Advanced Step (aka Great Step)

Andre Houle
Year Released: 2001

Categories: Step Aerobics


I just love this video. It is a lot of fun and the music is great. Andre's enthusiasm in this video is extremely catching and it is hard for me not to feel good when I do this workout.

I like this workout more than 9901, because it is newer, faster paced and has better music. However, I think on some technical points, CIA 9901 is a better video. He teaches and breaks down the moves better and I prefered the way he TIFTED. (My favorite method - combos 1&2, then 3&4, and finally 1&2&3&4.) In this video some of the moves are thrown at you. He does break down some, but there are a few times where you might stare at the TV in confusion.

The choreography is fun and I think there are 3 combos. It seems like there are more, but at the end, that is what I counted. The warm up is a pretty good combo by itself and he actually does it again after teaching the first cardio combo. I was afraid he would include it throughout the workout, which is a pet peeve of mine, but he only did it one time.

I think the real reason I love this workout is Andre's enthusiasm. My initial reaction is that the choreography is great, but I wonder if someone else was teaching if I might just categorize it as "good". For example, he does the 360 move which is in a lot of videos. I have never been especially excited by this move before. However, in this video I just love it. He calls it "jump" and every time he cues it, he yells "jump, jump" and lifts his arms up out to the side, and for some reason it really motivates me. The music also motivates, energizes and fits in well with the choreography.

Intensity wise and choreography wise I think this video is more advanced than CIA 9901. There were portions of CIA 9901 where it was a little slow with his breaking down of the moves. This workout is more non-stop. I would say it compares in intensity to a Christi Taylor step workout, but it is less complex in choreography.

For Andre fans, I think this video is a must!

Lisa C

05/07/2001