Crunch: Fat Blaster Goes Latin

I was pleasantly surprised by this old Crunch dance video. It actually make me sweat and feel good, and got up to a good intermediate level of intensity.

Yes, there is the requisite Crunch-girl whooping but I was having such a good time I almost felt like whooping too. Gloria has about four sections of combos. The first two are beginning-level, but by the last two you are definitely working. I have terrible short-term memory about combos but there are mambos, chasses, step touch forwards, V-steps, the samba fast footwork there!) and triple steps. You can shake and shimmy your torso and butt at your own discretion without being "forced" to (hurray!).

Basically it's like a lot of standard hi-lo moves (and the samba) mixed into interesting combinations, with simple but stylish arm movements and the occasional dramatic toss of the head.

Definitely more interesting, doable and intense than so many of the "latin dance' workouts coming out today.

As others have noted, this is a fine 30 minute intermediate cardio, good for shorter sessions or light days for intermediate or int-adv exercisers. It would also be a good choice for those who have been working out with Kathy Smith's Latin Rhythms and want to advance.

I like the choreography very much in this workout and I like Gloria as an instructor. But I had to trade this video because the background exercisers were so incredibly distracting and annoying. It's hard to know where to begin. Their costumes (terry cloth and velour suits)? Their constant whoops and hollers and shrieks? Their hamming for the camera? One of the women is so busy looking around for the camera and grinning madly into it that she can barely follow Gloria. I accept that the job of the background exerciser is to look happy and pert throughout the workout, but these women are so happy they look crazed. I find it very disconcerting. Moreover, they just don't move like Gloria. She is precise and elegant and graceful; the background exercisers generally flail about through the moves much as I imagine I myself do. But all this I could overlook if they just wouldn't whoop so much.

Still, for those who aren't bothered by things like this, I would certainly recommend this tape.

This tape is only 30 mins, so it's more action and less instruction/talking. I previewed this tape and thought it was whack at first, but after doing the tape once, it was so much fun, I rewinded it and did it over again. I love this tape because it's rare to find a latin workout tape that has samba. This tape combines aeorbics w/ samba, mambo, cha-cha, and merengue moves. I was surprised by the way she breaks down each move into simpler mini-steps and then when you get comfortable repeating this, she'll add more hips and next thing you know, you're dancing & sweating. It's fast-paced and NOT FOR UNCOORDINATED people. IF YOU DO NOT LIKE FAST CHOREOGRAPHY OR LATIN DANCE, THIS TAPE IS NOT FOR YOU. But if you love to dance, looking for something different, and can catch on to the moves, this tape might be for you.
As she progresses thru each combo, she does about 4-5 combos, they get better. She cues well but since the tape is short she doesn't spend alot of time teaching which is good because you won't get bored doing this tape over & over. The intensity was moderate and gets a little higher from time to time. This tape is good for intermediates, for a moderate, fast, fun workout. Great boredom buster! There's some whooping but I didn't notice it that much. All the dancers seemed very enthusiastic. She also has some creative moves. I think it's a good mix of dance and aeorbics, I definitely recommend it.

I thought this was an extremely fun video. It really didn't get my heart rate up there the first 2 times I have done it but I think it was because I spent so much time learning the moves. Once I have them down then I think it can intensify and give more. She does v steps and step touches with interesting sexy arm patterns, there is mambos with a sexy head turn, sambas, and pivots. All in all this is a very fun video at a really low price. It is only 30 minutes so it is great on those days you don't want to spend an hour with cardio. I recommend it highly for anyone who wants a fun intermediate video.

I've done this tape several times, and I like it. Don't love it, don't dislike it. Its not a tape I'll do regularly, but will throw in here and there and will keep along with Crunch Burn and Firm in 30 minutes for coming back after being sick or injured. Since there are no reviews for this tape. I thought I'd post my initial thoughts.

This tape is very different from Kathy Smith's Latin tape. Its more of a aerobic routine with latin moves thrown in, just as the Collage catalogue describes. Even though none of the moves are difficult to do, I seem to miss the rhythm on some. This is due to me, not the tape or instruction. I'm so used to the normal aerobic rhythm changes and standard moves that the way she puts them together, which is a little different, throws me. I can't yet tell if putting more body into the moves will make it more intense. So far, I can get a more intense workout from Kathy Smith's beg/int tape than this intermediate tape. She does do a mambo towards the end that's a blast

One other suggestion, don't preview this tape. For some reason the whooping and the music really irritated me during my preview. But were fine while I was actually doing the tape. The workout is fun and is pretty much standard Crunch fare. The intensity is intermediate, and I can't do it well enough to get the shoulder hip thing going, and hey I am almost 39. If you can do the hip and shoulder shake, you would be able to get a more intense workout.

The cast of this tape was a young hip female crowd, but it was not the perfect body type of crowd. There was a variety of body types and they all looked real. The cast looks like they are having a great time. I must admit to being very amused when Gloria talked about attitude, which for her is pursing her lips up towards the camera. All in all, not a bad investment for 7 dollars. One last thing, I just love the way at the end she talks about stretching because "those muscles thems needs it." You'd have to hear it to understand how cute it sounds.