Review-- Attitude: Ballet & Pilates Fusion

 I know this isn't with this month's theme, but screw the theme! Those are just guidelines ;) Now this DVD is actually marketed for those fifty and up, so the exercise is much slower and has less impact. Also, donations are made to find a cure for breast cancer for each DVD you purchase. Attitude is part of a series, and there is a second DVD for this Attitude series. I'll only be reviewing the first one. So since I didn't have time to fit this into last month, here is the review for Attitude: Ballet & Pilates Fusion.

Now as you can see,  there are several parts to this workout. First here is the introduction where the instructor speaks a bit about the exercise. Then there are the form pointers and then the two workouts. The form pointers will go over the correct posture for the ballet moves. She'll also demonstrate each of the positions so you can become familiar with them if you're not already. This section is rather lengthy, but highly recommended if you've never taken ballet before.

Going over the proper form

The workout is broken into two and each is about thirty-seven minutes each. The first is meant to be completed for the first couple weeks and then you move onto the second one for the rest of the time you use the video. I found the first workout way to easy and didn't even break a sweat. The second workout was a little better, but still rather easy and barely different. I would definitely recommend this if you've been out of shape for a long time and want to work your way back slowly.

She'll also go over positioning for the abdominal work.

 This workout workouts out abs, arms and legs. For the arm exercises you'll need some sort of weight. They use a ball filled with sand for this video but a hand weight works as well. I think the abs are the highlight of the video. I seem to get the most burn from them. The ballet exercise portions are fine, but I prefer the routines from other videos better. I still feel a slight burn  but some of the exercises are rushed over.
The warm-up is simply not good enough. It doesn't warm up all the muscles, just the sides of the abs since all you're doing is circling your arms and the hips from pliés. I highly suggest you stretch yourself ahead of time before participating in this exercise so you don't injure yourself. 

The instructor does a good job. She speaks in a hushed voice and tries to be more relaxing than energetic. She'll also occassionally remind you to keep your form, and she times her reminders well, like when you're really starting to tire or if you're concentrating hard on a different area of the body other than your core.

I did notice her form was off during fourth position. Her knees went over her heels. That can be really dangerous. I only really noticed because this is something I struggle with while dancing. During the form section, she mentioned that fourth position was going to be "one of the harder positions," and I think that's a fair statement. Still, if you're watching this and trying to model yourself after her, she will only occasionally have the correct form. Since this is for women over 50, it might be dangerous to not have the correct posture, especially on your knees, so be sure to know what you're doing and watch the form video. Trust yourself. The backup instructors tend to mess up a lot. I would focus more on her than anyone else.

TIMMMBEEERRRRRRR! (Or at least that's how I felt, hahaha)

The music is horrible! I hate, hate, hate the music! Music is like Chinese traditional music mixed with a bit of Enya--only know where near as good and relaxing. Then there's this really bad trumpet sounding music that sounds like those old midi files you heard on websites when the internet was still a scary new place... it's bad. I can't stand it.

Sometimes you would catch sides of the camera during zoom out, but other than that, the editing was really good. The camera did a great job of zooming in on the main instructor. I never really had any trouble with it so I thought it did a good job.

They shot the location in studio, but they tried to spruce it up a bit so it's not too boring. They put some barres in the back but never used them for the exercise. It wasn't bad at all. I enjoyed the colors, and it seemed appropriate for the exercise. Still, in comparison to other DVDs, this isn't my favorite studio. I like Balocity or Element's settings much better.

Workout: 7/10

Instructor: 9/10

Setting: 8/10

Camera: 9/10

Level: Beginner

Is it actually ballet? Yes

Overall: 8/10

 

I didn't really enjoy this exercise as much as the others since it felt too simple. Though the exercise definitely had ballet and Pilate influences, it just didn't work well with my body. I would recommend this for someone who's not used to exercise, but not to someone starting ballet for the first time since the instructors are not ballet dancers or teachers. 

Review-- Balocity

Today is a review for the exercise video, Balocity. This is a fifty-minute video featuring an ex-New York City ballet dancer. The back says that she developed this video to stay in shape between her times on stage. Let's see if it's good for that. 

I really liked the instructor. She does a great job of being optimistic, but not summer rainbow sunshine sparkle happy. She speaks very clearly and very eloquently, which helps during the exercises. She has her moments of quiet, but when she does offer tips on form, they are really helpful, though I did notice that she didn’t explain the proper form for the pliés.

No butts should stick out!

