Whew, this is not an easy tape!

There are already a few reviews out for this one but I just had to add my 2 cents. I'm a Cathe/PS fan who also does the Firm, so I like them tough.

It's all weight-training and I like the way Fransesca breaks up the body parts so that you do one exercise for each body part, then come back and circuit again until you've done four exercises for each body part. I think that system breaks up the "work each part to exhaustion" routine so it's not repetitive or boring, and I actually did more reps and heavier weights with each successive round.

She simply does NOT stop! Like my sister says, "This woman does NOT sit down!" You don't use a bench to sit so it just keeps moving!

She uses 5lb weights, I used between 6-10lbs, the reps are slow enough you can pyramid up.

During the workout, the old cynic in me was looking for flaws (yes, the music is soft jazzy piano, but I actually liked it!). There I was, "Sure, but there's no calf work, whoa, looks like some calf pumps here... OK, so where's the chest work, you can't do that standing up... Oh, so now we go to the floor for chest then abs then chest then abs, then chest and abs....Help me..." and so on.

Some very interesting moves -- dumbbell flye circles where you do kind of a pullover, go into a flye then come together, all in a big circle. Try THAT with 10lb weights!. And Squats in every variation -- the slow ones will kill you. And static lunges starting in the lowered position (!).

She does some killer ab work, with some unique moves... lower body V-ins supported on your back with your hands under your lower back. And upper abs -- I think she called a crunch variation a "punch crunch" where you try to punch the wall between your legs while crunching up. She has great pointers -- "eyes are where the wall meets the ceiling" Bingo!

All in all, a pretty good workout -- the whole body in 55 minutes. No simple way to break this one up, save it for your Sunday AM when everyone else is asleep. A great tape to do when you're on vacation or at someone else's house and can't use a lot of equipment (or make a lot of noise!).

All you need is one or two sets of weights (you double up, two weights in one hand for rows, etc.) No benches, no barbells, no steps, no noise!

I give it two thumbs up!

Instructor Comments:
Fransesca is very good, straight-forward and non-intimidating, enthusiastic but not Denise Austin-perky, has excellent pointers and feedback. She does this funny little sigh of relief at the end of a tough set that I started to look forward to because then I'd know I wasn't alone!

Dawn P