As a Zumba Fitness instructor I believe it’s part of my job to keep you safe and that means educating you on shoes.

You only have one set of feet to last your life so take care of them. Did you know wearing the wrong kind of shoes for the exercise you are doing can have a huge impact on your legs, feet, knees?

You might think that running shoes are OK for Zumba Fitness, but really they are not good for Zumba Fitness at all, it’s OK though, many people make this mistake. Below I am going to let you know about different shoes and what I recommend for my classes.

 

Running Shoes

Running shoes are just made for running. These shoes are designed for moving in one direction and that is forward and backwards. They are not made for side to side movements or slides, which is typical in a my class. These shoes have a lot of traction which is great for runners but not great for Zumba Fitness.

 

Cross Trainers

These are what I like to call a multi purpose shoe. They are good for any direction of movement. These are an OK choice for Zumba Fitness, but not my favorite and I would not wear these shoes for running.

 

Dance Type Shoes

These are the best for Zumba Fitness and there are a lot of variety in them. These type shoes usually have one or two pivots points on the bottom and they take some getting used to. These shoes will have you moving with ease in your next Zumba Fitness class. I have tried quite a few and these are my favorites Pumas, Nike Musique and of course I like the official Zumba Fitness shoes available on their site.

Any shoe you happen to pick out will have varying amounts of support. Some have lots of support and some have very minimal support; the latter is my personal preference. Most sales people that work at shoe stores will know what you need if you tell them them you’re looking for shoes for Zumba Fitness. Or you can always ask your Zumba Fitness instructor what shoe they like.

I am not trying to sell shoes here, I just know the right kind are very important. Before becoming an instructor, I was a student and wish I had learned about the right shoes sooner. Basically it was trial and error and sore heels, toes, balls of my feet, knee pain and lower back pain and yes all these things are caused by having the wrong shoe. It’s not uncommon for people to add orthodontics to their shoes either.

Now that you know this information, I am positive you will be rocking your next Zumba Fitness class!

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