Brand New Butt and More

I’m reviewing this workout after previewing it once and doing it twice in the several months that I’ve had it.

General workout breakdown: Other reviewers have already broken this down so well I’ll skip this. I will say that this has the glute raises I found so effective in Cathe’s Muscle Endurance.

Level: I’d recommend this to solid intermediates through low advanced exercisers. I think that this could work very well for mid-to high intermediates in a rotation, and low to mid advanced exercisers could use it in a recovery week. The cover says it’s for all fitness levels, but due to some moves which require careful attention to form (e.g. deadlifts) and Janis"assumption that you’re familiar with basic weight training techniques (read: some form instruction but not copious amounts of it), I would not recommend this to beginners. I consider myself a solid intermediate in weights. I’ve lifted on and off over the last decade but only introduced heavy lifting into my home workouts just over a year ago. I found this workout appropriately challenging with weights suitable for me.

Class: Five women join Janis. You’ll recognize Evie if you have any of Janis"other workouts. As this is a Janis workout, I must issue a cleavage alert.

Music / Set / Other Production Notes: The music is mostly repetitive beat-heavy instrumental with little to no vocals. This is the CIA set from 2001: the red walls decorated with Native American-inspired artifacts and a window looking onto what appear to be dead branches. (I recognize it from Christi Taylor’s Still Jumpin’.) The picture and sound are fine.

Equipment: Janis recommends adjustable 10 lb. ankle weights (I’d recommend some you could quickly put on and take off), a pair of 1-8 lb. dumbbells, floor mat, and a towel. She has one exerciser use a weighted belt, although I’m not sure this worked quite as well for all exercises as intended. I used no ankle weights (which I was glad I skipped when it came time to jump around), pairs of 3-5 lb. dumbbells, a mat, and sneakers.

Comments: You’ll need some space for this. You should be able to take a couple of steps to each side, lunge to the back, and extend your leg out in front of you as well as lie on the floor and be able to move your limbs around freely.

DVD Notes: This was recently transferred to DVD, which has a new cover showing Janis from the front. The chapters are Introduction, Warm-up, Standing Sculpt, Floor Tone, and Stretch.

Conclusion: This isn’t a bad workout, but I’m not sure what I’ll do with it, besides give it to someone who’d have a better idea of how to fit it in her fitness program. I prefer traditional weight training (e.g. Cathe), and I spent so much on those SmartBells I should be using those as my functional fitness / recovery week workouts (or else use some of my fusion and longer yoga workouts). I already have a lot of workouts that work the lower body, so I’m not sure why I got it other than the facts Janis leads it and I got such a great deal at DDD. Besides, I just can’t seem to fall in love with floorwork (except for Pilates and yoga), although I liked this floorwork the best out of all I’ve tried.

This is a good intermediate to advanced workout tape. I used ankle weights for the entire workout, which made the moves much more difficult. I am not a fan of standing leg work, but I liked the exercises that Janis used, and felt that they incorporated not only the buttocks and thighs, but also the entire core (front, sides and back), as well as upper body, and balance. She repeats some of the combinations three times in giant sets (several exercises combined), and since I get bored easily, I was not happy by the third giant set of the same combination. I really felt it in my low back after doing lots of sets of deadlifts, followed by rear delt flyes and triceps kickbacks with the back in forward flexion.

The floor work was my favorite part of the workout. Janis does some tough moves for the whole core, and also adds some upper body (i.e. push ups with one leg extended), and I really felt the leg lifts, especially where Janis adds some twists on the traditional exercises (such as roundhouse kicks while supporting yourself sideways up on your elbow). The pikes were a good introduction to the movement, especially if you are aiming to master the pikes on Cathe's Pyramid Upper Body or Keli Roberts's Quick Fix, which use a stability ball.

I found myself scrutinizing Janis to get some idea of the fine points with regard to form on some of the movements, since she does not give a lot of verbal instruction. The music is pretty good, and consists of the same music that is on several other videos, including Cathe and Karen Voight.

This is a much more challenging workout than I expected, and a good one to work in for an extra lower body boost. I would give it an A-.

As this tape already has a breakdown, I'll skip that part.

I like this tape a lot. I'm always looking for variety in my workouts, and this tape certainly delivers. As Janis states several times these moves are not your standard glute moves, but contain more of a functional emphasis. My biggest and really only compliant about this tape is that I wish she had more form pointers and that her pointers were much more in depth.

