Not everyone likes to exercise. Some of us have to force ourselves to go or search for ways to work out that we don't dread.

Being active, however, is an important part of life, and for many people in the Boothbay region, the answer has been Zumba.

Maybe you've seen the flash mob at the 2013 Fishermen's Festival in the whale park. Maybe you've watched the Windjammer parade with the Zumba float (which won two years in a row: 2012, “Break a Leg,” and 2013, “Most Creative.”) Maybe you've attended the Zumbathon for project graduation — or maybe you've never heard of it at all.

Sarah Brewer hadn't heard of Zumba at all when she asked Kathleen Lamothe, a fellow teacher at Whitefield Elementary School, what her secret was.

“We'd pass each other in the hallway, and I keep getting bigger and bigger and she kept getting smaller and smaller,” Brewer said. “She told me she was taking Zumba classes is Bath and I was like 'what the hell is Zumba?'

“About a month later she dragged me along to a class. Literally, she practically had to drag me out of the car. I hid in the back and tried to dance and it was crazy, there were all these steps I didn't know and I thought there was no way I'd ever be able to do this. I told Kathleen I'd never be coming back, and she said I would be back for sure.”

As it turns out, Lamothe was more right than even she knew. Three classes in, Brewer was hooked on Zumba and the weight was starting to fall off.

“I was 200 pounds when I started,” Brewer said. “I lost 40 pounds in four months and changed nothing in my diet. I still eat ice cream for lunch pretty much every day of the summer.

“I call Zumba 'exercise in disguise' because you can burn as much as 1,000 calories in an hour depending on your size and effort you put into it. But you're dancing — it's fun! People are smiling and having fun. It's not a chore.”

In May of 2012, Brewer decided to get certified to teach classes herself. Her first class took place in her mother, Martha Holbrook's, garage in East Boothbay, and consisted of three students. In a very short time, word of mouth from those three students spread and more and more people were showing up and bringing their friends.

“I love Zumba and since I've started my body has changed and I have lost over 20 pounds. Everyone has a good time and you enjoy sweating. Addicted? Yes,” Debbie Butterfield said.

Holbrook said she loves Zumba. “It sure has changed my life. I'm 66 and proud of it, due to how I feel. I can keep up with the best of them.”

“Zumba friends are amazing and so supportive. I love that anyone can come as they are, where they are in their journey and just fit right in, it makes you wonder why you hadn't come sooner,” said Maggie Brown, one of Brewer's first students.

Brown has lost 87 pounds in two and a half years, and credits a large amount of her weight loss to Zumba.

“I love Zumba. It is the only exercise program I have stuck to consistently let alone a year and that i love to do. Sarah is amazing; her constant smile, energy and love of Zumba and us is the driving force behind it all. She is a gem for sure,” Jennifer Hyson said.

Brewer teaches three classes a week in the Zumba room at Holbrook’s house, and three at the Lions Club.

“I owe a lot to Jennifer Hyson,” Brewer said. “We were looking for a permanent place for our Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday classes, and she suggested contacting the Lions Club, which she's a member of.

“They have a big room with a wooden floor, and they have been so generous in allowing us use. They only charge me $10 per class I hold here, and I am more than happy to contribute to such a fantastic group.”

Brewer considers herself a walking advertisement for her classes, because she is almost always in her Zumba gear around town.

“I'll be in Hannaford in full Zumbawear getup, and people will stop and ask me about it. Or they stop and stare because a Zumba song just came on the music and I'll start dancing next to the cantaloupe.”

Classes are run with a casual, drop-in policy. Currently, Brewer holds classes in the Zumba Room on Monday and Wednesday at 5:30 p.m., and on Sunday at 3 p.m.. She also holds classes at the Lions Club on Lakeview Road in Boothbay Harbor on Tuesday and Thursday at 4:30 p.m., and Saturday at 8:30 a.m.

In the summer she also teaches at Shore Hills Campground five days a week. Classes are $5 a piece, with the first class being free. She is currently running a winter special where if you buy five classes you get one for free.

To learn more about classes, check out the “Sarah's Zumba Fitness” page on Facebook.