 They have some really good stretches. There's a section for the inner thighs that really helps. Usually the inner thighs are ignored in workouts, so I liked how they put extra emphasis on this region of the body. The instructors are really flexible, but sometimes I swear they performed the ballet moves wrong during the exercise. They let their butt stick out in the pliés. It's hard to tell, but I think they are just slightly.

I did feel as if we could have used more time on some of the exercises. We sort of seemed to fly through them without taking an extra couple of seconds to feel the muscles fully lengthen. I can just pause, though, if I want to continue an exercise and then play the video again once I'm ready. 

One of the great exercises they do to reach the inner thigh.

 The fast pace of the exercise does make it interesting. I don't lose interest as quickly as I do in other exercise videos. The floor barre is only about nine minutes and the standing workout makes up the rest of the video. I would recommend stretching every once in awhile to avoid pulling muscles. Also, don’t try to go full out since they move so fast during the standing exercises that you could pull something during the kicks.

They do make an effort to offer variations. They have low-impact variations, too, for the cardio sections. This is great if you're tired, have bad knees/legs/whatever, and need a less jarring motion.

During floorwork, she doesn't tell you which foot goes forward. One the second side she reminds you, but I had already started switching sides the first time. It would have been nice for clarification, though I can sort of see how she probably thought we'd infer this through the nature of the pattern itself. She remembers to do this later during the cool-down stretches, so I forgave her for the slight lapse.

 

The final part of the exercise is the abdominal work. Usually exercise videos start with ab work right after the warm-ups, but this video saves them for near the very end. They are pretty easy--nowhere near as hard as previous exercises, but it was a relief after a long workout to not worry too much about the abs. 

The exercise, overall, was easier than most. It is more for beginners or people looking for a lower impact exercise. The floorwork is definitely higher impact, but you can lower your legs on the kicks. The ballet is also there, but this video is not for people looking for ballet form corrections. This is a ballet-inspired workout, more than anything.

The location is actually really nice. I liked how they changed the color scheme every once in awhile for a nice change. It looked polished and professional.

The camera would only occasionally miss important areas of their body, but overall, it rarely failed.  Whoever directed the video had a good sense of proportion and what viewers need to see as they worked out along with the video.

The tips section will go over the proper form for the moves.

The video when you first pop it in will go over the tips section. This is where she gives you information on the proper forms. Though this is nice, I often forget some of the advice they offer. Luckily, the instructor often reminds us to correct our posture, tucking our abs, or whatever is needed to fix our form.

Another portion of the video is the behind the scenes and shots of them shooting the workout video. It's rather interesting if you're interested in film and how movies are shot, but that's about it.

Final Thoughts:

 Workout: 8/10

Instructor: 9/10

Setting: 10/10

Camera: 9/10

Level: Beginner-Advanced

Is it actually ballet? Yes

Overall: 8/10

This may be revised because I haven't had time to review this video and workout along with it for a second time. I usually like to use a video at least twice before finalizing my review, but since I've just been exhausted lately, I'm throwing this review up here early. 

Review-- BalleCore Workout

I'm really excited for this review because I've planned something extra, super special for you guys! This is a review for the BalleCore Workout. This book is packed with pictures and directions on how to complete this yoga-pilates-ballet-fusion workout. For these exercises, you'll need a bar (or anything thin you can rest weight on, like a thick wrapping paper tube), a Theraband, and a yoga mat if you want.

The book has black and white pictures. They do a good job taking pictures of each step. The problem, though, is this makes it hard to workout. You'll need to stop in between, shift through the book, and then get back into the workout. Until you get very familiar with the routine, it is a tad obnoxious to keep going back and forth to the book. The exercises are great, but it's just too difficult sometimes to flip through the book, hold it open, and exercise all at the same time.

The book makes sure to provide exercises for every aspect of a workout. There are moves for just about everything. The chapters in the book are:

1. Warm-up
2. Core Pilates
3. Stretching
4. Hips and Buttocks
5. Floor Ballet
6. The Back
7. Standing Ballet
8. The Legs and Ballet Variation
9. Hatha Yoga
10. Cool-Down

The book also puts together exercises for you, whether you want to focus more on a certain body part or you have a limited amount of time. It also has a glossary in back for terms the book uses in case you aren't sure of what particular move she is telling you to do.

The introduction is also great. They have several wonderful drawings of the body pointing to the particular muscles and naming them. They also give a list of recommended music to complete the workout to, which I absolutely loved. It was an added detail that made the workout richer.

