The Tracy Anderson Method - Dance Cardio Workout II [DVD]

I have recently bought this dvd as a supplement to my gym sessions as I have a small child and find it hard to get to the gym more than twice a week now (I like to do at least 3 workouts a week). I have purchased lots of other dancey type dvds and find this one the most similar to the Body Jam class I have done at the gym for about 10 years and it is equally as energetic as Body Jam. Other dvds are a bit too easy and not dancey enough, therefore get boring very quickly and do not make me build up enough of a sweat (this one certainly does!)

I have put the dvd going twice so far and am finding the learning side of the moves a bit frustrating. Tracy explains the moves very well in the instructional sections of the dvd although I noticed she doesn't do the mirror image instructions as accurately as instructors at the gym. If she is using her right leg she should be telling viewers to use the left vice versa otherwise you end up on wrong foot when doing turns. Once I realised this and thought about which leg I should use and which way I should go it became a bit easier. When you get to the main workouts with music you have the option to view Tracy from the front or back. If you find it easier with the back view, this option is spoiled by the fact the instructional parts are all front facing only. It is a bit confusing if switching from doing the moves slowly front facing to fast rear facing!

There are 7 combinations that can all be played separately or all in one go. I at first tried doing them all in one go. Not a chance yet! I have changed my strategy to learning the first combination by going over and over the instructional part of it about 30 times, rewinding and replaying any bits that were a bit tricky. Once a bit more confident I did the main combination 1 workout which is about 10 minutes long, over and over again. I have now mastered this and have moved on to learning combination 2.

I am a bit gobsmacked that there is absolutely no mention of, let alone the inclusion of, a warm up, stretch or cool down! The moves are very hi impact and having done aerobic and dance classes for years at the gym I know how important is to warm up, stretch and cool down when you are working out this intensively. Anyone who delved into it and bounced around like mad immediately without thinking about doing some stretches could get badly injured! I would therefore think twice about purchasing this dvd if you are quite new to excercise. I just do my own warm up to the combination 1 music and stretch at the end of the combination. When I get to doing the whole 7 of the combinations at once I will remember to cool down at the end.

The other thing about this dvd that may put others off is the fact that once you get to the main workouts, Tracy does not talk at all, it is just good dancey music. So you have to be able to learn the moves then remember them without having any prompts apart from by watching her. On combination 1 it is difficult to know when to come in at the beginning because for approximately the first 20 seconds the beat doesn't really match the moves, but this soon changes after the 20 seconds or so. It doesn't even really look like Tracy is sure about when to come in herself on this combination. The 2nd combination is fine where this is concerned though and I like the no yap myself as that can get annoying when you are doing the same workout time and time again.

The 7 combinations with the option of playing them individually means that if you don't have a lot of time you could just do up to 3 or 4 of them, or even just 1 builds up a bit of a sweat. I think they are all about 10 minutes each.

For me this is a good buy and I know that once I have all the moves completely sussed I am going to enjoy flying around the room like a thing possessed! And hopefully I will be shedding the half a stone by March that I have promised myself as my new year's resolution! Oh, you do need quite a bit of room but all the moves I have done so far are fine on carpet which is a plus.

I highly recommend this dvd if you are quite fit, love hi energy dance and can be patient with yourself while you learn the moves.

I have been a loyal Tracy Anderson follower for the past 3 years so I consider myself to be fit, healthy and full of energy.
I bought this DVD as soon as it was available hoping it would be much like the Total Cardio Workout, I was very wrong and very disappointed.
It says on the back that 'for all levels of ability', it should say 'for professional dancers only'. I'm not lazy and I do not lack dedication, unless you have a living room the size of a dance studio and can follow complicated dance moves I would give this DVD a wide birth.

My first attempt at her first combination left me amazed at how hard it was to remember the steps - after a few moves I thought, right that must be it, but it just carried on and on until I couldn't remember the first few steps anymore! By the time I gave up I hadn't even broken a sweat - would much prefer a workout that just starts for you to copy so at least you can burn some calories whilst trying!