West African Dancing

If you're like me, the thought of working out by running can seem dreadful especially if you're not a fan of running to begin with. I like to incorporate activities in my workout. I would rather attend a dance or aerobics class to get my fitness on.

When I lived in California, I was part of a Halau, which is in Hawaiian means Hawaiian Dance School. I loved it! I danced for several years. I practiced 2-3 times a week for 2 hours and even had performances. My Kumu (Hawaiian dance teacher) was very strict in a good way and was set in making sure that every move that his students did was in sync and to perfection. It was so much fun and not to mention I lost a lot of weight in just a matter of weeks due to vigorous dance moves.

So many people have asked me where I got the name "QueenLeilani" from. Well, it was my Kumu who gave me that name. When you are part of a Halau, you must "earn" your name. He gave me the name "Leilani" which means "God's heavenly flower." But later down the road, my friends started calling me QueenLeilani instead...so that name just stuck around.

Well, now that I live in New York, I haven't found a Hawaiian dance group that I want to join yet. I have done a lot of research and just have not found the right group yet. So in the meantime, I found a FREE dance class for West African Dancing. Yes, that's right....African Dancing. It's something that I have never done before. Since I'm a former dance teacher and have been exposed to all types of dancing, I can honestly say that this is one style of dancing that I have not tackled yet. The thought of the challenge enlightens me. So a friend and I will be going this week.

Stay tuned on my results about the class! =) And wish me luck!