By Connie Nolen / Community Columnist

“Before Jazzercise Riverchase, Pelham didn’t have any boutique dance fitness options,” said Sarah Diez. “Being able to fill this niche is a role that we treasure!  I am thrilled and honored to own a small business that I’m passionate about in the city where we live and our kids go to school!”

Opening in November 2017, near the Old 31/Helena Road (261) intersection, Diez’s new Jazzercise Riverchase sign caught my attention. The class schedule online revealed up to seven classes per day and the offerings looked challenging—and fun. Overwhelmed with the demands of the coming school year, I continued to postpone joining.

Asking Diez questions periodically by email, she’d answer swiftly and encourage me to try a complimentary class. Perhaps she recognized the exhaustion in my emails.

“I was a twenty-eight year old third grade teacher with an almost three-year-old daughter when another teacher suggested I try Jazzercise,” Diez said.  “Exhausted by the end of the workday, I felt too old for my age.”

While she’d never been able to stick with an exercise program before, Diez found that she loved Jazzercise.

“I fell in love with the music, the caring instructors, the friendly members and how I felt after class. I was hooked.”

Jazzercise Riverchase has exercisers of all ages. Friendliness and fun create the perfect atmosphere for exercise. Both regular exercisers and those returning to workouts feel welcomed and included.

“I love seeing a member tackle new choreography combinations, lift heavier weights, or complete a workout successfully,” Diez says.

In 1969, Judi Sheppard Missett began blending her traditional dance background with many emerging exercise movements to create Jazzercise. Currently, over 8,500 franchises exist.

In my AP Seminar’s class research on happiness, we’ve discovered that regular exercise is vital for overall well-being. Breaking away to exercise while teaching seven subjects mostly new to me feels impossible some days; however, my Jazzercise days are my most productive.

Find Jazzercise Riverchase on Facebook and try a class because as Sarah Diez says, “You won’t get the rear you want by sitting on the one that you have.”