My first criticism is that the workouts are hard to follow the first time you do them. Unless you have done these specific workouts before, choosing what dumbbells to use is hard unless you just follow the recommended for me it got a little crazy running back and forth to the weight rack. Changing weights back and forth constantly to increase intensity can get a little frustrating when you have limited time to do so. If you have only one set of weights, height of bench/step, size of stability ball etc. this will not be a problem.
The movements in each workout get progressively harder throughout each session, this is a good thing for beginners. Participants can move from the easiest version to the next allowing time to focus on form and also allowing the option to stay with the basic movements and progress at your own pace. This adds problems for the intensity seeking individuals getting the right size dumbbells picked out. Making it very unappealing for someone wanting to jump in and go hard right away. I think MOST people should follow each progression to learn proper form regardless of fitness level but with a warning it will make the first two workouts, for lack of a better description VERY EASY. The guy keeps saying this should never be easy for anyone because you can always use heavier weights or start with the harder progressions....... true but unless you already know the progression or remember every progression from the last time you did the workout and on top of that know ahead of time what weight you need, it makes it very difficult to push yourself to the limit. Honestly my statements are very critical of an overall well set up program also the statements are more true of the first two workouts and less true of the third. If you do any fitness related movement for 45 seconds with 15 seconds rest for 30 minutes you WILL get a good workout. If you don't then you are not truly completing the entire 45 seconds or you are not going to the max and that is what you are supposed to do. 15 seconds is a short time to transition though and the pause button should be taken in to consideration during this sequence. I think maybe some better movements could have been picked but let me stress the Phase 1 is an overall good enjoyable workout for BEGINNERS and less enjoyable for the more experienced. If you have the movements memorized and can complete the hardest level of exercise without cue than even experienced can enjoy this workout no matter the level, but if you can do it without cue do you need a DVD? Most people probably yes.
There are some fairly progressive movements involved in Phase 1, a few that I had never seen done before or at least some slight variations. Most people should be learning quite a few new moves if anything that should keep them focused and in tune with what they are doing. The new variations did cause me some slight soreness but nothing too bad.
The beginner as I said before will be very pleased with Phase 1 of this series and the experienced...... not so much. If after 4 weeks of the same 3 workouts you don't know the movements by memory you may need to just write them down. I don't know how hard it would have been to have the list of all the sequences up on the screen or provide a sheet of the workouts to keep track of weights, reps and everything else for the participant. The instructor B.J. Gaddour seems to sweat more than humanly possible they must have the heat in the building up to 110 degrees. The commentary and yelling makes the overall experience fun and he constantly reminds you how much he like butts. Some may be turned off by his demeanor but most will probably like it and may even be very motivated by his personality. I was left thinking really? how can he be sweating that much......... I had planned to stay with Phase 1 for the recommended amount of time but out of shear boredom I am moving to Phase 2. I would just see myself constantly looking forward to Friday workout not so much because it is all that much better but because the week would be over. I have not given up on this DVD series yet, it has a lot of potential. I'm hoping Phase 2 is better than the first. Keep in mind I have not completed any of the bonus workouts and this may be key to reaching success with this program. My opinion of the first phase is probably lower than it should be, but I still encourage anyone interested at all to try it out. This might be just the thing you are looking for. This would be an excellent program for young athletes to do if they don't have an instructed resistance program available to them.
Slightly rambled and negative but hopefully you can find some information helpful in this review. I am moving on to phase 2 and hopefully I will enjoy it a little more so I can provide a more in depth informational review. Any questions or comments are appreciated. Look for a new review in a week or so.
