Stand Up & Be Some Body

I'm reviewing this workout after doing each of the workouts once each.

General workout breakdown: I'll add a few thoughts to what Tammy, Carolyn, and Melrose have already said in describing this workout.

- Aerobic Workout 1 runs almost 28 min. total, with cardio portion of just under 21 min. that includes a warm-up pattern and a cool-down of a few minutes each, and about 7 min. for the stretch. Here Charlene builds up some simple combinations or patterns, but she never combines them for a big TIFT (take it from the top). Charlene is the lead here, while Cindy counts down and provides form tips (Why has no one else up to this point informed me on the proper form for the grapevine? Consider me educated!) and Christine mainly is there for some extra encouragement. The final stretch, done standing, works the hamstrings, quads, calves, and hip flexors, with a little balance in there, too. Amazingly, Charlene holds the stretches for a fairly long amount of time.

- Aerobic Workout 2 runs almost 28.5 min. total, with a cardio portion of just under 22 min. which includes a warm-up pattern and a cool-down of a few minutes each, and 6 min. for the stretch. This one does end in looping, or Charlene's term for TIFTing; you end up doing the final combo 4 times before the cool-down. Since Charlene alternates leads with Cindy and Christine, the different combos remain distinct in your mind better. The stretch here covers the same muscles but is done on the floor. (I would rather have paired the standing stretches with this more vigorous workout and vice versa, but this very nitpicky thing isn't a deal breaker.)

The choreography is pretty simple, more a succession of steps than intricate combinations of moves. In the grand scheme of things you won't do a ton of choreography in the end, because none of the patterns are all that long and the repertoire of moves is pretty small, with the same moves reappearing, but of course that's all relative depending upon how much choreography you're used to doing. You will do a lot of reps of the moves before you move on to the next. A few moves are done with hops; although Charlene urges you to leave it out if you don't want impact, surprisingly no one really shows this option. Those with knees who don't like twisty turny moves will be happy to hear this has no pivots, turns, or twists, although in the second workout two moves are down facing to the outside, but you're given plenty of time to unload the knee as you change direction ever so slightly.

Level: I'd recommend this to experienced beginners through solidly intermediates. This may be a step up in choreography for those used to walking workouts, unless you're familiar with something like Michelle Dozois"Prevention Walk Your Way Slim.

Normally I consider myself a int./adv. exerciser, but I've had some medical issues lately and am bouncing back from a short layoff. I'm probably at a lower int. level now, and this one, although it doesn't look like it at first, packs a decent punch for me at this point. It's definitely a step up in intensity from my Leslie Sansone walking workouts and Petra Kolber dance videos, so I'm pleased to have something like this as a stepping zone from them to my more int./adv. workouts.

Music: instrumentals with a beat. You'll have to crank up the volume to hear it, but if you have the volume low you're not missing much.

Set: OK, here's my take on the all-white set: Eh. I'm indifferent to it. I can't say I love it, but I don't hate it, and it doesn't keep me from enjoying the workout, either. I'd rather have too little than too much going on in a set, although this takes minimalist tendencies to the extreme. And if I had to choose, I guess I'd rather have bright than dark, not that I have any real objections to the Evolution "black abyss" set or Leslie Sansone's so-called "bat cave." I didn't find the set as disorientating as I thought I'd might as long as the camera stayed still, but when it started panning up or down I experienced some spatial confusion. (Despite the fact that I comment on sets in my reviews, I usually could care less. I can count on one hand the number of times a set has been a contributing factor - but never the main reason - I've gotten rid of a workout.)

Production: clear picture and sound, camera angles that are more helpful than distracting.

Equipment: a pair of sneakers, maybe a mat for the floor stretch portion on the second workout.

Space Requirements: I love how compact these workouts are. If you can do a grapevine across your space and take a big step to your front and back you have enough room.

DVD Notes: Your choices are Aerobic Workout One or Aerobic Workout Two. There are no chapters within either workout.

Comments: I borrowed this from a kind VF friend, but I'm buying a copy for myself during one of Charlene's occasional sales. At one time I had come very close to pulling the trigger on buying Charlene's cardio workouts but for some reason hadn't, and then Collage stopped carrying them, so I almost forgot about them. But with lower impact floor cardio options other than walking or dance workouts going the way of the dodo, I knew Charlene deserved another look.

I agree that this is a great alternative to Leslie - or, better yet, Mary Kay's sections in Leslie's brisker videos (like the 3 Mile Weight Loss Walk). This is for those who want predominantly low impact floor (or hi/lo) aerobics that's pretty simple to follow. I don't know about you, but in my workout collection there's always room for a straightforward cardio segment with no jumping around and no twisting and turning, with enough to keep the mind from falling asleep but not so much that steam comes out of my ears, with realistic consideration for the amount of workout space available to those of us who live in apartments or small houses (especially ones we have to share other beings, human and/or animal), and with only a pair of sneakers required. I've heard aerobics is passé these days, but sometimes a girl just wants to grapevine and repeat those knees rather than walk, walk, walk, mambo and chasse, do burpees (ugh!) and mountain climbers (double ugh!), or kick and punch.

Love: The length of the video, and some of the moves I've not encountered before. This is the only video that exhausts my hip flexors.

Hate with a purple passion: The all-white set. I just can't buy any more Charlene tapes unless it goes away.

i have to say right away that i really enjoy low impact aerobics. im very thankful that people like charlene put out

low impact workouts that work for me.

There are two 30 minute workouts on this dvd. I have done the first and after doing 20 mins of low impact with charlene and her two friends today, i was sweaty, breathing heavily and smiling. and i was pleased to then have charlene take about 8 minutes to stretch out the legs afterward.

Charlene has 2 friends with her, they wear microphones so they count reps and chat and give form pointers along with charlene.

they workout on a completely white background so you can really see their bodies and what they are doing quite clearly. the white is a bit boring though when the choreography is not difficult -- at times it would have been nice to have something else to

rest the eyes on during the routine.

overall i thought that this was a solid fat-burner that used simple steps combined with big leg and arm movements to up the cardio factor.

i believe that the 2nd workout on the dvd is a bit more advanced.

Both workouts on this DVD are very short, coming in at under a half hour each. Both have mostly low impact moves, although they each contained one high impact movement. The choreography is basic and won't be foreign to anyone who has other Charlene workouts. What I like about these workouts is that they will be perfect for days when I want to work out with weights, but need a little cardio beforehand to warm me up. These will add options for those who usually get their low impact beginner workouts from Leslie Sansone tapes. My biggest concern is that I don't lose this DVD. It came in a very small, square, thin, clear plastic case - at least I won't have to search for space to store it in!