March To Fitness

This was one of my virgin videos and I got it out when I joined the No-Buying Challenge. I'm glad I did. It's not an advanced tape but I find it's one of those tapes you can use when you've had a very difficult day and need to relax. The warmup is corny! Kathy and the two other women on the screen sing a marching song and I find that a bit hard to get through. But that's Kathy. After that it's great fun, actually more dancing than marching, particularly in the segments with Latin music (samba-like, actually) and '50s style music as well. I usually end up smiling when doing those two parts, and I think the first half of the video can be an excellend warmup for a strenght workout. Also, seriously, Kathy should make a dancing instruction video. I'm a klutz when dancing, but I can always follow her.

Level: Novice/beginner
Composition: 5 minute marching warm-up; 20 minutes aerobic dance and marching steps; 5 minute "warm-down"
Impact: Low--no dangerous moves here--just some fun ones! Choreography: Simple but fun variations on marches and dance moves
Music: Energetic march, rock, latin, and funk
Setting: Beautiful sunny atrium overlooking what must be a tropical setting (or at least Southern (California!)

Kathy and two other women (one of them a choreographer on this production lead this 30-minute walking-based workout which includes dance steps from the 60's (no Twist or funky chicken, though), conga and some Latin-inspired hip-grinding moves, and an introduction to interval training. She doesn't include heart-rate checks but periodically asks "how are you feeling? Go drink some water, and let's keep moving." Also she reminds you that you can drop arm movements and not lift your knees as high if you are getting winded.

This is definitely a beginner tape--but IMHO beginners can't go wrong with Kathy. It could work for an older person who's new to exercise, one who's overweight, or pregnant or recovering from childbirth (that's when I used it--with my doctor's approval, of course!). I recommended it to one of my colleagues, who's 50 and likes to walk outside, but can't do it during our cold weather. She loves it, too. I'll keep it in my collection just in case another baby is in my future :)

Grade: A

I love this video! In my early beginner days, I did this video 5 days a week and Kathy's Fat Burning Workout 2 days a week. Even though I have advanced a lot since then, I still do this video quite frequently. Its particularly nice because its good and short...only 30 minutes from start to finish.

Its also a nice beginner's tape because it gives a nice introduction to kick-boxing (very briefly) and to interval training (just extra energized marching in place).

I'm able to continue using this tape by modifying to slightly higher impact and intensity in certain areas. I find it fun enough that I'm still not tired of it after almost 1 year.

The set is very nice. I especially like the blooming bouganvilla in the background. The music is decent, as Kathy's videos go. And thankfully, the exercisers on the set dont wear any weird costumes as Kathy's videos frequently have. They're just wearing shorts and T-shirts which helps to keep this video with a very low intimidation factor.

I reccomend this video to any beginner.

Kathy Smith is so warm and non-intimidating. She's great in this video as in almost all her videos.

This is a great video in that it has something for everyone. You can do a little more or less, depending on your level. I like this type of aerobic workout and I wish there were more aerobic videos on the market targeting "walk aerobics". The music in this video is great and I like the moves. I can keep up perfectly. I do this workout several times a week.