Get Extremely Ripped: Lean Machine

Jari Love
Year Released: 2010

Categories: Total Body Workouts


Currently, I am coming back from a really bad fitness year and am looking at all of my old workouts to see which still appeal to me. This is a DVD that I will keep, if only for the Weights & Abs workout - it's the reason I orginally got the DVD and the reason why I'll keep it.

I've tried many of Jari's workouts over the years, but have kept none of them after a time because they were just too long and, in some cases, too boring. This one, Weights & Abs, appealed to me because (1) I read raves about this workout specifically with details about the workout that appealed to me and (2) the 30-minute time frame. It actually appears on two different Jari DVDs and I chose the Lean Machine option because the cover claimed to contain "3 30-minute workouts" on the cover. Since I'm into shorter workout options these days, that sounded great. Keep in mind though that there are not three separate options on this DVD, but rather Lean Machine, a 56-minute workout with two longer segments - 30ish minutes and 26ish minutes. (The other DVD it's on is Get Extremely RIPPED! Body Rock.)

Weights & Abs does not include a warm-up, so you'll need to select the Warm-Up separately from the main menu. As with Jari's other strength workouts, this workout is broken up into separate segments working particular body parts, with the weight ranges used by Jari and the five background exercisers shown on screen. For some reason, this workout just flows for me and I find myself not watching the clock. The moves are creative enough to not seem like the same old, same old and the sequence of moves just flows and I don't watch the clock at all.

Lean Machine is different than her earlier workouts that I did - I think mainly because she tried to incorporate dance elements into the beginning of it. If you're a fan of dance, don't get excited; it's not really dance, but rather movements that go along with the synchronized strength movements. After a very fast warm up, Jari does this dance section with multiple background exercisers, none of which are a modifier other than carrying a lighter weight. In fact, Jari herself modifies some of the moves to take out the bounce or jump. In most of these sections, she starts with a lower body move that seems like a cardio move and then she adds a toning move to do with it. This segment seems to be a workout to itself and lasts about 30 minutes.

In the next segment, she does more traditional isolated strength work. In each section, she focuses on specific muscles, sometimes supersetting between two different sets of muscles. This segment lasts around 26 minutes and must be the third 30-minute workout they refer to on the DVD cover. However, it is not accessible except to go through the Lean Machine menu option and fast forward or skip to where it starts.

When I do it, Lean Machine is one of those workouts that I wonder why I don't do more often because it is so very different from other workouts. Plus, she includes a little bit of work in it for the low back, a problem area for me and, again, I wonder why I don't do it more often. Then, I don't for a long time. Regardless, I give Jari kudos for trying something different in it. However, Weights & Abs is a workout that do regularly at longer intervals than I should, but that is an integral part of my strength building collection.

Instructor Comments:
I have found Jari kind of stiff and non-engaging in other workouts of hers (although I had liked her). Here, she is more relaxed and engaging which she still focuses on form and pointers.

Laura S.

04/29/2015