Pilates Beginning Mat Workout
Amazon.com
"Remember what Joseph Pilates said," instructor Ana Caban says. "'You will feel better in 10 sessions, look better in 20 sessions, and have a completely new body in 30 sessions.'" Pilates has become very well loved and for excellent reason. By working the core muscles (the abdominal and back muscles in the center of your body) you improve strength and posture and develop a lean, long line.
Certified Pilates instructor Ana Caban is a splendid teacher. First she demonstrates alignment and technique for 10 minutes, explaining the cue words you will hear and how to do the basics, emphasizing how to use the core muscles to strengthen the abdominals and back throughout the workout. Then she introduces a challenging 20-minute series of Pilates moves, instructing clearly, demonstrating perfectly, and continuing to advise you about technique, breathing, and form.
Even though this is a beginning Pilates workout, Pilates is never simple, so these moves will feel extremely hard if you're new to this kind of exercise. For example, you learn to hold your abs tight whatever go you're doing, and you go only the muscles you're working at the moment, using your stabilizing muscles to hold the rest of the body still (much harder than it sounds!). Another participant demonstrates modifications throughout in case Caban's moves are too hard or your muscles fatigue. If you've been wanting to explore Pilates and you're willing to place in the effort and concentration, this video gets our top rating. --Joan Price
April 30th, 2010 - 08:36
Product is faulty and jolts in my dvd. A complete waste of money as I will not sell to someone knowing it’s faulty, unlike this seller.
Rating: 1 / 5
April 30th, 2010 - 09:45
I bought the Pirates’ Beginning Mat Workout in an effort to ensure the excellent health and combat-readiness of my crew on our long ocean voyages raiding merchant vessels on the Spanish Main. To my dismay, I learned that the excersize program was completely unsuited to the demands of seamenship and hand-to-hand combat, but seemed to be aimed at land-loving couch potatos out to trim a few extra pounds off their beer guts. If you value the lives of your crew, I strongly urge you to spend your loot elsewhere.
Rating: 2 / 5
April 30th, 2010 - 12:10
I am sick of these generic instructional tapes with absolutely no creative thinking process or objective to really guide the student through an effective routine. Save your money. Take a class!
Rating: 1 / 5
April 30th, 2010 - 15:02
The product was ok. But, I had a HUGE problem with Amazon. First, your website does not give a confirmation page to proof before you submit your order. When I got the email confirmation a few minutes later, it showed I ordered 2 DVD’s instead of 1! I immediately phoned a representative at Amazon because the website would not let me make a change to my order because the website said it was already “processing”. This was within minutes of placing my order. A nice lady I spoke to on the phone said she canceled the entire order for me. But then, about a week later, I received “2″ DVD’s! I went to the return page to return the extra DVD, but it said I could only replace the extra DVD with the same item, not return it. So now I have received and paid for 2 DVD’s when I only ordered one! I will never do business with Amazon again! I’m sure this review will never be posted.
Rating: 2 / 5
April 30th, 2010 - 17:16
I reckon the title of my review says it all already. The workout is not terrible, but it is only about half an hour long ( including the initial instructions about breathing ) and there is virtually no warm-up. The instructor makes you start with ‘the hundred’ and claims that ‘this is your warm-up’.
Rating: 3 / 5