For example she has an exercise she calls a pike where you go from a plank to kind of a down dog position. I didn't feel much with this move until I noticed that she was going up onto her toes at the top of the move and by doing this and squeezing, I noticed much more work going on. She had four or five more moves where I would have like more in depth discussion of form. We could have also used pointers on maintaining balance in some of the positions.

This is a tape that can range from easier to extra hard depending on your concentration and what you put into it. All in all I really like this tape despite the name and cover. The cover is a major booty shot, and not one I would want laying around. It will turn off a lot of women.

My grade B+.

This video has already been broken down in detail. I have done it three times and decided I am going to put it into my rotation. The moves really sneak up on you. Sometimes you are only moving a couple of inches, and not doing alot of reps, but all of a sudden I really feel them!

Here is what I don't like:
- The fast scissor lunges. I can't believe she encourages us to do them with ankle weights! Seems dangerous. I stay with the regular backward lunges or do regular scissors.

-The pure upper body work- she throws in a couple sets of tricep extensions and rear delt lifts, which do nothing for me because I'm only using 4 lb, dumbbells. I FF through those exercises and do a separate upper body toning tape.

What I do like:
-The one legged deadlifts-small, slow movements really make my hamstrings burn!

-A move where you are in a static lunge, close to the ground. Dumbbells resting on the forward bent leg. You straighten that knee and squeeze your rear up. WOW!! Works the area between the butt and hamstrings- you know, the area "only" the Fanny Lifter targets!

-A standing oblique move- on one leg, other leg bent with knee forward and toe resting next to the other knee, and you squeeze your side to raise your hip up. I felt these the next two days!

-Floorwork- again lots of small movements, not alot of reps needed. You get some nice upper body work here too.

This one is a keeper for me and one I can grow with- eventually adding ankle weights and heavier dummbells.

Have you ever disliked a tape that everyone else seems to love?

My case in point: Brand New Butt

Not crazy about it, ut uh. no-sir-eee.

I expected a somewhat innovative, challenging lower body workout with an emphasis on standing legs and core work. I got a not-especially-challenging or well-conceived mismosh of quasi-interesting different-for-differents sake moves interspersed with nonsense.

Janis' use of ankle and waist weights borders on unsafe (fast paced scissor lunges with 5 lb. ankle weights, ugh, my knees!!).
She peppers in a heap of fairly ineffectual light-weight upper body work (I can only ask, "why??").

I'm a low/advanced strength exerciser and I do a fair amount of core work/pilates. I did not find BNB at all challenging. The planks were really milktoast compared to Stott or Cathe or Lazenby's All the Right Moves or Dunphy's Ripple.

My time with BNB would have been much better spent with Cathe's Leaner Legs (or any Cathe Strength), or even Margaret Richard's Give Me Strength - which was far more challenging - IMO. Ditto Firm Standing Legs or Karen Great Weighted Workout (now there's a *yowza* lower body floorwork tape).

The appearance-obsessed title (and jacket) and chatter at the end are especially grating because I don't think use of this video is going to yield anybody a janis-butt. If this tape was called "ok for a light day foray into the latest gym trend in south beach butt tape" I think I'd feel better about it. But my expectations were way to high to be anything but annoyed.

When I first read the short description of this video, in the Collage catalog, I wasn't interested at all. It sounded like alot of the new tapes on the market that are trying to do something new, which may be challenging when you do the tape, but you won't feel it the next day. Boy, was I wrong! I felt this tape 2 days afterwards! I traded for this tape, so obviously it isn't for everyone, but it would be good for anyone looking for unique exercises and are very tired of the traditional squats & dips.

It starts out with a very fun warmup. Then moves into a lunge section, that turns into plyo lunges. Janis reminds you that it is your workout and adjust it how you feel, by doing the first style of lunges or the plyo ones. Some exercisers have on ankle weights but I wouldn't use them for this section myself.

The one-legged deadlifts section is next. I haven't seen this in any video I've owned, but to me it was new. I also liked the balancing one legged dead lifts. I found this variation to be killer! There is some upper body work added in. Some of the upper body is compounded with the lower body. I can't say I feel the upper in many of these compound moves. I do feel it when she stops and does the upper body separate. It is mostly a lower body workout.

I liked the floor work section, but had to modify some parts (by just laying on the floor rather than keeping my rib cage lifted) that were designed to also work your core due to that I have arthritis in my neck. I didn't get all of the core/ab strengthening benefits, but still received all of the lower body benefit. One part, I felt my quads burning and was relieved to hear Janis ask "Do you feel these in your quads?" --it was perfect timing because mine were burning and wasn't sure if they were supposed to be. I also liked the floor work that I've seen used in Quick Toning Buns of Steel that I also found effective and unique, but glad to have it included in another video I own.

