This is a CIA Two Workouts In One video. I am only reviewing the cardio strike workout.

Although I never do the Boot Camp (it just seemed *way* too goofy with all Terri's mock drill sargeant antics, and the workout isn't fun enough to overcome that), I felt I got my money's worth with the cardio strike workout. It's a fun, 40-minute workout of high-intermediate to low-advanced intensity.

There are three combinations; each one is done twice on each side. The first begins with a punch-punch to the front, backward elbow thrusts and side-kick lunge that turns into side-kick knee. Then you add on a one-two punch plus knee, shuffle forward, front kick/back kick and plie back, and a front-kick going into back lunge to each corner. I really don't like this particular move---it's too fast for the lunge to do anything but make you lose your balance. The combo ends with plyo jumps.

The second combo includes a punch-elbow and "soccer kick" to the front ( I just do a front kick); a jab-cross-elbow-duck in slow and double-time, sumo squats and football shuffles with front hand blocks. The ending plyo move here works your inner thighs a bit.

The final combo involves double punches to each corner, a shuffle-knee-kick-plyo back, knee smash sequence and then a pretty tough kick series--front kick, back kick and front jump kick, then front and back kicks leading to jumping jack-side kicks and a jack-front-back-side kick combo. The ending plyo is a three-jack-leap-squat-stand.

Her two background exercisers struggle a bit, but seem game and plucky. I kind of like seeing casts who aren't Amazon-cut and impossibly Hollywood-pretty.

Set looks like an art studio loft. Music is standard Dynamix-instrumental, synchronizes pretty well.

Terri seems to have a dancer's background and it actually IMO distorts her kickboxing form a bit--her kicks look flowy, not snap-recoil. But I thought the combos were well put together and the workout always goes by pretty fast. Solid 40-minute cardio workout.

Instructor Comments:
I didn't like her at first, but she kinda grew on me. She does a lot of "uhs" and "oofs" during the kickboxing moves, and they can get kinda grating if you were paying attention--but the workout is good enough that I'm not. Her humor is a little silly but pleasant. Her voice is husky and sometimes gets on my nerves, but not too badly. Cues competently.

acey