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Emilia Furman is one of the first women to become an inspiration for the creation of the journal Woman Vibe Magazine. She is also one of the first persons who have always believed in us, supported us and poured hope into the heart of our editorial office. In an interview with Katarzyna Jastrzębska we will get to know the secret of her life full of passion and hope, growing stronger even in the face of difficulties and problems.
What Drives Her?
Katarzyna Jastrzębska: I’m very happy that in the hottest period of the year, just before the Women’s Festival, I have managed to meet you and ask you a few questions. Thank you so much for treating the additional task at this time as another challenge. When I saw your photos in front of the Monument to the Discoverers for the first time, I knew that I would start our interview with it. I associate your unending optimism and energy with the explorers of that period like Henryk Żeglarz or Christopher Columbus, who whether it was good or bad weather sailed to broaden their and others horizons. You have already inspired so many people to ZUMBA, dance and fitness. You organize huge dance events. How do you do that? What drives you?
Emilia Fruman: Thank you for the kind words. Let me start by saying that we discover the world from the very first days of our life. Who we meet on our way is extremely important. The first inspiration in my life were my parents who showed with their hard work that you can achieve anything if you really want to! They’ve always supported me in my life challenges and it’s remained so until today. When you come to ZUMBA Fitness, it doesn’t matter how big an army of support you have behind your back. It can therefore be concluded that the Monument to the Discoverers is our whole ZUMBA family! It is this family that drives us to act and gives us the strength to overcome everything. It also allows us to believe in ourselves. I wasn’t always like this. In the past public performances filled me with enormous stress and I couldn’t often present all of my skills in public due to stage fright. My mother used to brew herbs for me in my teenage years but they didn’t help much. Then, the day came when my good spirit was found, like a guardian angel, and I happen to believe that everyone has their Guardian Angel, and everything changed. My friend Daria Kełpińska told me to organize my first event. I didn’t believe in my abilities then, but she just said ‘You can do it!’ This is how my adventure with the organization of marathons began; every day I try to make them better and better, and the guests who arrive for them are excellent instructors from abroad.
She Never Stop!
K. J. In one of the posts from your trip to Lisbon you wrote that life is not fair, sometimes we have it uphill and the proverbial ‘escalator’ is not always turned on, let alone at our beck and call. Faced with isolation and lockdown, many people gave up, which is otherwise understandable. How was it for you? What were your thoughts concerning the organization of the ZUMBA Marathons and, before that, online classes? Did you have any inspiration when the seemingly reliable ‘escalator’ stopped working for us all?
E.F. Honestly, I couldn’t even imagine how I could stop! First of all, in this difficult time for everyone we had to act quickly and reorganize everything dynamically. For some people life turned upside down! No matter what our private sphere is at the moment, we always meet at ZUMBA classes. This is a permanent element that all fans enter into their weekly schedule. All days of staying at home, when our families had to organize remote work for mum, remote work for dad, and sometimes at the same time for a few children … each of us needed something to take their mind off more than ever! So I had to give people a substitute for normal ordinary life!
We acted by creating online broadcasts on a social networking site and then operating on the Zoom platform. Of course, there were those who stopped participating in ZUMBA classes then, but on the other hand, many people dreamed of an hour that would bring a meeting, even for a moment, even online. We also organized online marathons; one of them was held on the occasion of my 10th anniversary as a ZUMBA instructor! 300 people from all over the world participated in it! It was amazing! Even though it used to be thought that activities like that were not feasible remotely, I can safely say that I actually felt the presence of people around! In retrospect I even laugh that if it hadn’t been for lockdown, we would never have met in such a line-up! Usually the instructors are already fully booked in advance, otherwise if I wanted to organize such a meeting, many of them would be at marathons or other pre-planned events. It was a great day!
During the lockdown, I organized a marathon that everyone had been waiting for. At that time I didn’t think about any financial profits, the entire organization of such an undertaking focused on reminding people how inspiring and eagerly anticipated such events were! Despite the unfavorable weather, the mud in which our shoes get stuck, people got a substitute of normality and a lot of positive energy for which they had had to wait for months being locked in their homes! It was by far the best and most wanted event!
