I'm glad that I bought this. I needed a low impact step routine while nursing a foot injury last summer. This video fit the bill. It offers an upper intermediate/advanced level intensity - keep in mind, I use 8" risers - but it isn't stressful on the knees or feet.

For all its simplicity, this workout is aerobically challenging. I'm an advanced exerciser and I love the workout I get without the impact on my joints. The problem with this video is that it can get really boring. The moves are so brain-numbingly simple that I tend to feel like a human metronome while doing it for more than 20 minutes. But I can't bring myself to trade this video because it's ridiculously hard to find decent, low impact cardio tapes that push me into my training zone. My way around the boredom problem is this: I just do the last couple step sections of this tape as a tack-on to my shorter aerobic tapes. It works for me.

So this tape is NOT recommended for the step doyennes out there. If you want to RiverDance your way through step, this isn't the one to pick. Try this video if you're a beginning stepper with an advanced level of fitness …… if you have joint problems ... or if you're an experienced stepper who is desperate for an occasional lower impact workout and doesn't mind zoning out while doing simple step choreography. It also works if you want to tack on a relatively lower impact step video to another cardio workout -- say, just 10 to 20 minutes of stepping.

Other bonuses? Gilad is handsome, the steel guitar soundtrack is lively, and the Hawaian beach setting is just the ticket for dreary days.

Michelle Easton