Exercise Class Turned Fitness Exercise Concert Headed to Cape!

The Osage Centre will be the venue for the WATATAH FITNESS EXERCISE CONCERT taking place Jun 15 and this is the first time an event like this is being brought to Cape. The group fitness exercise session will feature the typical Zumba Fitness® workout led by licensed instructors — but instead of melodies playing over the booming speakers, students will be treated to a live performance by Latin-Music artist Watatah, who hales from the Dominican Republic.

“The vibe that we’re going for is a fitness exercise concert experience,” explains Tewauna Raymundo, who hosts fitness exercise events through her event-planning company Ms. T. Fitness and Productions. “Even though Zumba Fitness® exercise is the focus of the event, it’s different because we have an artist singing live on stage— and he also does the moves himself along with the instructors and if you are lucky enough he might call you up on stage to shake and shimmy along side him!”

Raymundo explains that Watatah is something of a Zumba community celebrity — his music has appeared on various Zumba-centric compilations and he makes the rounds as a presenter at the Zumba Fitness® conventions.

Raymundo, who is a Cape native, joined the USAF upon graduation and served 12 honorable years until she separated in 2008. Upon her separation, this veteran continued to support the military and the Department of Defense through various positions and the local community as a group exercise fitness instructor. “I have always loved exercising and during my life's journey I encountered Zumba Fitness® and became a licensed instructor in 2011. Throughout my journey as an instructor I also become AFAA™ certified (since 2012) as a Group Exercise Instructor in which I maintain liability insurance and hold a current CPR certification,” she stated with a since of pride.

Raymundo was initially skeptical of taking a Zumba Fitness® class but she found that it was an effective and challenging workout that was more enjoyable than just going to the gym. She became an instructor, she explains, as a way to inspire others to be active and have fellowship with others through exercising. “I have made many lasting friendships due to group exercise, had they not shown up to exercise we probably would have never met,” she says with a smile. “There are some who are afraid to go and and exercise by themselves let alone in a group setting and often times when they try out a group exercise class, especially a Zumba® class, they find it very rewarding.”

Raymundo runs Ms. T. Fitness and Productions as a side gig to her day job as a Supervisory IT Specialist for the Department of The Army at Fort Belvoir, VA. Her reason for bringing this event to Cape was to allow her younger sister, who recently became a licensed instructor in the area, a chance to experience an event such as this. Most Zumba® Master Classes or Zumbathon® events usually attract people who already are into Zumba, but she sees this class/concert hybrid as an opportunity for her sister and everyone in the area who enjoys Zumba Fitness® as an opportunity to enjoy a little bit of flavor that is enjoyed each year by licensed instructors at (Zumba®) convention. “It’s really about the joy of putting on a great show and allowing everybody to have a lot of fun,” she says.