What burns more calories? Zumba or kids’ ‘aerobics’?

Have you ever been waiting in line at the grocery store, bored out of your wits, and noticed a 5-year-old dancing around like a maniac?

That would be my child. She burns five times more calories than I do just “standing” around.

Then there’s “watching” television. Every time my kids watch cartoons it looks like a tornado hit the family room.

For some reason, it never occurs to me to do headstands while watching Netflix, or play tag in the middle of Fred Meyer. That’s probably why my ability to burn calories is so different from my children. Enter yoga, neighborhood walks and the Total Gym. Mom has to work hard to keep up.

After I broke my wrist in an ice-skating fall last March, I faced new exercising challenges. After just a few weeks, my arms became two different sizes. It was fun to freak people out by showing them my forearms, but scary to witness atrophy in action.

My insurance provides thirty sessions of physical therapy — not exactly for free — and I’m on track for using most of them. My wrist is at the point where I can wave goodbye, open a doorknob and hold a coffee cup. But I still can’t touch my left hand to my left shoulder and I have weird nerve issues. Things that used to be easy, like doing the downward-facing dog pose in yoga, are now faraway goals.

I also have to fight my own paranoia because I’m afraid of falling and breaking something else. I yell at my kids for leaving toys on the ground that could trip me. I always hold onto the bannister now when I walk up and down stairs.

Recovering from a broken wrist has been humbling. It’s hard to be active again, especially after sitting on my butt for three months.

One of my friends has been doing the Couch to 5k Running Plan and posting her progress on Facebook. The goal of c25k is to take anyone from the sofa to running for a solid 30 minutes in just 9 weeks. It’s totally free.

My friend’s progress has really inspired me, but running isn’t my thing. So I decided to give myself a different challenge. I ordered a set of Zumba DVDs.

Zumba is like aerobics with Latin music. There’s Salsa, Flamenco, Reggaeton and even Tango. The DVDs start out easy and then get difficult. For some reason all of the instructors are really into torn shirts and shaking their hair around — but Zumba is super fun.

Correction, it’s fun if your kids aren’t watching you and laughing. My children think my Zumba efforts are hilarious.

I’m glad they find me so amusing, but I’m also plotting my revenge. The next time my daughter starts dancing in Fred Meyer, I’ll be ready to join in.

Jennifer Bardsley is an Edmonds mom of two and blogs at teachingmybabytoread.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.