This is an excellent lower body workout - I'd rate it an A.

Janis is a very friendly and encouraging instructor. Her form is very good in this tape.

This video is approximately 58 minutes with warmup and cooldown. The core of the workout is approximately 49 minutes. The equipment needed is a mat and a pair (or two) of dumbbells.

Janis also recommends the use of a weighted vest and/or ankle weights for the advanced.

When I first did the tape, I thought that it would be just a more advanced version of the 1st Brand New Butt tape (Crunch). Boy, was I wrong!

There is quite a bit of non-traditional strength work on this tape...one legged deadlifts for example. I REALLY felt them in my glutes. I was sore for two days after this tape.

There is also some upper body work combined with lower body movement. While I enjoyed the combo work, it just seemed to go on forever, probably because I was getting really tired. I was only able to use a pair of 4 pound dumbbells.

The core is worked throughout this tape. This video reminds me a lot of Christi Taylor's Strength, Balance and Flexibility in the sense that you really have to suck in your abdominals at all times, especially during the combination moves, to stay balanced and in good form.

After about 35 minutes you go down on the floor for legwork and abdominals. It was tough, especially the ab work. Some of the moves that Janis did were just impossible for me. It would have been nice if Janis had had one of the background exercisers show some modifications. As it was, I just had to gape at the T.V. in awe of some of the ab work that Janis did. Not your ordinary ab work. Variations of plank work and oblique work on your side, lifting your torso off the ground using your obliques...ouch!

Overall, I would say that if you enjoyed Strength, Balance, and Flexibility, you would enjoy this tape as well. It's a keeper for me, but it's definitely a tape that I, an intermediate exerciser, am going to have to work up to!

The Set: wood floor, red set
The Cast: Janis Saffell and 5 students
The Attire: 3 of them have bare midrift(including Janis), Janis wears a halter top. and they all wear lycra one piece shorts and top.
Fitness Level: Beginner, intermediate or advanced, (depending on if you use ankle weights etc.)
Equipment: dumbbells, or barbell, or weight belt, Ankle weights.
Workout Type: As you can see from the descriptions it works entire upper body, and lower body Muscle Sculpting.
Workout Length: 58 min.
Music: recognisable tunes with a definite beat!
Presentation: Janis looks so slim and smooth, her cueing is precise, not a lot of reps, she maximises intensity by pulsating contractions. Large range of motion, and multiple muscle-group combinations.

The Warmup: marching, side to side, side leg lifts, then mambo, little squats, grapevines with knee lifts. then add repeaters.
at 5min. tap toes forward then back.
at 5.40 stretches.
at 7 min. - add ankle weights or waistbelt if you want. I added 2 1/2 lb ankle weights. She says "everybody work at their own pace"
step touches, then repeaters, 5 lunges, pliees
then add quick lunge (like scissors) (I didn't do the hopping, just the simple dip)

At 10.30 min. pick up hand weights, with one leg extended back do deadlifts rear leg lifts, then halftime then quad lift, then dips. pliees. Repeat everything other side.

do the 10.30 min. sequence 4 times on each side.

Begin dead lift with lat rows
lift leg back then squeeze, 8 dips again pliees
repeat other side

repeat this combo on either side again.

At 20 min. quad lifts forward add bicep curls, then hammerhead then shoulder lift squat, knee up combo, then lift hip repeat other side

2x this sequence each side.

At 25.30 min. - deadlifts, then rear delt or butterflyes then one arm tricep kickbacks, while both legs still open fron and back lift and lower buns. repeat sequence other side.

at 36min. Floorwork laying down on mat on one side lift leg back 12x (hold lower leg up) pushups from knees 6x then lift entire body with same leg lifting sloow and controlled 5x core strength bring knees in together 12x same start position, lift buttox up and lower 14x on side lift outer leg to side 24x sit up lift buttox up and down 4x then lift outer leg 4 slow 10 fast bring knee in and out 10x sitting both knees 90degrees lift rear knee slightly then ankle forward and back 4 slow 12 fast. repeat everything other side
at 54min. abs and stretch
58 min. end

Total Rating: I did the whole tape with my 2 1/2lb ankle weights... it was tough.... for those who are stronger you can do it with 4 or 5 lbs. I really like this tape I give it a 9 of a possible 10 (it is not the toughest but tough enough for me)