10-Minute Solution

10-Minute Solution consists of five complete 10-minute fitness programs, each showcasing a different exercise style. The programs are designed either to stand alone or to be performed together when time permits; you can customize the workout that's right for you.

The video begins with Boot Camp, a mix of classic toning exercises and short, low-impact cardio intervals. You will do lunges, bicep curls (with dumbells), tricep dips (with a chair), and push-ups for a good, full body workout. The second workout, Pilates, consists of intensive matwork for the abdominal area. The moves are quite challenging and would probably not be appropriate for those new to Pilates. Workout #3 is Ballet, with simple squats and raises designed to tone the legs. This section moves very quickly and might be a bit difficult to follow at first, especially for those unfamiliar with basic ballet terms.

The fourth workout, Kickboxing, provides a brief aerobic workout that would probably be best utilized in combination with other cardio work. It starts with simple punches, moves into punch combinations with knee lifts, and then introduces various kicks. Finally, there are a few basic kick-punch combinations to finish. The last segment, Yoga, is an ideal conclusion to the workout or a nice stretch on its own. It begins with simple seated postures, moves on to hands and knees, and then includes just a few standing poses. This section ends with a seated stretch, and it is doable for those with all levels of flexibility.

I enjoy the variety offered by this video. However, since the individual workouts are not very intense (with the exception of the Pilates section), I tend to use the video in combination with other workouts I own. Some sections of this video are probably too challenging for beginners, so I think it would work best for veteran exercisers who are having difficulties finding the time to work out.

I agree with a previous review in that the vhs version is worthless. I wish I'd gotten the dvd. The vhs order is impractical..bootcamp, pilates(abs), ballet, kickboxing, yoga I think is how it goes. I don't think any of these is suitable for an absolute beginner, at least not until they preview it because a lot of instruction disappears and transition times are cut WAY down to keep each workout to 10 minutes. I like the yoga and pilates and I don't like to rewind all the time or search for the next section. I think the pilates is challenging..you start off simple...breathing in and out so many breaths then all of a sudden you fly through the rest nonstop. the bootcamp is pretty good too, but have a chair and your weights handy because it's pretty much non-stop too..I've only done this workout maybe 2 times but it does a pretty good job for 10 minutes. The ballet is nice. all standing with a chair for ballance..she throws in some ballet terms but all is done pretty much by the chair..not dancing across the room. The kickboxing would be neat if you had a dvd and could program it for 2-3 times through maybe. she does the kicks and punches/jabs and talks through the whole thing. I like the yoga for a quick stretch.she does a lot of the stretching poses, but since it's only 10 minutes don't expect to relax or get flexible one time through. I like the workout though, but really need the dvd. I have other workouts I like better so I probably won't get the dvd unless I find a great deal on it since I have the vhs set for the pilates most of the time and use other yoga workouts I have and like better since I like to stretch longer most of the time. I do forward to it sometimes. If all you want is a quick yoga type cooldown then you may want the dvd for this purpose. For the price difference there's no sense in messing with the vhs version...get the dvd.

On VHS, the concept behind this video made no sense. On DVD - it is theperfect add on video. There are 5 10 minute workouts ranging from Boot Camp to Ballet, Yoga to Kickboxing and a little pilates thrown in for good measure. It is led by Michelle Dozois and she does an excellent job. I like to use this one for a really quick workout on those busier days, or for a quick add on when I am still raring to go after another workout.

On the DVD, you can program in a workout combination to give yourself a longer workout with loads of variety. If you had this one on VHS and hated all of the fast forwarding and rewinding to create a workout - try out the DVD.

As much as I like the concept behind this one - I don't use it very much because I haven't been able to warm to Michelle's personality. I wish I could say otherwise, becasue I would probably use this one alot more if I could get past that. Chances are - it will be put on my next trade list when I start trading again in the summer.

This 1999 workout has 5 different mini-routines. It's a great addition to any workout library, as long as you get it on DVD. If you have a VHS tape, like me, you will probably get frustrated at having to forward/rewind to the exact section you want. Also, if you follow the workout in the order it's presented you'll get annoyed at having to constantly take off and then put on your shoes. With DVD, you don't have to worry about any of that.

