I should begin by saying that I've never liked Denise; I used to see her TV show years ago, and I just always found her raspy voice and fake (to me) enthusiasm to be annoying. However, I recently saw this video in the library, so I decided to be open-minded and give it a try. There are two workouts on this video, each around 22 minutes in length; I'm guessing that they were taken from Denise's TV show, but the commercials breaks have been nicely smoothed over.

The first program is called Kickbox Blast Off. Prior to the start of the workout, Denise briefly reviews the different punches, which was helpful. The workout itself begins with a simple warm up which includes punches, moves on to some standing abs work (twists), and then goes into kick-punch combinations. The kickboxing work is low impact, but unfortunately, Denise throws in quite a few jacks; I could have done without these. I definitely enjoyed the kickboxing combos, but Denise's exceptionally poor cueing really detracted from the workout: she suddenly goes into new moves and combos with absolutely no warning or instruction. At times, I found myself looking to her six background exercisers for guidance (they often displayed better form anyway), but even they were obviously having trouble following Denise. Towards the end of the workout, there is some focused leg toning work, and then it ends with a 3-minute Tai Chi-like cool down.

The second program is called Interval Workout With Weights. In this workout, Denise alternates 3-minute cardio intervals with 1-minute light toning intervals. After the 3-minute warm-up, the first cardio segment was somewhat dancey and included mambos and chassés. The first toning interval focused on shoulders, and then it was back to cardio for a kickboxing segment. Next came biceps work, another dancey cardio interval, back and triceps work, and then a final kickboxing interval prior to the 4-minute cool-down. The workout is mostly low-impact, but Denise does include some jacks and plyometric moves. Although Denise's cueing was again off, she repeats many of the moves, so I was eventually able to follow along. This workout did nicely raise my heart rate, but I felt that the toning segments were pretty inconsequential (using heavier weights would help). There are only two background exercisers in this segment.

If these two workouts were led by a different instructor, I probably would have really enjoyed them, but Denise's poor cueing and form definitely had a negative impact. These workouts are probably best suited to advanced beginners; I'm more in the intermediate category, but using my 1-lb. weighted gloves during both workouts increased the intensity for me. I'm glad I gave this video a shot, but at this point, I probably would not be willing to workout with Denise again.

Instructor Comments:
I know some people like Denise's personality; I don't, but I could have put up with it if her cueing was not so abysmal. It also seemed like Denise was trying to copy other instructors here--including Billy Blanks from Tae Bo fame and Kathy Smith from her Peak Fat-Burning workout--but her imitation does not come close to the originals. There are so many great instructors out there that's it's a really shame so many beginners start with Denise (and most likely struggle in the process).

Beth C (aka toaster)