Excellent Core Workout!October 12, 2008 Kathleen Motteler(South Carolina) 61 out of 61 found this review helpful
I found this to be easy to follow, it is dancing, they do show you the moves, and your core DOES get a fantastic workout! Even doing only the warm up, one dance section, and the additional dancers workout at the end got my heart pumping and I was sweating up a storm! I love the fact that you can customize your working out by choosing which segments you want to do and it will play them seamlessly without you having to stop and push buttons!
Now for those with no musicality or rhythm, it may be harder for you to pick up and follow. I suggest just focusing on one segment until you master it. Watch the segment through a couple of times first then follow along and anytime it gets too complicated or you haven't mastered that step yet, just return to the basic step and keep trying till you get it.
And...you can take the steps you learn in this video, get with a partner and actually do them out on a dance floor! So, if you bought this video thinking you'll be able to apply what you learn on the dance floor, you can, but if you aren't a strong dancer and don't pick up choreography quick, try taking lessons from an instructor and use this video for practice.
Very pleasantly surprised and pleasedNovember 26, 2008 Judy K. Polhemus(Louisiana) 24 out of 29 found this review helpful
As a long-time "Dancing with the Stars" fan, I was really surprised--just recently--to discover this 2008 Latin Cardio Dance workout. I had no clue such a product existed. I immediately ordered it, not having the faintest idea what the DVD would bring. Suffice it to say, I was "very pleasantly surprised and pleased."
The DVD is 60 minutes of a great cardio workout. Even though other reviewers, who are already in great shape, were not particularly pleased, I am. It's been awhile since I have done a strenuous workout. Well, folks, you will get one here!! I have gone through the entire 60 minute program twice and have yet to complete each dance segment. (I'm too out-of-breath.)
Here's what I found:
1. Cheryl led the five-minute warm-up. These exercises must be universal because I did most of them with Jane Fonda back in the day. (Note: It is really fun to see Maksim going through these simple, slow routines as opposed to his lightning quick moves on the floor. He looks just like a normal guy in an aerobics class. Funny. Cheryl looks good.)
2. Chery led the first workout, "Merengue." Her teaching style is simple and direct, yet encouraging. When she shows the next step, she has the class continue to do the preceding movement, then adds the new. Because this is a cardio workout, there is no stopping to show in detail what she is doing. That is the purpose of the rewind button. Better yet, do these routines in front of a mirror or sideways to your television screen so that you can better process what is next. I found facing the screen made me do double processing: seeing, translating to the other side of my body, then doing. Standing sideways eliminates the translating step.
3. Cha-Cha is a 10-minute dance workout with Maksim. Surprise of surprises! Maksim is a patient teacher. Following his directions was a bit easier than following Cheryl. Each instructor, however, keeps viewers part of the team through focused directions. "Keep your hands at waist level." "Keep your core tightened." "Focus on breathing. Don't hold your breath."
And so on.
The Samba (Cheryl) and Mambo (Maksim) both follow the routine established in the first two dance workouts. What I learned throughout was how many of the steps I recognized from the competition. The viewer actually learns all the basic steps to the four dances, even including turns.
The final workout is "Dancer's Toning Workout," which Max says all "students" must go through before beginning rehearsal. It "improves strength and flexibility...to develop and maintain a toned dancer's body" (liner note).
Overall, I recommend this cardio workout. It is a fun (?), instructional, beneficial way to increase your heart rate and learn all the steps to four dances. As I am pretty much out of shape (for a short while longer), I find the workout vigorous. I have already ordered the 2007 workout with Maksim, Kym, and Ashly teaching the Cha-Cha, Samba, Paso Doble (my favorite), and Jive Dancing With the Stars - Cardio Dance
Hooray for "Dancing with the Stars" Dancing with the Stars. Congratulations to Brooke and Derrick for winning the Fall 2008 Championship!
Wowzers!!February 12, 2009 Bonny Anderson(United States) 5 out of 5 found this review helpful
I LOVED this video. I haven't tried the first one, but after using this one, I'm definitely going to buy it as well. I danced and taught ballet for nearly 15 years, and I haven't done any of that for awhile after I had children. I got really tired of workout video after workout video that was just "exercising." This video is the first I've come across that is actually dancing! If you do this workout with the proper technique, your legs and core will be burning in the first five minutes. I had so much fun and was smiling the entire time. It was easy to fall back into steps that I'd learned so long ago as a dancer, and it made me feel young again. Love, love, loved it.
amazingMay 20, 2009 Laura Hefley 3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Perfect for weight loss & for learning dance. It goes step be step and then puts it all together. You couldn't ask for a better dance video.
Excellent workoutMarch 8, 2009 Starmela(Chicago) 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is an excellent workout. Not for the beginner in my opinion. You also would need appropriate dancing shoes, my opinion. Each dance episode is about 10 minutes long. They have a little warm up in the beginning, and other workout exercises in the end. My legs hurt for 3 days and I already workout. It is a serious, sweating workout. More workout than warm up.
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