BOOTCAMP: (Equipment needed- a chair, mat and 2 sets of dumbbells - Michelle uses 3 & 8 pounds). The brief warm-up consists of step touches, knee lifts and arm circles. She keeps you constantly on the move, interspersing toning with sports drill-type cardio moves:

lunges (back, front, then side)

high knee jogs

one-arm lat rows (Oops! Michelle does 10 reps w/ the right arm & only 9 w/ the left)

one-arm tricep kickbacks (8 reps)

quick 3-count side steps w/ high knees

tricep dips using the chair (12 reps)

side hops

squats & bicep curls (10 reps)

bicep curls (12 reps)

push-ups (12 reps)

abs: crunches & oblique twists (10 reps)

push-ups into plank (8 reps)

abs: crunches w/ legs raised (8 reps)

seated spinal twist stretch

shoulder rolls

Michelle packs a lot into this workout. It's perfect for your lazy days or when your time is limited and you want to do "something".

PILATES: (Equipment needed- a mat) This workout starts off with some breathing exercises. Michelle gives some excellent pointers on keeping the focus on your breath. Some of the moves she does are bicycle, roll-ups, hundreds and leg circles. I'm an advanced exerciser but relatively new to pilates and I felt like I got a thorough workout. Ends with a brief supine spinal twist stretch.

BALLET: (Equipment needed- a chair or barre) This was my least favorite workout on the tape because Michelle does too few reps to really feel anything. For some of the moves, she only does 4 reps.

They include tendu, dégagé, rond de jambe, grand battement and leg swings (plus a few others that I have no idea how to spell - sorry!). Michelle is very graceful and shows excellent form. Workout ends with a seated hip stretch.

KICKBOXING: (No equipment needed)This is a fun energetic workout that is perfect for warming up before using weights. Michelle starts out with shoulder rolls and bobbing & weaving. Then comes...

jabs

cross punches

front knee "thrusts"

hook/uppercut combo

jabs

cross punches

jab/cross combo

jab/cross/hook combo

jab/cross/hook/knee thrusts combo

body shots/uppercut combo

front kicks

round house kicks

front/round kick combo

body/uppercut/frontkick/roundhousekick combo

bob&weave with double jabs

The workout ends with 3 brief standing stretches for the back, legs and calves.

Michelle's form really bothers me. It looks like she's locking her elbow during the jabs, and she is throwing too much elbow into the hooks. Also, the kick combinations were pretty quick and it looked like she was having a little trouble positioning her feet on the carpet for the different kicks. At the speed she was going, working out on a smooth surface would have been better.

YOGA: (Equipment needed- a mat)After bootcamp, this was my favorite workout. Very relaxing. Michelle starts out with seated stretches: spinal twist, side stretch, inner thigh stretch with legs bent & heels together, and hamstring stretch. Then she goes into a cat stretch on hands & knees into downward facing dog, lunges, warrior, cobra and child's pose. Because she doesn't spend a lot of time talking about breathing (just once she mentioned breathing though the nose and that was halfway through the workout), I viewed this section as more of a basic stretch workout than yoga.

Music: Subtle unobtrusive instrumental music playing so softly in the background I could barely hear it at times. I'm not a real music buff, though, so this didn't bother me at all.

Setting: A large airy room filled with warm colors. Tan & green carpet. Gold & tan walls with a brick red trim. Large potted plants in the background. Two windows on opposite walls with a night-time view of a cityscape.

I had this workout long ago on VHS and never did it because it was too much of a hassle to keep rewinding and fast forwarding to get to the sections I wanted. So I decided to try it again when I saw it was available on DVD.

There are 5 10-minute sections: Boot Camp, Yoga, Pilates, Ballet and Kickboxing. I don’t think any of them are adequate as a stand-alone workout except the Pilates section. The boot camp section tries to do too much in 10 minutes---the Quick Fix series does a far better job with short strength workouts by focusing them on a specific body part such as abs or arms. The kickboxing section suffers from the same limitation: by the time you get really into it, it’s over. The Yoga section was okay but felt a little rushed, and the ballet section was wonderful, but too short, and therefore a bit too easy to stand alone as somebody’s entire workout for the day.

Thankfully, the DVD is extremely well-designed, and has a program feature built-in that allows you to string the sections together in any order. You can even program a section to play twice! My favourite way to use this dvd is as an alternative stretch and toning workout by programming the Yoga, Pilates and ballet to play in sequence. It’s a great 30-minute light workout.

All of the sections are taught by Michelle Nevidomsky Dozois without a class. This makes for a more intimate workout setting that I think works to the tape’s advantage. Michelle is a fun instructor, and I give her credit for teaching such a diverse range of styles so well on the same tape.

I think the Quick Fix series has taken the 10-minute concept to the next level with their countdown clock and really focused, tight routines. If I had to choose between one of their disks or this one, I would choose them. But this workout was a pioneering concept, and one of the first well-produced dvds on the retail market---and its wonderful ballet section has yet to be matched. If you can find it on discount, it is worth having. But get the DVD---not the VHS!

