Richard Simmons
With strength work, I am an intermediate exerciser, who doesn’t really want to move up to advanced work generally, although I get there occasionally. I have really enjoyed getting into workouts on the ball and Pilates as an alternative to traditional strength training.
I had wanted to see this workout for awhile and someone was nice enough to send it to me for an SASE. I’m glad I saw it because now my curiosity is satisfied, but I won’t be keeping it. It’s just too easy of a workout. I think it would be good for someone who has learned good form on strength moves from other sources, but who is still at the beginner level. OK. Here’s my breakdown:
This workout is set looks like a workout studio with fake windows. There is a smaller group of background exercisers than in his cardio workouts, but there are still different shapes and sizes represented. Richard is his typical self – encouraging and enthusiastic. There are some form pointers throughout the workout, but he does not explain how to do the moves. The music was good and helped motivate my workout. There is a warm up, then an endurance section with lighter weights and a strength section with heavier weights, then he focuses on abs, and then he cools down.
ENDURANCE SECTION: Mostly upper body moves with plie squats and calf raises. Some moves he does slowly first and then more quickly. He recommends 1-5 pounds. I used 8 pounds.
STRENGTH SECTION: Again, most of the moves were for the upper body and plie squats. He recommends 3-5 pounds. I used 10 pounds.
ABS: Crunches, kick ups, and a few supermen
Instructor comments:
He is his usual upbeat, supportive self.
Laura S.
August 12, 2005
Richard's cardio workouts are among my
favorites- the music, the happy casts,
the elaborate sets all make workouts
such fun for me. But his forays into
resistance training, or toning, have been
flatly disappointing (with the possible
exception of Broadway Tone), and this is
no exception. after the warm up, the
first segment is light weights. Richard
calls it endurance, but it isn't a true
muscle endurance set- its nowhere long
enough. Mostly you do fast upper body
moves while doing plies. Richard does
not instruct lower body form at all and
his form is bad. In plie squats, he
seems to move to the side, and not
straight down. You definitely need to
know proper form for basic strength
moves to do this, since Richard doesn't
offer many form pointers. The next set
is strength and Richard says to use 5-8
pounds, which may be fine to start but
many exercisers will want to move up to
heavier weights quickly, or will to
customize what they use for which
exercise. having said that, I think it
would hard for most exercisers to go
much higher than 10 pounds, since
some of the reps in this set are still
done at a fast pace (not as fast as
endurance) but still not as slow as in
typically demonstrated by more
knowledgable lifters. And the
transitions from one exercise to the
next are very fast, so it would be hard to
really use the right weight for each part.
Next is abs- your basic ab routine on
the floor with little instruction. While
the music isn't well known hits, like
Richard usually uses, these songs sound
like pop music. Its got a good beat and
didn't really stand out to me one way or
the other. Overall, I'm not sure exactly
who the target audience is for this- the
simplicity of the movements, relative
ease of the routine and Richard's
presence seems to say beginners, but
the lack of instruction makes it more
appropriate for someone who has some
weight training background. the music,
and Richard are both fun, so it makes a
nice little alternative for someone who
wants to do a little light weights and
little slightly heavier weights. It isn't
really for me, but if you're looking for a
fairly fast, easy, fun weight routine to do
on off days, you could do worse. This
isn't a good pick for someone new to
weights, or to form the backbone of
your lifting program, but as an easy
weights option, for someone who
doesn't mind Richard's style, this isn't a
bad workout to consider.
Instructor comments:
Richard is Richard- funny, encouraging,
motivating. that said, he offers very
little instruction for these basic strength
moves, and his form is sometimes off,
especially for lower body moves.
linda