Interval Party
Reviews from VideoFitness
I'm reviewing this workout after doing it a few times.
General workout breakdown: This 59-min. hi/lo or floor aerobics video is called an interval workout but I would more accurately label as a workout with a long period of lower intensity hi/lo aerobics combos followed by a period of higher intensity bursts of athletic moves (x3).
The basic format is this: You'll begin with a warm-up in which you'll repeat a very simple combo over and over, then do some dynamic stretches (10 min.). Next comes the first two combos, which you'll put together for a runthrough or two (9 min. total), then you'll do the "intervals" (4 min.), which is followed by the next two combos, also combined together (8 min. total), and the corresponding intervals (10 min.). You'll then do all four combos together twice, followed by two run-throughs of all of the intervals, twice on each side (12 min.). Katina will then cool you down with another simple combo, then lead you through some static stretches for the upper and lower body that she holds for a decently long time (6 min.).
Katina's combos aren't particularly long or complex. She'll build them up bit by bit, maybe layering once here or there. You'll do lots of repetitions. She draws from a somewhat limited vocabulary of moves: be prepared to mambo, pivot, cha cha, grapevine, walk up 3 & tap, repeater knee, and squat a lot. While this means you don't have to learn many fancy steps to do this, when you start combining combos it gets confusing because you have to remember if you're doing 2 or 3 squat hops here, if this is the grapevine with the arms, or what comes after that mambo.
The intervals consist of several moves, which she'll first do in a low impact version, then in a higher impact version (and it's not always immediately obvious to the most casual of observers what the connection between the low and high impact versions are). You'll do things like lateral hops, shuffle into a squat, shuffle into a knee up with a punch, a hopping grapevine, high knee runs (the can can - "because you can can do it!"), running, and double hops.
While there is some marching or step tapping in between combos and intervals, Katina never stops to teach you a step. The combos and intervals are all symmetrical; in fact, Katina is obsessed with doing things on both sides. She tries to do things evenly, but it seems like every once in a while one side will get shortchanged a rep or two. The combos are all tapless; you'll often some sort of single - single - double move to get to the other lead.
Level: I'd recommend this to beg./int. through intermediate exercisers comfortable with at least basic floor or hi/lo aerobics choreography. This is going to be trickier than a walking workout, but you don't need to be a choreo hound, making this a great one for someone looking to add some hi/lo to their routine but who wants to keep things simple and sweet.
I consider myself an int./adv. exerciser, and I fully admit that I love choreography and pick it up easily, assuming it's cued decently. When I did this the other day I found I really had to put some oomph into the moves to get this to be a moderate workout for me. The combos were about the same level as some of my brisker walking videos, and the intervals were only a bit above that. When I do intervals, I want to see my heart rate get up to 80% of my max and beyond, but more importantly I want to see a real difference between the recovery periods and the interval periods, and doing this as presented but with a little more oomph didn't really achieve either goal for me.
Class: 4 women join Katina, who instructs live. 1 woman is supposed to be the modifier, but she's not always on screen and doesn't always do the obvious modification or demonstrate the difference between the modified and full move clearly.
I see the other reviewers"point about the lack of energy. Both the class members and the camera crew could have used a few more run throughs, the former to feel more comfortable doing the routine, including while being filmed, and the latter to have a better idea of where everyone was going to be.
Music: upbeat mostly instrumental music, although there are a few vocal tracks, most notably Katina's adopted anthem, the song that goes, "It's party time!" (Katina will play this over the main menu and then during the workout.) I've heard most, if not, all of this soundtrack in numerous other videos.
Set: bright interior space with a "window" along the back wall; it's very sparsely decorated. But, hey, better too little than too much clutter, IMHO.
Production: clear picture and sound. You can definitely hear the music; in fact, you may have to turn this one up to hear Katina.