Breakdowns have been provided already so I will just add my impressions. I have had this video for a few years and love it. I picked it up at KMart for 6.99 and see that it is still available today.

I call this my "never say no to" tape because no matter how rushed I am for time or if I'm feeling under the weather and cannot face even a moderate exercise session, I can always find the time and energy to do at least two of these workouts. It's a tape that has kept me from falling off the wagon due to time constraints.

I find I am sweating after the bootcamp because I give it everything I have. It is also a great mood lifter.

The pilates is quick and yet burns my abs. I could feel the effects for hours after.

The ballet is my least favorite but again, so quick I always do it and give 100 percent effort because it's over in 10 minutes.

The kickboxing is just enough on those days with an early appointment. It's quick and energizing.

I really like the yoga portion at the end. Again on a rushed day, it is just enough.

If you don't exercise some days because you really have no time, this tape could be the one to keep you "on track" until you can get to those longer workouts.

As the title suggests, this video is broken down into 5 10 minute sampler sessions incorporating Ballet, Pilates, Yoga, Boot camp and Kickboxing.

Since other VF's have broken down the specifics, I will just add my impressions.

I found the Pilates and Ballet sections to be the most challenging, as Ms. Dozois leads the exercises in a new and challenging format. The Kickboxing and Boot Camp are a nice and quick boost but the Yoga section I found to be lacking in flexibility pointers (however to be fair, this is due to the time constraint).

While I am hesitate to recommend one section as a stand alone workout, I am comfortable in recommending several segments as a pre or post-workout addition.

3 stars out of 5

If you enjoy variety, or enjoy mixing and matching your tapes, this is a great tape. This tape is labeled beginner/int but as an int/adv or advanced exerciser (fluctuate between these two) I really like this tape and get some good use out of it.

On days I don't feel like exercising, I'll string some workouts together to get a good workout with minimum attention, and maximum variety. I like to use the Boot Camp workout with the Crunch Boot Camp tape, tack on the kickboxing, pilates or yoga, and I have a 40 minute workout. I do the pilates section on its own as an ab workout. Tack the yoga onto something as an extra stretch. Use the kickboxing section as a warmup to tae bo basic or 8 minute workout or a Cathe CTX tape. I usually use the sections of this tape as an extra long warmup to a more advanced tape. All sections are easy to follow, her cueing is good. The only downside, in ten minutes she doesn't get a chance for in depth form pointers, so if you've never had instruction in the technique for whatever section she is teaching, it may be difficult to follow. I'm not sure this is truly a beginner's tape.

This is a great video for beginners and intermediates, or anyone who sometimes has a hard time finding the time to work out. Other reviewers have already carefully discussed the format of this video so I will just give my opinions. I often do the entire video as a light and varied workout for days that I can't imagine stepping for 45 minutes or getting heavy weights out. If I feel a little tired, the variety does not seem as daunting. The only problem I have with doing the whole video is your shoes - start with them on, take them off for pilates and ballet, put them back on for kickboxing, and then take them off for yoga (Maybe, I need Velcro). I also use the 10-minute yoga section at the end as a stretching component after other longer videos that lack a good stretch.

The Boot Camp section can be really fun. I enjoy the circuit style a lot. The Pilates is very good and difficult for me, and the Ballet section is enjoyable. I thought that the Kickboxing section was pretty easy, but I have been doing Tae-Bo for a while. The Yoga section isn't as good as other videos, but it is a decent stretch and relax for 10 minutes.

Overall, I really enjoy this video and recommend it to others.

I wasn't too sure about getting this video-- I mean 10 minute programs! I was curious about Pilates, however and my exposure to it from Method tapes was not very favorable, so I thought I'd try this one on the exchange. I won't go through all the details since others have already done so. The sequence of the tape is: boot camp, Pilates, kickboxing, ballet, and yoga. I thought this might be a good tape for travel, but the boot camp section requires weights (though I guess you could do another exercise while she is pumping iron). And, the sequence of the classes is not the order I would have used.

Overall, this is an interesting tape for a beginner or for someone who wants to dabble in a new workout (for example, my brief exposure to kickboxing and boot camp make me think that it's not for me). Of course, ten minutes of exercise a day cannot do much for one's fitness level, but it can give you a brief exercise break (I plan to use the ballet tape when I want a break from work and can't get outside). I think the tape should have included a ten minute stretch instead of the yoga section (which includes difficult yoga poses without much modification-- way too advanced for beginners). I think a simple stretch (which can be done in 10 minutes) would have been a worthy inclusion.