What’s Your Secret Emily?
K.J. Doesn’t it have to do anything with your family? Your brother Tomasz Leśniak, a chef of the Polish National Football Team, opened another restaurant in Krakow, OJO! Miodowa 33 immediately after lockdown. And this was at a time when the HoReCa (Hotels, Restaurants, Catering) industry suffered so much! What’s your secret?
E.F. For sure it has something to do with our family because, as mentioned so far, our parents taught us to work hard. I owe them a lot because I think they raised us wonderfully. They made us all be willing to pursue the set goals. We are strong in what we do. All entrepreneurs, especially restaurateurs, had ups and downs at that time. My brother didn’t give up looking for a solution to stay in the market as much as I did. The entire pandemic period was one big fight to stay in the industry. Tomasz Leśniak proves that, just like me, you can achieve anything with hard work. It is not always easy in life, but it is the adversities that show how strong and determined you are in what you do.
With Dance We’ll Drive Away The Sadness
K.J. You studied at a music school, you come from a musically gifted family. And you also sing a lot during ZUMBA Fitness classes! The editors of Woman Vibe Magazine together with My Dances Magazine are running a campaign With Dance We’ll Drive Away The Sadness. Do you see the positive impact of dancing and singing on the mental condition of participants? I have the impression that people change positively after your classes, forget about their worries and gradually unblock spiritually and emotionally.
E.F. I come from a musical family where sensitivity to music is deeply entrenched. It is the music that has shaped me since my early age and given me the strength to persevere in what I do up to this day. My parents had a band that rehearsed in our home. In those days they were very popular; they recorded cassettes and then albums with their hits. Hence, my path for six years ran through attending two schools: a primary school and a music school.
It was a great challenge as I was the youngest child. When in primary school I was learning how to read, I had already needed all those skills in a music school long before. I remember the time when my mother used to stop the bus and serve me food while I was going from one school to another. In the evening my father picked me up. So, my day was filled to the brim. However, I did not feel hurt; every day I tried to fight for myself and learn new things.
My music education lasted for six years. I attended the school where I learned how to play the violin and then the piano (because it was my second instrument). It seemed to my parents then that everything I had been working on for so many years was lost. However, it happened quite differently. I found out about ZUMBA, which was, at first, something that allowed me to get into shape after pregnancy; I wanted to look attractive, my body changed, and as a constantly on the move person challenging myself, I wanted to do something about it.
Having taken part in the classes, which were not many in Poland at that time, I enrolled for the instructor’s course to (initially) dance with my sister Agnieszka at home. And it turned out that the sense of rhythm I had worked out earlier was extremely useful to me. In the end, I got a job in one club, then another, and so from a musically educated kid I transformed into an instructor. This work suited me very well then because the classes were held in the afternoon and in the evenings. At that time I didn’t have many classes, so I could arrange for my son to be looked after by my mother who took care of him. Coming back to your question about emotions, I have to say that I have a lot of examples of the participants who come up to me after classes, throw themselves around my neck and promise that they’ll come more often because they do feel great and can’t wait for the next ZUMBA. Another example are the people who stop taking psychotropic drugs. This is how ZUMBA works! It is also great that the participants don’t come there just for me; ZUMBA classes are social gatherings that also take place outside the classroom. People meet in their free time, celebrate their birthday or other important occasions.
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The participants who come up to me after classes, throw themselves around my neck and promise that they’ll come more often because they do feel great! Another example are the people who stop taking psychotropic drugs. This is how ZUMBA works!
„Khto, Yak Ne Ty?”
K.J. There is often a lot of gratitude in your posts. Why do you have such a great need to appreciate other people? And why so much kindness towards others?
