a quality program. I plan on Jazzercising as long as I am walking! - 1/2/2012 12:48:10 PM

I have been a Jazzercise Instructor for 4 years now and attended classes for 2 year previous to becoming an instructor. Obviously, I LOVE IT! Each class can be what you need it to be. There are always low impact moves shown so you can choose to hop & bounce or keep your feet on the ground through the whole class. We work everything in your body, especially the all important CORE muscles. My butt still hurts after every class. Judy (the owner and CEO) continually creates new moves and is always using the most current music to help everyone feel excited about coming to class. We have every fitness level, every age and every shape in class. The BEST part is you make friends with the other ladies that just like you, are just looking for a great workout without the stresses of a gym. Check out the website www.jazzercise.co
m to find out more about the company, where you can take classes near you, the latest offers and get a preview of the moves before you attend a class. You don't have to be coordinated to do Jazzercise, you just need to be willing to have fun while you sweat! - 3/21/2011 1:01:20 PM

I've been doing Jazzercise since the mid-90's. I convinced my daughter to go when she was in high school. She was just sure it would be easy. She was pleasantly surprised. She has been an instructor since 2004 and owned her own franchise since 2005. She has added 3 instructors and gone from offering 3 classes a week to 10. I am not the type that can motivate myself to do something on my own and with Jazzercise I can be motivated plus I've made lots of good friends. I took over 150 classes this year and I was gone at least 4 weeks for vacation. - 1/8/2011 4:04:31 PM

The article make Jazzercise sound fun, but I'd have appreciated definitions or brief explanations of the list of terms. It kind of feels like there's a page missing.

I tried Jazzercise years ago, but it was too high impact then for my knees, even when I was young & much thinner. Maybe now it's more modifiable. - 11/6/2010 2:47:43 AM

I love Jazzercise! It's so much fun, and my instructor really pushes us, so I burn 500 - 600 in an hour. I'd do it everyday if I could! - 10/15/2010 4:29:56 PM

Oh my! I bet if I dug around a bit, I still have a few Jazzercise lps that were my Mom's from the 1970's - she used to do them all of the time and I really enjoyed it as a kid - it was oodles of fun. I will have to look around and see if classes are offered in my area.
- 10/15/2010 4:30:54 AM

I liked Jazzercise and would do again if I didn't have a local gym with fun cardio classes. My gym offers Zumba 3 days a week which is great dance exercise. My gym also offers Balletone once a week (I haven't tried it yet). Dance is fun exercise and I love it! - 3/22/2010 4:25:46 PM

I used to do Jazz and I loved it as well. Always used music that was hot at the time, loved the moves and the people. The only reason why I stopped going was that I was paying $32 per month. If you couldnt make a class at a particular time or day, then what? I have since then joined a gym for $40 per month, only $8 more and I can go anytime I want. A lot more options in my optinion. I still do the classes at the gym, which are included in my membership, but I have the option of walking a treadmil, riding a bike, swimming, stair master, lifting weights, ect .....before and after class. If Jazz wasnt so expensive, I'd go back. That's my only drawback - 3/22/2010 12:03:45 PM

How do you track Jazzercise on the Spark fitness tracker. I would think that that would be listed as an activity, but it is not. Maybe I missed it.... - 3/21/2010 3:40:24 PM

