If it hadn't been for CIA's Christmas coupon, I might have never experienced this wonderful workout. Sherry and her partner, Junior, had failed to impress me in CIA 5001, but on her own, Sherry breaks loose with a dancy, uplifting video backed by good music ("good" in the CIA context, meaning that we haven't heard it ten times already!). Everyone knows by now that finding a good floor routine makes me feel like I struck gold, and this one is a nugget. The warmup really warms you up with heel digs and other fast moves, then Sherry teaches four "blocks" of choreography filled with the mambos, spinning and leaping that dancers like me crave. There's a grapevine where you do a quick spin at each end, turning chasses and much more fun stuff. It takes up some room, but not as much as 9801 and I was able to do most of it in place. I'd rate both the intensity and complexity the same as 9802 with Faith Scarinzi. At the end, Sherry takes it from the top a couple of times, then does the whole thing on the right and then on the left.

For the step half, I had to lower my step to 6 inches to learn the moves - it's not quite as complex as 9801, but it's close. Again, there are four blocks, and Sherry wakes you up almost immediately with lateral lunges like in Body Max, followed by dizzying twirls and even a leap over the step! The cooldown is one of my favorites, a sensual, flowing routine which is a refreshing change from the usual funky cooldowns. Sherry's cueing isn't the best, and learning her moves requires some patience. But just approach it with a relaxed, "gotta dance" spirit, and it may grab you too. Grade: A

Instructor Comments:
Bubbly and perky she's not, but Sherry strikes me as a dance instructor with a heart. It's too bad she isn't more thorough with her cueing - saying "left" and "right" would make this workout 100% easier to learn. But she has great potential and I hope she does more CIAs on her own.

Sue B