Prevention Walk Yourself Fit

Chris Freytag
Year Released: 2006

Categories: Walking Aerobics


DVD Review:
The DVD has 3 workouts (separate chapters for each workout):
Accelerated workout
Body-shaping workout (uses weights)
Cardio workout

The set is bright and there's 4 cast members, including Michele Stanten. i have a hard time watching Michele because she almost appears a bit uncoordinated. I noticed this in Prevention 3-2-1 workout. Michele is the fitness editor/columnist for Prevention Magazine.

Workout #1:
more like a high-low aerobics workout in that there's more variety in arm-movements (compared with Leslie Sansone). Lots of side to side movements. However, it has more walking than say, Michele Dozois' Walk Yourself Slim which tends to be more of a hi/lo floor workout. Chris tells you how far you've walked (quarter mile intervals); for example, at 7 minutes, it's already a quarter of a mile, and the BPM is 148. Some of it toward the middle is high impact (in out, in out car tires feet). Total distance is 1 mile. I was slightly below the 70% level and next time i think i'll add weighted gloves.

Workout 2:
1) walking warm-up
2) standing movements with light dumbbells
3) walking without weights; There's also messages that indicate the distance you've walked (half mile at the 10-min mark, 132 BPM).
4) standing toning segment (at around the 11 min mark.
5) walking without weights the 4th body shaping segment (at 14 min, she says its 3/4 of a mile.
6) weights with yoga stances are used in the standing position (warrior) for about 2 min.
7) Then walking without weights.
8) At 17 min, she picks up the weights again. The segment ends at 18:44, and she says "you've completed 1 mile" which is about right.
9) Cool Down is about 4 minutes.

Workout 3:
without weights; Chris says in the beginning that you'll go for 1.5 miles for the entire workout (this must include the warm-up and cool down). Mostly the same moves as workout #1 except at a faster pace (140 BPM); quarter mile at around 6:10. My heartrate averaged slightly below the 70% level for this workout - i think next time i'll add weighted gloves. Duration wise, it's slightly longer than the other 2 workouts.

Music on the DVD is fun - pop/dance mostly.


The Audio CD workout:
comes with the DVD workout - both are sold as a set on 2 separate discs in one DVD keep case. The audio workout is not a "rehash" of the DVD workout - it's a completely different workout altogether. durations are shown as mintes:seconds. BPM = beats per minute. Neither the CD cover nor CD label have a description of the tracks; i got the descriptions by listening to Chris's verbal synopsis and tracks by viewing the file structure using Windows Media Player. BPM were determined by tapping my finger and counting the beats.

Track 1, 0:46; Chris describes the program
Track 2, 5:02; 108 BPM warm-up
Track 3, 9:22; 120-128 BPM moderate steady pace walk
Track 4, 9:15; 140-138 (starts at 140, ends at 138 BPM) vigorous steady pace workout
Track 5, 16:11; 124/132 (3 min at 124 BPM, then 1 min at 132 BPM) about 4 cycles
Track 6, 17:04; 138/156 (3 min at 138 BPM, then 1 min at 156 BPM; advanced interval walk
Track 7, 15:33; 108-140-108 Pyramid walk (starts out moderate, gradually increases speed, then back down the pyramid
Track 8, 5:00; cool down

Music on the CD is instrumental and has a variety of styles, but mostly electronica/jazz/rock guitar. in track 3 (?) there is one segment that sounds a little blue-grass, but has a quick beat.

I liked this audio better than Debbie Rocker's audio CDs. My all-time favorite audios are the ones from Kathy Smith, especially her WalkFit 3-CD set and her Steady Strides from Project You.

Chris allows you time to listen to and get into the music. she provides a few cues between the times when the music either speeds up or slows down. I thought Kathy Smith gives a lot more cues on form yet at the same time, wasn't chattering non-stop (Debbie Rocker chatters non-stop). Leslie Sansone's audio, "Walking for Everybody Advanced" surprisingly has very little chattering from Leslie ~ you'd expect the opposite!

For this workout, it's best to play the CD or download it into your MP3 player so that you can skip to the cool down when you're ready.

I liked this set as an alternative to Leslie or even George/Petra.

Instructor Comments:
: DVD: Chris is motivating to me. I can see how some people might be annoyed by her perkiness (not as perky as Denise Austin, though). She is encouraging which is nice. Calls to her cast members every so often while facing the front (as if on cue).

CD: Speaks clearly, provides just enough form tips throughout the workout, but fortunately, does not jabber non-stop. Motivating tone.

bzar

03/12/2007