I am a certified Jazzercise instructor and I suggest all of you wondering about it - just try it out. Usually a center will let you try your first class free or you can pay for one class for about $8-12. It works for all fitness levels - it is all about what each individual can do and the intensity level that each individual wants to put out. If you are in shape and looking for a fun way to spice up your fitness schedule, Jazzercise is an awesome workout and fun! If you have are out of shape and looking to get back into a fitness program then Jazzercise is for you too. All portions of the high intensity aerobic sections can be done in low impact (no hopping). If you have knee problems, joint problems, etc..then you can take it slow and steady. The upbeat music and fun moves will keep you coming back for more until you reach your goals.
A regular Jazzercise class is 60 minutes long consisting of appx 35 minutes aerobics then followed by strength training. Strength training portion at the minimum is an upper torso routine, abdominal routine and a leg routine. Usually there is a stretch routine included also.
Instructors receive 23-26 new songs and new choreographed routines every 10 weeks. Variety is stellar and you'll never get tired of the music or moves. Here is an example of our song variety....we have songs by Lady Gaga, Michael Buble, Santana, Black Eyed Peas, Justin Timberlake, Seal, Rascal Flatts, Janet Jackson, Brian Setzer, Madonna, Joss Stone, The Veronicas, Sean Paul, Beyonce......I could go on and on.
Check out www.jazzercise.co
m for the most recent offers and to find classes near you.
Try it out! Jazzercise is not intimidating - you will love it! - 2/19/2010 1:07:14 AM

I have been doing jazz in Lincoln, Nebraska off and on for about 15 years. For me the movement and all that sweat just makes me happy. Not to mention I've developed so many friends through jazz. People of all ages go to class, from 16 to 60+. You can adapt the moves to whatever works for your body. If you want low impact, that's always an option. If some move is awkward for you, just march in place and enjoy the music and those around you. A basic jazz class is about 5 minutes warm up, 35 minutes high intensity aerobics, about 15 minutes of weights & resistance tube work, and about 5 minutes cool down. There are also classes just for step aerobics, body sculpting (using resistance tubes and weights), express (a shorter, 30-minute class) and other variations on the basic, 60 minute class. And of course, combining it with a program like sparkpeople, you've got a winning combo for weight loss!

I was annoyed that jazzercise wasn't specifically listed on the cardio options (although high impact aerobics is pretty much the same thing). I looked on google to see if there was a chart to see how many calories I would burn while at jazz, and I came across this on self's web site.

http://www.self
.com/calculat
orsprograms/c
alculators/ca
loriesburned/jazzercise

You just plug in your weight, how many minutes you did jazz, and you've got your answer! It may not be exact, but it's a good place to start.

I'd encourage anyone to try it. You can usually get one class for free if you ask. Sure, it's been around awhile, but it's contantly evolving and getting better. - 1/25/2010 11:36:09 AM

I'm very overweight, need to lose about 80 pounds and a friend at work recommended Jazzercise. It's affordable and right by my house. However, I am severely out of shape at the moment. Used to do advanced step class for many years, and danced all my life -- it's just the past few years that I have grown roots to my couch. Can you pace yourself in the class, will there be others there like me or is it do or die? I'm really excited about joining, but a little afraid. - 1/9/2010 11:30:17 AM

Jazzercise is awesome! I did Jazzercise in college and then got out of the swing as I went out in the real world for work. I noticed a Jazzercise center near my new apartment and have been going at least 4 times a week for the past 8 months. I have lost weight and have noticed a nice change in tone. Jazzercise is fun and I recommend it to everyone! All the instructors are super nice so if you are worried about learning the steps you should have no problem finding someone to answer your questions. GOOOO JAZZERCISE! - 12/29/2009 9:27:11 AM

i tried it years ago, and I LOVED it, but I am such a klutz, that I was actually asked to leave on about the 5th class, and she refunded all of my money... needless to say, it left a bad feeling with me and sabotaged that particular effort to get into shape. Now in my 50's, I would not let that stop me, but back then... It was sad! - 12/20/2009 1:15:21 PM

Is Jazzercise good for someone with severe lower back issues? I have severe lumbar spinal stenosis and facet arthritis of the lower spine, resulting in extreme pain down both buttocks and the length of my left leg. I even have what feels like charley horses in my left calf that make it painful to bend over or even to lift my leg. I also have osteo-arthritis of the left knee that has left it pretty much bone-on-bone, so doing any sort of lunges or knee bends is pretty much out of the question. - 11/22/2009 11:15:19 PM