Northern Virginia Zumba.

I loved my community center in Overland Park because people of all ages could get together and lift weights, do pilates or dance through a zumba class. So when I joined my gym in NOVA, I asked about exercise classes. The salesman was running through all the options, and he assured me that zumba was really popular in Northern Virginia.

He wasn't kidding. This morning's class had people from at least three different continents. A conservative guess is there were at least four different home languages in the room. Didn't matter. Zumba unifies. Shake your hips. Salsa back and forth. Punch towards the ceiling. The teacher (whose first language was also not English) did a great job getting everyone going. She would ask questions and the little Asian women in the front row would shout "Yes!" regardless of the question. More Zumba! More Zumba! We love to dance!

I stand out normally in these classes because of my height and sometimes less than graceful dance moves. I really stood out today. 6' white girl sweating to the best Latin beats around.

And then we got to the hip-hop section of the hour. A favorite in Overland Park because I could show off my sweet dance moves from Northwest Middle school dances. The instructor taught us the moves and hit play.

To my delight, my multicultural zumba class shook it and hit the floor to "Low" by Flo Rida. Regardless of age or ethnicity, we sang along. "Shawty had them apple bottom jeans. Boots with the fur. The whole club was looking at her..."

After Flo Rida, the teacher asked if we wanted abs or more leg workout. The class shouted "ABS!" The teacher obliged, saying, "Alright! Abs it is. This is a democracy!"

Or something like that.