Video Fitness

The Firm: Universal Cardio Trainer (audio)

Susan Harris

Excellent audio for a short cardio session. I used it to walk, but according to the Firm, it can be adapted to cardio equipment such as stairclimbers, also. One unfortunate thing is that both sides of the cassette are the same (and kind of short), but I read a suggestion on the forum that said if you want a longer workout, to just flip the tape over right before the cooldown and keep going. I don't remember how much time this added, though. Somewhere in the vicinity of 45 minutes of cardio, I think, instead of the 30 present if you use the tape as is.

The workout consists of a walking stretch / warmup, a 30 minute variable intensity cardio phase (128-136 bpm), a 3 minute cooldown / stretch and four minutes of abs and pushups.

I got an incredibly good workout in considering how short the tape was (I would consider myself advanced intermediate cardio-wise). But that could have been partially due to the fact that it was in the 90's and humid.

I recognized some of the music from Better Body and Buns and I'm assuming the rest of it came from the other Tritrainer videos, but I'm not sure. It works wonderfully for walking. I liked it a lot more than my other walking tapes (a 70's mix and and 80's/90's mix). I hated it every time I hit a stoplight because I just wanted to keep on going to the music. Traffic probably found me amusing bouncing around on the curb while waiting for the light to change.

I would recommend this tape to anyone who wants to incorporate walking into their fitness program. The tape is shorter than some (most others I've seen are about an hour), but that would make this one especially valuable for days when you're short on time.

Instructor comments: I like Susan in general and she was great on this tape. She talked enough to be motivational, but not so much as to be annoying.

Karen Nagel
sabella@sparky.pharmacy.purdue.edu
6/10/99



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