The only major problem with this exercise book is just that...it's a book. It's hard to follow along and not stop in between exercises. In order to avoid this, I made something extra special for you guys, a little exercise video to help you go through the book. Major sections are left out because this took me a loooong time to put together, and I wanted to make it worth your while to buy or borrow the book. Also, watching this video will definitely not substitute for the actual book. The pictures aren't the greatest and she gives important information in the book that is not included in the video. In order to be safe, read through the book first and then follow along with this video I made. The exercise is a little under thirty minutes.

 I'm so proud of all this work I put into the video. I really hope someone uses it and finds it helpful.

That concludes my review for the book. I hope you enjoy the video.

Review-- Ballet Bootcamp

Another ballet based exercise I'm reviewing for this month! This is the Ballet Boot Camp video. It is available on Amazon for about $18. This is a slightly longer exercise. It lasts for about 60 minutes.

Like the beginning of the New York Ballet Workout II, this workout begins with a definition of the correct stance. It's just bullet points though, but really, I'm fine with that. The instructor will often narrate over the exercise routine with important, accurate information about correct form.


The instructor is okay. She stumbles a couple times with her instructions, but it didn't matter too much. Still, she does a decent job describing what's going on with your body as you stretch. This makes it really handy when you're looking at the ground for a stretch or if it's hard to turn your head to the television.

Every once in awhile, the instructor will narrator over the audio. Sometimes she'll start narrating as she's talking in the regular video. It makes it hard to hear her sometimes, even when what she has to say is pretty important to the exercise.That or she'll talk rapidly like an informercial. Other times, she's very helpful at pointing out advice and mistakes to avoid.

One of my favorite parts of the workout is actually the warmup. The warmup is a really good about stretching a lot of the stiff areas of the body and hits the major muscles needed for dance.  The rest of the exercise features floor combinations, an abdominal workout, some miscellaneous workouts (pushups, splits, etc.), butt exercises, and arm exercises. About half the exercise has a solid ballet theme. The pushups, not so much, but the rest has a strong, ballet influence. This is a tough exercise. I had to stop several times.

This DVD will have to be watched more than once. She puts together combinations and explains each of the steps separately before combining them, but it still might be a tad difficult if you are still unsure of how to transition from one to the next. I sure had some difficulty. Still, she repeats the combination enough for you to finally catch on in the end, making learning the combo worthwhile. One problem though, is that though she explains the moves, the camera doesn’t zoom to their feet. Instead, it’ll focus on a dancer’s face or some other body part. This doesn’t help teach the combo, no matter how many words she uses to explain the positions.

I definitely will give the camerawork some credit. The cinematography is unique. It'll change angles to above, in front, to the side, pretty much everywhere. It'll sometimes change to black and white, but it doesn't distract from the workout. What is distracting is the mass of people in the room. I really only need a couple other people to help me see what moves they are performing. With many people in the room, wearing similar colors, it got a tad distracting. Still, it's not too bad.

The setting is a nicely lit studio. I liked it. The background music is classical. Sometimes it was opera, and it made battements very awkward, hahahaha. Despite this, the music is very calming.

Final Thoughts

 Workout: 9/10

Instructor: 9/10

Setting: 9/10

Camera: 8/10

Level: Advanced-Expert

Is it actually ballet? Yes

Overall: 9/10

This is a really good ballet based exercise. You get a great cardio from the ballet floorwork and strength training through crunches and pushups. Though the camera can make it difficult to see how their body for particular moves, it's rather nice overall.

More Exercises Featuring Ballet - Online Video Edition

Keeping up with the January theme of exercise and keeping to those resolutions, here are some more exercises that will work for dancers. Some of these are specifically ballet/dance based, while one other is stretches for older ladies wanting to improve their flexibility. Since we are adult ballet dancers, this last video should be beneficial!

Ballet Strength Workout -  a full, free 20-minute exercise hosted by ExerciseTV. This combines ballet with pilates. You can download the video for only three dollars or just watch it for free online.

Ballet Butt - another free video from ExerciseTV. This is shorter, but works your butt

This video is for younger dancers.

And this one is for older dancers and probably good for those just starting:

Hope you can use some of these short exercises to keep yourself in trim shape for dance! Also, I received my new ballet based exercise DVDs in the mail. There will be a couple more reviews within the week. Some things will be pushed into the beginning of February, but that's okay, too!

Theraband Used for Ballet Exercises

My Therabands arrived today! This means I can start using them to stretch and increase my flexibility. In order to prepare for this, I did a search for all the exercises I could complete to improve my ballet. Here are some videos I found and compiled for others using Therabands to improve their flexibility:

Other videos featuring the Theraband:
Anaheim Ballet: Tricks of the Trade
Ballet Exercises at Home
Another blog with excellent advice
Ballet Forum