The Pilates class is very good though. It shows some abdominal exercises other than the usual crunches found in most exercise tapes. After struggling with Precision Toning, I found this class refreshing. It is just long enough for an abs class without boredom setting in and is challenging without being impossible. I'll probably keep this tape just for this segment.

The ballet class was also nice change. Michelle explains some of the moves in their French names and ballet seems a lot less intimidating for the rest of us. Of course, these ten minutes really don't provide much aerobically, and only provide minimal toning, but the class is fun and reminds me of dance class when I was a child!

The Kickboxing class was difficult to follow for a beginner, but I may give it another chance. The boot camp class was not very inspiring and I probably won't use it again (I hate pushups). As I said earlier, the yoga section, is a complete waste, except maybe for an advanced yoga practitioner.

I think this is a great tape-- for a beginner who doesn't exercise at all-- you know the people who say they have "no time." Maybe it can provide motivation for them. I like the tape for the Pilates, and maybe would be inspired to add on another 10 minutes while the tape is in the VCR. Doing the entire 50-minute tape is not very inspiring though, especially since the set is so bland (to look like a hotel room in a big city?), has no memorable music, and has only Michelle one-on-one teaching each class. I'd recommend this tape for the Pilates class, and for checking out any other types of exercise one might be interested in but not ready to commit the time and money for a whole tape.

This video has 5 10 minute workouts on it. Michelle teaches one on one. The first workout is Boot Camp. This one is OK, it's just not my style and the one I use least on this video. The Pilates workout is next and I find it to be quite challenging. You will definitely feel this one in your abs! Ballet is the third workout. I really like this one. It's just barre work using a chair, but it works your legs nicely. Kickboxing is next. This is fun, but since it's so short, I find I use it as a warm-up for weight training. Yoga is the last workout. The yoga section isn't bad for a quick 10 minute stretch, but it just seems to be missing something. Overall, I like this video. The segments are good to add on to other videos. It's also a good way to find out if you would like these different typ

This tape consists of 5 different 10-minute workouts: Boot Camp, Pilates, Kickboxing, Ballet, and Yoga. The premise is that each is a stand-alone workout for people who have "no time to exercise". I got this because it was relatively inexpensive and I'd wanted to try some beginning Pilates (all the Pilates-type tapes I have tried - namely The Method- are really difficult for me and I end up modifying the heck out of it - when they passed out the flexibility gene, I was in the weight room doing squats).

The Boot Camp section gets your blood pumping by quickly running through some calisthenics and weight work using 3-8 lb dumbells. Michelle starts with step touches, quickly transitioning to step knees with arm circles, a lunge series (front, side, back), and high jogs. Then you pick up your weights (very quickly) and do a set of lat rows and tricep extensions. Some triple steps side to side and then onto tricep dips (with a more challenging option of keeping your legs extended), squats and bicep curls (w/weights), pushups (2 sets), and crunches. She gets a lot into 9.5 minutes (the last 30-45 seconds are quick stretches), but only does 1 set of almost everything and there's very little instruction on form for the abs (she does give form pointers on some other moves).

The Pilates section starts with belly breathing, and then goes onto crunches, bicycles, sit ups, bridges, and twists. Those familiar with the Method will recognize the moves. I still couldn't do a lot of the moves especially the moves requiring crunches with full leg extensions.

The Ballet section is my favorite and Michelle uses a chair as a barre. She does demi-plies, full plies, tendus (front, side, back quick leg extensions), leg semicircles, leg swings, and finishes with seated stretches.

Kickboxing is next. She starts slow with upperbody work (punches, jabs, hooks, uppercuts), then adds the lower body work (power scissors, front and roundhouse kicks). It definitely gets your heart pumping, but wasn't very challenging.

The yoga section was last and the poses selected were supposedly geared towards strength building. I didn't care for this section at all - maybe I'm too spoiled by the beach/nature settings of the Living Arts yoga series of tapes. She starts seated crosslegged: twists and bends to the front and side, angry cat, downward dog. Then onto the lunge poses (warrior and triangle). She finishes with cobra and childs pose and ends seated cross-legged.

Because each section was only 10 minutes long, there wasn't time to give a lot of form pointers. I was familiar enough with everything that I didn't need them in all but the Pilates section. I did all five segments in one workout and because you had 5 different activities, the time flew. I think the kickboxing portion of tape is ideally suited as a warmup for some tapes that don't include it, or tacking on the ballet section at the end of other cardio tapes without a long cooldown. I don't believe this tape can be used stand-alone to build your cardio or strength endurance, but it does seem well-suited for tacking onto other workouts.