E.F. I learned gratitude and kindness when I managed to set up my big ZUMBA family. The participants, especially those who visit ZUMBA regularly, help each other in difficult times. It happens spontaneously. The best example of this is the Women’s Festival. In last year’s edition the pandemic was a problem. This time it was the tenth day of the war in Putin-occupied Ukraine. At the marathon all the people got involved into forming a team in the colors of Ukraine, the instructors held a blue and yellow flag, and we were all humming a song performed in Ukrainian by Khrystyna Soloviy – „Khto, yak ne ty?”. Again (as in the May marathon last year) we all felt that the event was very much needed to unite, appreciate what we have and support Ukraine during the ongoing war. There were many tears of emotion and the silence that followed the piece was extremely meaningful.
I am always grateful to all the participants for giving me strength, showing me values, and still restoring faith that, no matter what, the world of values has not died. It lives in us. I can’t live without it, this power is amazing! Therefore, after something like this, it’s simply impossible not to be thankful!
What It's Like To Be a Zumba Mom?
K.J. What I’m very interested in is your story related to the beginnings of ZUMBA and the great art of combining professional life, numerous journeys, and the desire to start a family. Is there a recipe for enjoying a healthy and (don’t be afraid of the word) happy marriage? My theory is that most relationships fail because of boredom and stagnation. And that what builds the most family ties are definitely new challenges … And how is it with you?
E.F. As previously mentioned, ZUMBA was initially supposed to be only a remedy for stress, a relief and a way to get back in shape after pregnancy. My husband has always believed in me, and so has my son, but I don’t think anyone knew at the very beginning how far it would go; being a ‘ZUMBA MOM’ means devoting evenings and weekends to fulfilling my passion at the expense of (let’s face it)
family life is. When my son was still little, and my adventure with ZUMBA started to get going, I wasn’t at home when he was bathing or falling asleep. Over time he learned it all, too, and I trust that he is now an extremely independent teenager. Many women hold a grudge against themselves that if they fulfill themselves, they will be bad mothers. I don’t think I have to judge myself that way.
I give them a lot of love; whenever they can they go with me to various events or marathons. We go on a two-week vacation once a year. No matter what, I always have time when I am only for them. Nothing else matters, it’s me, my husband and my son. We feel great together and then we do various things – go sightseeing, swimming, talking a lot. Of course, for the first few days I fight myself internally ‘What’s going on?’ ‘Today without ZUMBA?’ ‘I won’t see my participants?’ However, I quickly suppress these thoughts and devote myself entirely to my family. Of course, it wasn’t always like that; my husband used to laugh at me that ZUMBA was first in my life, then he was. I think that it is a bit like that <laugh>, but we will not prioritize it!
Strong Nation Only For Woman!?
K.J. Oh, I can’t help but ask about male ambitions. How do men feel about you being a professional Strong Nation instructor? Have they ever tried to keep up with you, or even prove that they are simply stronger?
I often encounter such a situation that muscular men who lift weights in the gym come to my classes. Looking at me, they don’t really believe that what’s going to happen here is a challenge for them. After an hour of training, however, they are so tired and sweaty that they often admit how much they’ve doubted it. Women who exercise next to them jump, kick, and do push-ups even though the pace at first seemed unbearable to them.
What Are Your Dreams?
K. J. Okay, now it’s time to open up! What are your dreams? Is there anything you’d like to change? Or is there any idea you have in mind worth supporting and fighting for? I am also asking because the ZUMBA Marathons you organize are very often charitable. And maybe there’s also something you’d like to do exclusively for yourself 🙂
E. F. What are my dreams? I’m actually dreaming about an event for several thousand people in Poland! Preferably at the Tauron Arena in Krakow. It’d be full of people, the music’d be loud and there’d be lots of colorful lights! Yeah! I really hope it’ll succeed! I’d also like to conduct the classes as long as possible, so that my health and strength would allow me to do it. I hope that one day I’ll be such an old lady who’ll conduct ZUMBA GOLD classes. My participants will take part in it, and together we’ll slowly get our feet up and dance.
Katarzyna Jastrzębska spoke to Emilia Furman
Translated from polish edition by: Agnieszka Kmak-Obrębska
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