So this month, my newest quest was to try a Red Hot Dance Fitness (RHDF) class. Some friends of mine have been taking classes at the Ridley YMCA and they said it was a blast!

I have always loved to dance; even did a brief stint as an aerobics instructor while in graduate school. But it has been some time since I took a weekly class. Red Hot was voted the Sexiest Workout by PhillyFit Magazine. So Red Hot it is, on my check list of fun fitness things to do!

If you have never taken an aerobics-like dance class, the format across the board is the same: Instructor in front and dancers all facing instructor trying to follow dance steps. Pending on where you are standing in the class, your position provides you with visual cues from the instructor to hop this way or kick that way.

So if you are a beginner I can understand the frustration when it feels difficult to get the dance steps down and everyone is zigging while you are zagging. (Best to stand in front with a good view of the instructor).

According to http://www.redhotdancefitness.com, Red Hot Dance Fitness combines the hottest music with even hotter moves. It is similar to Zumba, but not to Latin or world music. The music is top 40 pop and more of a Dance/Hip-hop style, says Ridley Y instructor Pam Klotz.

Pam has been teaching Red Hot at the Y for almost a year now. I fell in love with dance fitness five years ago when I took my first Zumba class. Then I discovered Red Hot and decided to get certified to be an instructor. Now I teach five classes a week. The more I dance the better I feel!

Pam states, In RHDF, beginners build confidence with easy to follow dance moves set to your favorite songs, while more difficult choreography is layered in so the advanced dancer can be challenged.

However, while I was dancing with the group, and as I look around the room, the insecurity of being a beginner wanes when you see the common goal is really just to keep moving.

Some follow and know the dance steps perfectly, while others perform the steps to own pace and energy level. Meanwhile, those of us who figure we just arent going to get that step use our own personal spin on the instructors steps. To really perfect the moves you need to attend several classes, but I found the moves were not that difficult for my first time out.

The benefits of Red Hot, says Pam, especially in my class, is to burn calories and KEEP MOVING. You want to keep the heart rate up and move with minimal stopping. Songs are layered in such a way so you can warm up then move to high intensity then finally what we call a groove down or stretch to get the most out of a 60 minute class. Continued...

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TO YOUR HEALTH: Getting Red Hot for the summer

West Maple Ridge residents will be hitting the roads in order to give their pooches some free-run excercise after June 10, as time runs out on the Volker Park off-leash area.

For Gordon and Doris Westrand, that means driving to Pitt Meadows, or as far as Port Coquitlam so their little terrier Spud can tear around safely in an enclosed off-leash dog area and hang out with his buds.

Were lucky. We have the resources to travel, Gordon said Tuesday after a plea by dog owners at Thursdays parks and leisure services commission meeting to keep the Maple Ridge park open.

Those people who dont have the resources to travel, I dont know what theyre going to do.

The Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows Parks and Leisure Services Commission decided to close the off-leash area one of seven in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows at its April 10 meeting after hearing from some nearby residents.

Dog lovers then appealed to commissioners at the May 15 meeting.

The whole problem was the lack of openness and inclusiveness in this thing, said Gordon.

A petition with 1,200 names was presented, calling for the park to remain open. There was also a smaller petition by those who wanted the park closed.

Isnt that a lot of names? Doris said of the first petition. Shouldnt that have an influence, you think? she asked.

She pointed out that during the meeting, commission members were saying they wanted public input on a variety issues. They received it that evening on the dog park, she said.

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Dog owners still mad over park

General Press Releases Tuesday May 20, 2014 16:41

Bangkok--20 May--Mileage (Thai)

Largest Pan-Asia PR Group with 15 offices in 9 countries to capitalize on growing economic opportunities in South Korea

Mileage (Thai) Co. Ltd. today announced that the Mileage Group extended its footprint into South Korea by opening its newest branch in Seoul. Known as Mileage Communications (Korea), the joint venture is formed with local established PR veteran, John Kim, and his team.

Mr. Yap Boh Tiong, Chairman of the Mileage Group said: Korea is Asias fourth largest economy and the business outlook is positive. We have clients pushing for work to be carried out in the Korean market and having an office in Seoul will be a boon for our clients.

The agency is headed by Mr. John Kim, a professional marketing communications consultant with more than 30 years of experience with top international companies such as LG, GM Korea and GlaxoSmithKline.

Mr. John Kim, Managing Director of Mileage Communications Korea, said: We are very proud to be part of the Mileage Communications Group in Korea. This is an opportune time when the center of the world economy is shifting to Asia. Mileage Korea will play an important role in contributing to the Asian economy by strengthening the mutually-beneficial relations between Korea and the other countries in Asia.

Plugging into the Mileage Groups network of offices in Asia presents huge opportunities for Mileage Korea. Another important point to note is that Korean government agencies are keen to strengthen relations and carry out collaborative projects with their South East Asian counterparts. We can play a supportive role in this regard, added Mr. Kim.

We have been using the services of John and his team in the past and they had supported our clients admirably. This included handling a recent major shipping incident in Korea. Thus, it is logical for us to formalize this partnership by establishing Mileage Korea, added Mr. Yap.

The joint venture company is well positioned to assist Korean companies in their marketing communications needs in Asia where the Mileage Group has offices. Similarly, Mileage Korea can also assist companies that wish to break into Korea.

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Mileage Communications Opens Korea Office