CIA 9908: Two Workouts in One

Jennifer Mills Palmer
Year Released: 1999

Categories: Floor Aerobics/Hi-Lo/Dance , Step Aerobics


I really like both workouts on this video - especially the step, however I know I can never put this video into heavy rotation. This is because of the way she teaches. Like most CIA videos there is a lot of taking it from the top (hereafter called TIFT so I don't have to keep typing it), but Jennifer takes this idea to the extreme. She did the same thing in her earlier video 8003. If you liked 8003 and were not bothered by her TIFTing then just skip the next paragraph because you might think I am really strange and a bit obsessive!

Instead of teaching a combo and then TIFTing, she TIFTS after teaching almost each and every move. After doing both routines once I felt it was more irritating in the hi/lo than the step. It seemed like in the step she taught a few moves together before TIFT. The next time I did the routines I tested my theory and counted the TIFTs. I might have missed some (I was working out at the time) but I think I got most. There were 13 and 1/2 TIFTs in the hi/low (and one TIFT means once on the left and once on the right) and 11 in the step routine. So, yes it happens a bit less in the step routine, and I think there might be a little bit more choreography in that routine than the hi/low.

Besides this fact (which obviously irritates me) I think both routines are good. The hi/low is a nice routine which is pretty easy to learn. It is sort of dancy, but it doesn't have to be. Jennifer just has a lot of flair when she does the routine. She seems like a Broadway dancer to me when she is doing the hi/low. Unfortunately the best part of the routine (IMO) is towards the end, so you don't do it as much as the earlier part with all that TIFTing! I like the samba and the side-kick grapevines. Overall, I think the routine is less intense than her hi/low in 8003. In my mind I am placing the hi/low routine in the category of routines that I like to do when my body is sore, because it is not super-high impact but still can be a low advanced routine intensity wise if I want to make it so. (This group includes, 9801 hi/low, 9807, 9005, and 9802 hi/low).

And while I like the hi/low routine, I love the step routine. It is great fun and like I said earlier, it does not contain as many TIFTs. I think this step routine is a lot more fun than 8003, with a lot more creative choreography, but it was still easy to learn. One move I never really like is lunging off the step, but in this workout she makes it fun.

Overall, this tape is a keeper for me, but I know I cannot do it too often. If I do I will tire of it because of all the TIFT. This is what happened to me with 8003 and I don't want that to happen with this tape, which really is good. I plan on doing the step maybe once a month and the hi/low maybe every two months. I think that way it will stay fresh and new to me.

When I think about Jennifer, I think of the word goofy - but I don't mean it in a negative way. She likes to act silly and has a lot of fun. Working out with her is fun. She is a pretty good instructor and fairly easy to follow. I like her choreography, I just wish she would change her take-it-from the top philosophy.

Lisa C

10/24/1999