OK, the camera angles vary from helpful to not so. Whoever does the straight on work does all right, but I could do without the side angles. I believe camerawork for exercise videos should first aim to show the moves clearly, then make the viewer feel a part of the class. This crew tries decently to achieve the former goal but misses the latter, with some shots of the crew making you feel like you've peering through a door into a huge studio where some people are taking a class.
Equipment: sneakers. Be careful if you have thick carpet and shoes that like to catch on it.
Space Requirements: You should be able to take at least 3-4 big steps to the front, and you should be able to grapevine to each side.
DVD Notes: The main menu options are Introduction, Play Program, Plan Your Own Party (Chapters; what's nice is that this gives each combo's name and time so you have an idea of which chapter you're selecting), Party Mix (Combo Mix, 36 min., and Interval Mix, 30 min.), and Credits.
Interval Party vs. Interval Party 2: 1 is definitely less intense - I'd say it's low intermediate, while 2 is high intermediate - and also shows modifications. 1 is also definitely less complex. Not only is there less total choreography in 1, but Katina draws from a much smaller pool of moves. Also, the moves in 1 are primarily traditional, basic hi/lo aerobics and athletic moves, while 2 introduces quite a lot of kickboxing. 1 and 2 are also organized differently: whereas 1 has two combos back to back followed by an interval (4 total combos, 2 total intervals), then closes with a TIFT of the combos and a TIFT of the intervals, 2 alternates combos and intervals (6 total), and at the end you only put the combos together, before ending with that line dance-type cool-down.
After doing Interval Party 2 the day after Interval Party 1 this week, the winner for me is 2. (Yeah, ignore what I said at the end of my review for Interval Party 2. I really hadn't done Interval Party 1 in a while.) At this point in my fitness journey the original Interval Party is just too basic and not intense enough for me (keeping in mind that I'm not an intensity junkie); if I'm in a basic low intensity floor aerobics mode, I'm going to pull out one of Petra Kolber's dance workouts, Michelle Dozois"Rockin"Body Cardio Jam or Prevention Walk Your Way Slim, or if I'm really thinking basic one of Leslie Sansone's walking workouts. I also prefer the format of 2; when I want to do an interval workout, alternating combos with short bursts of intensity is the sort of thing I'm looking for, even if I still find that the difference between Katina's combos and intervals isn't as great as I'd like to get that real interval training effect. It's time for me to pass 1 onto someone for whom it's better suited, but I'll keep 2 because it fills a hole in my collection of high intermediate hi/lo that has some intensity but isn't relentless with it, has some choreography but not too much, and so on. Oh, and Katina doesn't snap her fingers much, if at all, in 2.
Katina cues pretty well, although I would have liked to have seen more direction cues than a few points and perhaps a little more description when first introducing a move (like explaining what she means by "party it up" so she could use that term without confusion for the rest of the workout). She's focused on cuing and encouraging you: she especially likes to tell you, "You rock." Katina is sometimes serious, sometimes a bit more lively and quick to smile, even cracking a few goofy jokes. She has the habit of snapping her fingers, which is one of those things that shouldn't bug me but does (and it's not just Katina - Mari Winsor does this, too - although I'd rather have snapping than whistling, which made one workout fly onto the trade pile), more so than the "huh" and other repeated utterances.
There's nothing hugely wrong with this workout, but I didn't keep it. Various aspects of the production values just annoy me too much (e.g. the cameras moving around for no particular reason; the background exercisers don't seem overly familiar with the choreography; an overall lack of energy by all the exercisers).
If this was a great workout, I'm sure I could've overlooked these issues (as I do with ATRM). Sadly it doesn't make the grade though.
Starts of a steady pace and builds to a brisk steady pace. modifier show low impact version. This is a solid intermediate/low advanced with good music. Intermediate choregraphy and what higher impact intervals there was I found to be excepable for impaction. Nice tape for an easier day, beginner wishng to tackle slightly more advanced workout. It was fresh, crew happy and I had a good sweat in the pricess.