Brick by Brick

I agree with the previous review: Complex choreography but so-so intensity. I like choreography; I'm a big fan of Cathe F., but this was a lot of spinning, pivoting and mambo-ing for little return. A lot of it looked the same to me, too, so I got a bit confused. If you like a dancey, choreographed work-out, but but want to challenge your heart and muscles at the same time, there are better choices.

This is a really fun video! I was hesitant about buying it based on concerns about the sound quality, but I’m really glad I got it. The sound is not great, but it isn’t as big a problem for me as it seems to be for some other reviewers. The music is plenty loud (yay!). The sound problems are with hearing Rob’s voice at a consistant volume throughout. While I did notice this problem, I could hear him well enough to follow along through the whole thing. (I did turn up the volume once, at the halfway point.) The visual production values are fine.

There are two parts for a total cardio time of 58 or 60 minutes. The first section has 3 combos, and the second section has 5 combos. The combos in the second section are pretty short, and eventually all fit together to make one giant combination. At the end he has you do the whole thing, including the 3 from the first part, one time through on both sides. I really like having a tape with a full hour of cardio for days when I really feel like stepping. It also splits nicely, though - the first section is probably about 25 minutes and the second section close to 35 minutes.

I have one other Rob Glick workout, the CIA video Amazing Step Styles, so I was already familiar with his style when I tried this. That definitely made it easier to learn this one. I think the choreography in this one may be a tad simpler than in the CIA video. It is still complex, though, with lots of fun turns, mambos, and creative twists on old moves. (Like a 7-knee repeater that becomes a 6-knee repeater with some mambos thrown in - very fun!)

The intensity is similar to his CIA video - not as intense as Cathe, but comparable to Christi Taylor and other dancier videos, I think. I feel worked out by the end, but it’s not so hard that I can’t do the whole hour-long routine. If you like Christi, Seasun Zieger, or other dancy, complex-choreo instructors, this will be a fun video for you. If you’re already a Rob fan, then this is a must-have - it is still definitely worthwhile in spite of the sound quality problems.

The combination of complex coregraphy with the sound issues made this a very frustrating video to do. In addition to that is wasn't a very intense workout. It had advanced coregraphy combined with only intermediate intensity. In my opinion if I am going to take the time to learn complex coregraphy I better get an intense workout as well. I couldn't believe they released this video with all the sound problems. I probably will avoid Rob Glick in the future. Grade Overall: D

This is a fun, complex, feel-good routine at a moderate intensity. The choreography flows naturally, but will probably take 2 to 3 times through to learn it, assuming you are already used to complexity. Rob’s cueing has improved a lot from previous workouts; however, there is still room for improvement - especially when “taking it from the top.” (I need a reminder of what the top was.) The music is fairly good. It’s not new, but it is much, much better than, say, some of the recent CIA offerings. The picture quality is markedly improved from earlier Sara City workouts. The downside of this workout, and it’s a pretty annoying one, is the sound. It goes steadily down throughout the workout. For example, my TV has numbered volume ranges. I started at volume 37, and by the time the workout was over, I had steadily increased the volume until it was at 47. It’s not a one-time increase, either - you have to stop several times to up the volume because the sound decreases continuously. I guess you could start it on the loud side, but it would probably hurt your ears and maybe your neighbors"as well. :) I’m surprised Collage carried this workout because the sound really is quite an issue with it. I give the workout an A, the picture quality an A, but the sound gets a D.

I immediately recognized the set corner from Franny's Kick-Itt, also produced by Sara's City. But Sara has jazzed it up a bit CIA-set style (the old days, before Greg went off the deep end) and it's well-lit and friendly, and the outfits of Rob and the background exercisers match well. I liked it and it's HUGE improvement over the plain wall, puke green carpet and bad lighting of former Sara's City workouts. The sound cut in and out occasionally but it wasn't awful and didn't really detract from the workout. There are two background exercisers; one is Randy from Crunch and he's a bit too animated for me. I generally don't even notice background exercisers, but he was hard to miss every time he'd react to Rob, like making faces that say "Oh, good move Rob!" etc. As for Rob, he has lost some of the smarmy quality I found so evident in Amazing Step Styles and that was good. Excluding warm-up and cool-down, the workout is long -- 58 minutes -- but is divided into two segments. In the first, he does three combos then strings them all together. In the second, he builds one long combo. He does put them all together twice at the end. He broke down a tad too much for my taste, but not on the level of a Gay Gasper. Intensity-wise, this is perfect for a long, easier day, or if you're doing heart rate training, it would be good for that. My avg HR for the 60 minutes (not including warmup) was only 139 and it never went above 145. I'd say it's the equivalent intensity of a Marcus Irwin extra-long workout, where part of the intensity comes just because you've been doing it for an hour. I didn't find the choreo especially innovative, all stuff you've done and seen before. There was only one move that gave me trouble for some reason. The bottom line as far as Sara's City goes, though, is it's a new brand of CIA. The set was so reminiscent and even I recognized all the music from CIA videos. I'm not sure this is a good thing.