The Firm: Better Buns & Body (aka Better Buns)

Jennifer Peluso, Jen Carman, Taber Bruner
Year Released: 2000

Categories: Lower Body Strength


This video is OK-- of the Tri-Trainers, it's my least favorite. I thought that 45 minutes of mostly lower body work would be extremely tough, but it isn't. That said, it is a decent workout. You do sweat plenty. There is about one set for each upper body muscle, a very good ab section and then the rest is lower body work. There are two sets of leg press. These are tough. So are the two sets of hover squats. Yeow! The rest of it is kind of pointless, I think. There are these side to side steps with no weights that I didn't feel at all. There are squats with the dowel. Again, nothing. I substituted regular weighted squats here. There is some decent, though short, weighted table work, and some worthless leg extensions with no weight-- like 5 on each leg-- didn't feel a thing. Then Jennifer Peluso does these strange "leg sweeps" lying on your side, combined with her "cleansing breaths" (I thought she had a cold when I first watched this). She has no ankle weights on for this. I kept my ankle weights on and these did burn a little. There is also tall box climb, which is good, and a series of plyometric jumps to keep up your heart rate, and a set of lunge/dips.

The music in this is also excellent, including classical for the warmup and cooldown and some neat new-agey stuff near the end.

Still, I am waiting for Standing Legs to arrive and I'm sure that once it does, I won't do this video much anymore. Once in awhile it fits the bill. Whenever I do this video, when I reach the end I say, "Is that ALL?"

Instructor Comments:
I really don't like any of these three instructors. Taber is OK. She's got a nice voice but she's extremely fake-- like she's reading right off a cue card (which she is!). Jennifer Carman is a little too enthusiastic and Jennifer Peluso-- well, what can I say? :) She is the most bizarre instructor the FIRM has ever picked.

Sara Whitney

04/17/1999